Margaret Derby Morrison

Name: Margaret Derby Morrison

Role/Function: Director of CSR, KnitWell Group

What are you working on these days?

My biggest project right now is aligning KnitWell Group’s CSR programming across our portfolio of brands. KnitWell was formed in 2023 with the joining together of 5 iconic American women’s apparel brands, followed by the addition of three more January of 2024. Each brand has a long history of meaningful impact, but the work was largely happening independently. We’re now building our first enterprise-wide strategy and goals and expanding programming like RISE’s worker empowerment trainings across our global supply chain. I’m really excited to see how we’re able to scale our impact through collaboration and amplifying what our brands have already been doing so well.

What was the “aha” moment that sparked your interest in social and environmental impact?

I don’t know that there was a definitive “aha” moment, but one defining experience was on a trip to New Orleans to support rebuilding efforts after Hurricane Katrina in 2008. I remember being struck by how deeply the city was still impacted years later, and by how disproportionately communities of color were affected. Seeing the long-term human consequences of an extreme weather event made the connection between equity and climate very real for me for the first time. We volunteered with a local nonprofit, and their staff helped me realize community impact could actually be a career. ‍

How did you break into the impact space? What career advice would you give to professionals who are just starting out or looking to transition?

I started my career in international development, working with small nonprofits in Sub Saharan Africa through the Princeton in Africa fellowship program. Fellowships can be an amazing entry point into the impact space to gain hands-on experience, especially for recent graduates.

I later worked at CARE USA, where I managed a corporate funded nutrition program. I had a front row seat to corporate social responsibility from the nonprofit side, and I started to realize how powerful companies can be when they intentionally design their business models to center people and the planet alongside profit. I realized quickly that’s what I wanted to be doing. CARE is also one of the largest global humanitarian organizations and operated like a large corporation in many ways, so I was able to build a lot of transferable skills that I think helped me make the pivot.

I was fortunate to have Jennifer Gootman, a leader at Williams Sonoma, Inc., take a chance on me, and I’ve been working in CSR in the retail space ever since. I genuinely love the challenge and opportunity to drive impact at scale within large, consumer facing brands.

Working in impact is often about driving change. What is the skill or trait that has been most important for your work as a change agent? How did you learn or hone it?

I think influence and communication, especially storytelling, have been key for me. Real change inside a company can’t happen in isolation – you have to bring along cross-functional partners who have many other competing priorities. For me, being able to clearly articulate why something matters to the person you’re speaking with, in their language, is what’s driven action. It’s taken a lot of perseverance to build that skill, and it’s something I’m always working on. Really listening when the answer is “no”, understanding the often-nuanced reasons behind it, and adjusting the message, or timing, until it lands.

What most excites you about the impact space right now?

I continue to feel so inspired by the pre-competitive nature of impact work, especially in the retail space. We’re operating in a challenging and uncertain environment, but so many of my peers continue to collaborate and motivate one another rather than pull back. Sustainability work sometimes feels incredibly difficult to sustain. The ongoing partnership and support – especially when this work is under increased scrutiny – is what makes our field so unique. It gives me real hope for the future of the industry!

This season, our Impact Interviews series features members of the Change Hub, our membership community for busy sustainable business professionals. Tap into trainings, tools and a trusted network of fellow impact practitioners (including Margaret!) by JOINING US HERE.