Monitor Group Honored for Leadership in Pro Bono Service

Business Wire, Feb 12, 2008

Firm Receives Presidential Recognition at 'Pro Bono Summit'

NEW YORK -- Monitor Group, a leading global advisory and consulting firm, will receive a Pro Bono Award from the President's Council on Service and Civic Participation tonight as part of the first-ever Summit on Corporate Volunteerism.

The Pro Bono Award honors companies that are setting standards of excellence in offering pro bono corporate skills to solve social challenges. Monitor is receiving the "Strategic" award for its visionary approach of incorporating pro bono service into its business operating plan.

The spotlight comes as part of a two-day "Pro Bono Summit" bringing together 150 top corporate, government, and nonprofit leaders to launch a multi-year campaign to dramatically increase the amount of skilled volunteering and pro bono service employees give to nonprofits and communities. Leaders will discuss strategies for making the idea of "pro bono" as common in marketing, finance, technology, HR, logistics and other professions as it is in the legal field.

"By addressing major social issues at their root and leveraging its full spectrum of assets - intellectual, social, philanthropic, networking and financial capital - Monitor is driving a new brand of capitalism that focuses on impact and results for organizations, communities, and individuals," said Mark Fuller, Monitor's Chairman and CEO.

Since 1998, Monitor Group has donated strategic resources and support to New Profit Inc., a nonprofit venture philanthropy fund that provides multi-year financial and strategic support to social entrepreneurs. Through this partnership, Monitor has donated tens of millions of dollars worth of strategic resources and support involving more than 250 Monitor consultants. Monitor also has other social impact activities that are coordinated through the Monitor Institute, a mission driven social enterprise that pioneers breakthrough approaches to pressing social and environmental challenges through a combination of consulting, initiatives, research, and long-term partnerships.

Monitor Group is one of six companies or organizations that will receive top honors at the Pro Bono Awards ceremony taking place this evening at the Harvard Club. Other awardees are the Advertising Council; General Electric; Harvard Business School Community Partners; McKinsey & Company; and Pentagram Design.

"Monitor Group is setting a powerful example of corporate citizenship that we hope other companies will follow," said Jean Case, Chair of the President's Council. "Embracing a pro bono approach is good for employees, the community, and the bottom line. America's businesses have an extraordinary pool of skilled talent, and engaging corporate volunteers on a large scale could make a profound difference in the well-being of our communities and our country."

The Summit on Corporate Volunteerism is a collaboration of the President's Council on Service and Civic Participation, the Corporation for National and Community Service, UPS, the Taproot Foundation, Points of Light & Hands on Network, and the USA Freedom Corps with support from the Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy. The Pro Bono Awards are an initiative of the President's Council on Service and Civic Participation, established in 2003 by President Bush to recognize the important contributions individuals and organizations are making within their communities through volunteering and civic engagement.

About Monitor Group

Monitor Group works with the world's leading corporations, governments and social sector organizations to drive growth on the issues that are most important to them. The firm offers a range of services - advisory, capability-building and capital services - designed to unlock the challenges of achieving sustained growth. Founded in 1983 by six entrepreneurs, including Harvard Business School Professor Michael Porter and Monitor's current Chairman Mark Fuller, Monitor brings leading edge ideas, approaches and methods to bear on clients' toughest problems and biggest opportunities. Headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, the firm employs over 1,500 people in 22 countries worldwide. For more information visit www.monitor.com.

About the President's Council on Service and Civic Participation

The President's Council on Service and Civic Participation was established by President George W. Bush to recognize the important contributions Americans of all ages are making within their communities through service and civic engagement. Administered by the Corporation for National and Community Service, the Council brings together leaders from the worlds of business, entertainment, sports, education, government, nonprofits, and the media to encourage all Americans to get involved in their communities.