![[Redefine business models] No, mum, I don’t just visit farms: The real work of impact management](https://images.beamly.com/fetch/https%3A%2F%2Fd3t3ozftmdmh3i.cloudfront.net%2Fstaging%2Fpodcast_uploaded_episode%2F44464617%2F44464617-1761735112035-6f70831f6b31e.jpg?w=365)
What does it really take to make impact management work inside a company?
Theme: Redefine business models
Topic: Regenerative business
Language: English
In this episode, Ana sits down with Kate to unpack the concept of the “outcome gap”—the distance between corporate commitments and the reality of change on the ground.
Through stories of both success and struggle, they explore how organizations can bridge compliance and responsibility, address barriers in workers’ rights, and use data as a powerful tool for learning and accountability. Kate also shares what gives her hope for the future of impact management, why she sees feedback as a gift, and how professionals can stay motivated when the work feels challenging.
You’ll learn:
What the “outcome gap” reveals about accountability in impact work
How to balance compliance, responsibility, and real-world progress
Practical ways to stay resilient and hopeful when driving systemic change
Key Quotes:
"How does your mum explain what you do to the neighbours?"
"I’m not sure she gets it. I think that she thinks that I visit farms and factories and make judgments. And she's kind of always asking for a freebie: “Can you get anything from these guys?” I'm like, no, mum, it doesn't work like that."
"Really, it's about what change you want to create.” “(1) Make a plan, (2) track the plan, (3) review the plan. It's a process, embedded and using data to support decisions."”
"Being curious about the process and not being scared is a big thing in our space.”A usual reaction is being quite terrified when the data tells us bad things. And actually, we need to see that feedback is a gift. We need to know that, and then we can do something about it."
"There is a row back reigning in commitments from lots of different companies across the world. That is happening. But what gives me some hope is that I don't see it happening everywhere. In fact, l'm seeing more interest in this topic than ever.”“I think the people who care about impact are becoming more senior, and they are getting bigger budgets and they are doing the actual work."
Guest Bio:
Kate Robinson, The Outcome Gap
Kate Robinson has spent 20 years working in business and human rights. She has worked in research and impact roles at the Ethical Trading Initiative, Sedex, the UN and more. Kate founded the Outcome Gap in 2023 to help responsible sourcing professionals improve human rights in their supply chains.
Kate's website: www.theoutcomegap.com
Kate's latest report: Empowering Cocoa Cooperatives through Data Ownership (Sept 2025), by The Outcome Gap and Farmerline, commissioned by Fairtrade and Mondelez:
Host Bio:
Ana Maksimovic, kindred consulting
Ana has worked across sustainability from multiple sides, as a consultant, within a certification body, and as a long-time workshop facilitator in business settings. Over the past decade, she’s supported more than 150 small and mid-sized companies across the EU, especially in the apparel and food & beverage sectors.
She specialises in helping EU brands lead on sustainability through actionable systems. With experience across the outdoor, apparel, and food & beverage sectors, she works with leadership teams to make sustainability strategy clear, actionable, and embedded in day-to-day decision-making. She’s trained as a GRI Certified Sustainability professional and practitioner in design thinking for sustainability, but more than that, she brings a structured, systems-based approach that helps companies and their teams move from abstract goals to shared direction.
Website: https://consultingkindred.com