Elevator UK

Teaching founders to grow without growing harm

I designed and delivered a Regenerative and Ethical Marketing module for Elevator's Impact Programme, giving founders practical tools to grow in line with their values.

The Elevator team standing beside an IMPACT programme banner for Glasgow, Edinburgh and Dundee

Client: Elevator UK, Impact Programme
Sector: Enterprise support and business accelerators, Scotland
Services: Curriculum design, workshop facilitation, regenerative growth marketing training

The challenge

Elevator is a social enterprise that supports entrepreneurs across Scotland through accelerators and sector programmes. Founders on its Impact Programme wanted to grow, but in a way that adds to society and nature rather than takes from them. They needed practical marketing tools that join commercial goals with social and environmental impact.

What I did

A three-day module. I designed and led a hands-on Regenerative and Ethical Marketing module, opening with a nature-inspired meditation and a Lego icebreaker where founders built their business visions.
Impact-led strategy. Sessions on goal setting with impact in mind, customer personas and empathy maps, ecosystem mapping and holistic value propositions.
A regenerative North Star. Each founder defined one metric that captures both growth and positive social and environmental impact.
Growth with guardrails. Partnerships as growth levers, ethical growth experiments, and an ethical risk register to spot and reduce risks in their marketing.

Inside the project

Workshop slide reading Marketing That's In Tune With Nature — Regenerative marketing workshop

A participant smiling beside a LEGO model built during the workshop — Hands-on workshop exercises

Framework comparing traditional and regenerative north star metrics — Framework: regenerative north star metrics

Persona canvas template covering what a persona sees, hears, thinks and needs — Persona canvas

What changed

Founders left with working tools: an Impact Marketing Canvas, a North Star metric and a first set of growth experiments.
Collaboration over competition: participants mapped their ecosystems and found partnership opportunities with each other.
Strong participant feedback, describing the module as "fantastically informative and engaging".

“Zebra Growth’s contributions have elevated our programme, providing participants with the tools and confidence to implement regenerative marketing strategies.”

Nicola McEwan, Programme Manager, Elevator

Deliverables

module curriculum
three-day workshop
Impact Marketing Canvas
8 facilitated sessions
participant tools and frameworks

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