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Corporate case study

2degrees: Bringing “Fighting for Fair” to life

Five years of learning through social impact. A multi-year partnership combining leadership development, Design Thinking and collective action to bring 2degrees’ Fighting for Fair commitment to life.

Client
2degrees
Format
Annual Big Bloom hackathons
Duration
2022–2026
Focus
Employee development, gender equity and social impact
A large 2degrees group cheering in a meeting room, with a Big Bloom for Women screen behind them

Five years of learning through social impact

How can organisations develop their people while making a meaningful contribution to the communities they serve?

From 2022 to 2026, 2degrees partnered with Big Bloom to deliver Big Bloom for Women, an annual initiative held around International Women’s Day. Employees strengthened their leadership, collaboration and Design Thinking skills by tackling real-world challenges faced by charities supporting women and girls.

Working in diverse teams from across the business, they set out to understand each challenge, generate ideas, develop prototypes and pitch practical solutions.

Five years, five charity partners

  • 2022: Shine, a leading specialist family violence service provider in New Zealand
  • 2023: YWCA, supporting women and girls challenging gender inequality in New Zealand
  • 2024: Dress for Success Auckland, empowering women to achieve economic mobility
  • 2025: Women in Sport Aotearoa, a champion for gender equity in sport and physical activity
  • 2026: Tania Dalton Foundation, helping young women to reach their potential through sport and life

Putting learning into practice: Dress for Success Auckland

The 2024 edition brought together 25 employees to work on a challenge for Dress for Success Auckland, which supports women towards economic independence through clothing, skills development and other services. The organisation wanted practical ways to engage more women with its services, as part of its ambition to double its impact over two years.

During the Empathy stage, teams interviewed former clients whose lives had been changed through the organisation’s support. Their stories brought the challenge to life and grounded every idea in real needs.

The winning concept, #FaceFitFearless, proposed a three-phase campaign to raise awareness of Dress for Success Auckland and its services.

The impact in 2024

9.5/10Participant satisfaction
100%Would recommend the hackathon to colleagues
100%Found the hackathon useful to the charity
100%Considered the Big Bloom method efficient
10/10Dress for Success Auckland’s overall rating

“Big Bloom has been a valuable part of our learning and development approach at 2degrees for the past five years. It aligns strongly with our Fighting for Fair purpose, developing leadership capability while contributing to meaningful community outcomes. We’ve seen behavioural shifts in participants, particularly in how they collaborate across teams, engage with different perspectives and communicate ideas with confidence.”

Amy DeperroisHead of Organisational Development, 2degrees

Learning that makes a difference

Over five consecutive years, Big Bloom for Women gave 2degrees employees the chance to develop practical skills while contributing to challenges faced by organisations supporting women and girls.

By pairing a repeatable learning experience with a different social impact challenge each year, it became a practical way to bring 2degrees’ Fighting for Fair commitment to life.

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