National Standard is a vision-led and values-driven organisation. Vision led means we are led by our vision. Values-driven means we are driven and guided by our values.

Our vision that leads us is:

“We aspire to transform societies through impact investing”.

Impact investing is defined as investing with the intention to achieve measurable and sustainable social and environmental objectives whilst making a financial return.

Our mission is:

“To invest human and financial capital to transform societies”.

Our objective is:

“To build sustainable societies as we create measurable wealth for our communities, our clients and ourselves”.

The values that drive us to achieve our objectives are:

• Honesty & integrity 

We always act with honesty and integrity. We build our credibility by being honest and acting with integrity. We keep our promises. We do not sweep things under the carpet. We do not keep stakeholders guessing. We communicate accurate messages to avoid misleading our stakeholders. We are consistent in everything we do. Consistency is what builds integrity. We follow our values religiously with consistency.

• Innovation & entrepreneurial

We are innovative and creative in designing solutions to solve societal problems. We think outside the box whilst maintaining our integrity. We follow an entrepreneurial and innovative approach to solving problems. This means taking calculated risks and trying new things in developing solutions. We do not avoid risk. We identify, understand, take and manage risk. We harness our passions, skills, experience, knowledge, insights, resources and networks to spot and take advantage of opportunities at the right time and in the right way whilst managing risks.

• Flexible and agile

We are flexible and agile. We make decisions quickly and with accuracy. We do not procrastinate. We do not waste time. We move swiftly to deliver sustainable solutions that respond to challenges. We are flexible in our approaches to problem-solving. We listen and adjust to suit circumstances. We embrace change and new ideas to doing things. We subscribe to technological advances and the fourth industrial revolution.

• Pushing beyond boundaries 

We go the extra mile in everything we do. We do not do only the minimum to get going. We meet and exceed expectations. We think outside the box and put in the extra effort. We transform ideas into action. We do not have boundaries that confine us in our activities. We recognise risks and opportunities and exploit them for positive outcomes. We view risk as an opportunity.

• Action and delivery

We are action-oriented. We deliver on our promises. Delivery comes from taking action. We walk the talk through “doing” things. We maintain our credibility by taking action and delivering on our promises. Where we cannot act and deliver, we do not get involved and we do not promise. We only act and deliver within our resource capabilities, be it human, financial, knowledge, systems and other resource capabilities at our disposal.

• People-centric 

What we do creates valuable solutions to satisfy people’s needs. This includes our employees, partners, communities and other stakeholders. We serve communities. We serve society. The ultimate beneficiaries are people who are at the center of everything we do. We create wealth for people, be it monetary, knowledge-based or otherwise.