On 5 March 2020, the first in-country South African tested positive for COVID-19. Less than three weeks later, on 23 March, after schools and universities had already closed and a number of organisations had adopted a work-from-home policy, the country’s president, Cyril Ramaphosa announced that the whole country would go into hard lockdown for 21 days from midnight on 26 March 2020. As these events unfolded, it became clear that reliable, affordable access to mobile telecommunications would be critical for the country’s population in the months to come, as they had to work, study, and communicate from home. Taki Netshitenzhe, the external affairs director of mobile network operator, Vodacom South Africa, knew that this was an opportunity to demonstrate the company’s commitment to corporate social responsibility (CSR). Vodacom’s response had to benefit society without coming at a crippling cost to the company. How to achieve this was a key question that occupied her mind as these events unfolded.