Embedding purpose into brand - one woman at a time!

Today, for brands to genuinely resonate it will take a lot more than big ideas, influencers and massive media budgets. This is where the question of ‘what do brands actually do’ comes in. Besides providing their product and service, what do they stand for and how are they willing to be part of society and communities at large? Consumers today want brands to demonstrate real value in their lives, to truly make an impact and be more than, for example, a quick-service restaurant serving a great meal.

So, can we create truly purpose-led brand behaviour in today’s unpredictable business environment? The simple answer is yes, and it starts with a simple question, what is your intention? In order for a purpose statement to truly live and breathe, it has to come from a place of sincerity. A single-minded intention to make the world a better place in some form or another.

At KFC South Africa, this purpose is driven through our Add Hope and Mini Cricket initiatives externally as well as internal upliftment programmes such as our recently launched Ikusasa Lethu scholarship programme – to name a few.

KFC Mini cricket is the largest grassroot development cricket programme in the country and gives aspiring cricket players aged between 3 and 12 their first taste of cricket. The programme delivers over 60,000 matches across the country annually, with over 13,000 volunteer coaches positively impacting the lives of over 126,000 children.

Similarly, the KFC Add Hope programme has been filling tummies since 2009, raising money through collections from KFC and R2 customer donations which go towards providing healthy and nutritious meals to children in need. To date, Add Hope has provided over 360 million meals - supporting more than 141 different non-profit organisations (NPOs) and feeding 150,000 children daily since inception.

Lastly, as part of our inside-out approach to purpose, this year we launched the KFC Ikusasa Lethu scholarship programme that provides access to quality education to deserving learners whose parents work for a KFC restaurant and to children who are Add Hope beneficiaries across South Africa. This programme gives 23 young learners the chance to not only access quality and private education at a Curro, but also take a step forward in making their career dreams a reality.

What’s more, however, is the fact that we have not only created true purpose-led community programmes within the business, but that these are backed by another key brand value – that of female empowerment, both of which are intentional and fundamental to our business. So much so, that we boast an entirely female-led Purpose Team. This team is responsible for the day to day running of our ‘Purpose pillar’, mobilisation of special projects when a specific need arises and the ongoing growth and development of our projects – to ensure we are giving back consistently and remaining true to who we are. In addition, both Add Hope (60%) and Mini Cricket (70%) volunteers are predominantly female - contributing a significant backbone to the brand.

Take a peek at the incredible women who make up the KFC South Africa Purpose team and who spend their everyday living and breathing purpose, giving back and making a difference.

Lindy Hoffman – CSI trust manager - Manages the KFC Social Responsibility Trust, through ownership, implementation & management of the CSI programmes on the ground with the beneficiaries as well as identifies opportunities to bring on new beneficiaries, extend the programme and manage growth plans.

Andra Nel - CSI manager, heads up the KFC Purpose team – making sure that all projects are well managed, delivered on and that all funding is allocated correctly for the maximum benefit of the Add Hope and Mini Cricket beneficiaries.

Hazel Ndlovu – CSI trust administrator – oversees all administrative tasks in the Trust and coordinates the local store programme of community-based initiatives.

Emmah Mutimutema – CSI trust field officer – to interact, engage and evaluate beneficiaries of the Add Hope programme and takes ownership of the compliance of the Add Hope beneficiary network.

Durasia Naidoo – CSI trust accountant - Manages, analyses and reports on all accounting/financial aspects of the KFC Social Trust.

Women form a fundamental pillar to any business and when it comes to adding hope and driving purpose, the power of these women in our business shines through. Their combination of empathy, intelligence and true passion sets them apart – they ensure we are always pushing more, doing more and truly adding hope where sometimes there may be none. They make sure that doing good is fun, uplifting and creative and that the work they do in building our community up from grassroot level is intentional, focused and aims at making a change in the world and doing something good for good.