The FMS program kicks off!
Few career paths exist for aspiring professionals in social enterprise. We addressed that directly through a combination of innovative training and field experience. Since we launched in January, we:
- Trained 30 aspiring professionals to pursue careers combining finance and impact. Our trainings, led by top facultyand best-in-class investors and entrepreneurs, covered due diligence, investment selection, enterprise operations, and impact assessment.
- Placed 16 scouts for full-time engagements in eight countries, working on the front lines in Brazil, India, Vietnam, Nigeria, Lebanon, Egypt, Ecuador, and Tanzania.
Served 57 entrepreneurs in sectors directly addressing poverty, including health, education, disabled services, sustainable agriculture, and clean energy/environment.
Wow.
Let’s take a look at two of our scouts in Action…
Yi-Ching Hwang worked with v-shesh, helping the management team develop an affordable vocational training academy for the deaf in India, teaching computer skills for low-income deaf jobseekers. Yi-Ching’s efforts resulted in over 200 deaf students finding well-paying jobs in the tech sector, many at major corporations: Barclays, Wipro, Cisco, and Citi. After her placement, Yi-Ching found an opportunity as a program manager for a foundation in Uganda.
Ravi Kurani worked with Under The Mango Tree, which through teaching rural farmers to use beekeeping, can increase clients’ in
come over 300%. Under the Mango Tree then sells honey sourced from the farms in order to become a profitable enterprise. Ravi served as a “COO” for Under the Mango Tree, building a supply chain management system, financial model, and pricing strategy to help Under the Mango Tree scale. Through the program, Ravi has found a post-graduate job at Hub Ventures, a Bay Area incubator for social enterprise.
We just deployed 4 new scouts for Spring 2012. Jennifer, Hallie, Elma, and Clare will be taking the good news of social entrepreneurship and impact investment to 3 different countries in Central and South America. Stay tuned to keep up on their experiences.