01
Social-impact consulting and its stakeholder map
The NGO implements. The government funds or regulates. The consultant sits in the middle and makes the system work.
Definition: problem solving for social good, with the consultant as orchestrator, facilitator and knowledge generator. Stakeholders: government (central, state, local), nonprofits, foundations (Gates, Dell), social enterprises, research and data organisations, private sector via CSR and public-private partnerships. Example: ACT Grants, a Rs 100 crore COVID fund raised by the VC industry and largely managed by Sattva, later joined by government. Principles: focus on vulnerable groups, leverage tech and data, build sustainable (scalable, affordable, accessible) interventions.
Why it mattersA sector most consulting courses skip.
02
Domains, offerings, the firms, and what hiring and pay look like
Freshers are hired on empathy, purpose and basic quant, not sector expertise. Pay starts below MBB and catches up.
Domains: CSR and sustainability/ESG, nonprofit advisory, social-business advisory, government consulting (Samagra), research and data (Sattva's India Data Insights). Offerings: strategy advisory (2 weeks to 3-4 months), programme design (4 weeks to 6 months), programme advisory through NGO partners, impact measurement (needs assessment before, impact assessment after), research, organisational capability building, due diligence, monitoring and evaluation throughout. Firms: pure plays (Sattva, Samagra, Dalberg, IDinsight, Bridgespan) vs impact divisions at BCG, PwC, Deloitte; also corporate CSR teams, think tanks, World Bank and UN agencies, foundations. Q&A: pay reaches par at mid or senior level; results take 1-2 years; research from IDI, India Development Review, Google Scholar, not raw Google; CSR spend is 2% of profit, disclosed to the Ministry of Corporate Affairs; reframe corporate conflicts so benefit is shared without compromising values.
Why it mattersA career path with the practical details filled in.