Inside many companies, generosity and growth still sit in different departments, with different budgets and different goals. Customers, of course, do not see those internal divisions. They simply experience the brand.
Closing that gap has always been central to in/PACT's work. It is also why we are pleased to welcome Chris Foster to our Board of Directors.
About Chris
Chris is Chairman of The Next Practice, the New York-based marketing group he has led since 2020, and Founder and CEO of FosterEquity. Over more than two decades, he has held senior leadership roles across global marketing, including Worldwide Chief Operating Officer of Saatchi & Saatchi, President of Global Clients at Publicis Groupe, President of Asia at Y&R, and Chairman and Regional CEO of Saatchi & Saatchi across Asia-Pacific and Greater China.
Earlier in his career, Chris led Fallon in Minneapolis through a turnaround that grew revenue by 75% during the financial crisis. He also spent nine years as Global Equity Director on Procter & Gamble brands, including Tide.
He regularly writes and speaks about marketing, AI and growth, has appeared on Bloomberg and CNBC and in Newsweek and CBS News, and hosts the podcast A Punch Above.
It is an impressive résumé, but what makes Chris such a natural fit for in/PACT is the way he thinks about generosity and growth.
Brand Generosity is a growth strategy, not a philosophy
Chris believes the ideas that move people are often the ones that give something back. He calls this Brand Generosity—and, importantly, he sees it as a business growth strategy rather than simply a statement of values.
in/PACT has spent more than a decade building the infrastructure that makes this possible at scale. The platform handles nonprofit vetting and onboarding, customer-facing activations, disbursement, compliance and reporting, giving companies a clear view of where their money goes and what their programs achieve.
Over the past year, the platform processed 100 million giving transactions. It connects brands with 1.6 million nonprofits worldwide and has supported community-giving and loyalty-linked programs for enterprise brands including Starbucks and FIS, as well as a Fortune 500 retailer. Some of those programs have been running continuously for more than seven years.
Chris brings a clear strategic vision for Brand Generosity. in/PACT brings the technology and experience to put that vision to work. That shared outlook is what makes this appointment exciting.
Looking ahead
Chris has also spoken about marketing moving closer to the transaction—and about the growing pressure on every initiative to demonstrate a measurable business result. For a long time, customer-facing giving was treated mainly as a way to build goodwill. Today, companies can measure participation, redemption, retention and the causes their customers choose to support.
That visibility helps generosity earn a more meaningful place in business decisions. It is also an important part of what in/PACT provides.
“Every transaction gives a brand the chance to do more than make a sale—it can also give something back,” said John McNeel, co-founder and CEO of in/PACT. “We built the infrastructure to make that easy for companies of every size, from independent businesses to Fortune 500 enterprises. Chris brings the experience, perspective and global network to help us take that work much further.”
“Commerce and community are still treated as separate conversations inside many companies,” said Chris. “in/PACT has already shown, at enterprise scale, that they do not have to be.
We are delighted to have Chris on board and look forward to sharing what comes next.
Don't just give back. Give Better.
