Azim Premji Quotes

Effective philanthropy requires a lot of time and creativity - the same kind of focus and skills that building a business requires.

There is a natural link between the effective running of my businesses and the effective direction of philanthropic funds. I apply business principles to my philanthropic work so that maximum value is given to the causes I support.

It was only in 2001 that I set up a foundation, Arghyam. That was pretty much to learn the ropes of how to give, what to do.

Jessica Jackley has a gift for making people want to fork over their cash. To total strangers. Far, far away.

Proactive giving is what you do when you've found your passion. It expresses your values, interests and concerns. It engages not just your dollars, but also your mind, time, skills and networks - the philanthropic equivalent of leaning in, rather than leaning back. Most importantly, proactive giving is something you want to do.

Instead of waiting until the holiday season - when mail solicitations flood in from worthy organizations - and making a flurry of gifts because this is the time of year to give, sit down and take stock. Identify your passion, learn about it, and direct your time, mind, and dollars to aligned causes and organizations.

I always thought that I would spend the first half of my life making money so I can spend the second half of my life giving it all away. And one of the defining moments of my life was when I realized that I could do both at the same time with TOMS.

If you get to think of sharing wealth with people who need it and the purposes that need it, it gives a very different sense of satisfaction. I think I can build an institution which is very unlike the Gates' foundation. Gates' foundation is totally project-driven, that will serve a specific purpose and then self-destruct.

Nonprofits are the intermediaries between generosity and social change.

Of course, giving is deeply emotional. But supplementing emotion with research makes it more likely that a gift can have a bigger impact. It's like any investment. After all, you wouldn't put funds into stocks or bonds without understanding the potential return. Why wouldn't you do the same when investing in society?

I started off with making personal donations and eventually set up my own foundation, VTCY Foundation, now known as Better Malaysia Foundation. My contributions are also made through companies that I own.

In philanthropy, many of us give a little bit and each year we give more and more to see what actually works and not just throw money out there and see if it's going to work. If the government did the same thing, fabulous.

I think all philanthropy invests in product innovation, whether in a vaccine or a new kind of product of one sort or another, and I think we'll all continue to do that.

True philanthropy requires a disruptive mindset, innovative thinking and a philosophy driven by entrepreneurial insights and creative opportunities.

I would say to young entrepreneurs and budding philanthropists - are you giving to feel good or do good?

In the same way that you're driven in your business to keep innovating - Facebook is a wonderful example of constant innovation - think about doing that in philanthropy.

It is more rewarding to watch money change the world than watch it accumulate.

Philanthropy without scale and sustainability is like any other bad business that will simply wither and die on the vine.

We have a new generation of very rich people who want to do more with their money than buy a lot of expensive toys. They want to live meaningful lives.

How I see my career is very much as an entrepreneur in the field of philanthropy.

When I started teaching at Stanford Graduate School of Business in 2000, no field-based courses in strategic philanthropy existed.

It is important to view philanthropic ventures with an eye for business.

Philanthropy should be taking much bigger risks that business. If these are easy problems, business and government can come in and solve them.

As a philanthropist, I fund a lot of NGOs.

I'm not someone who funds buildings. That doesn't interest me. I'm more interested in programs.