Harmonizing strategic advantage with social good through Data Philanthropy

With data stockpiles growing exponentially, a bevy of new vistas for data use opens up. The digital age affords a fresh perspective for research into Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) and their potential for bringing positive change. ICT can and should be leveraged for global development and social inclusion. One of the most novel ways for achieving that end has been by adopting Data philanthropy (DP) as a practice. Specifically, DP is an emerging concept aimed at using proprietary firm data from both private and public companies for social and strategic benefit (Taddeo, 2016). Given the centrality of data in all forms of ICT, DP has proven itself to be impactful for empowering societies with better insights while giving a competitive boost to participating firms. Companies like Genentech and Pfizer and social networking sites like Reddit have been donating their proprietary data to organizations like the UN to create a sound infrastructure to facilitate firm level data sharing.

Harmonizing strategic advantage with social good through Data Philanthropy Conference Paper