Matt Stone (MPA ’24) started a consulting startup, Scaling Seeds, as a part of his practicum and experiential learning here at MIIS.
Experiential Learning (EL): Describe your organization.
Matt Stone (MS): I worked on developing a consulting firm focused on streamlining business models for impact organizations, with a vision to support social and environmental impact. The consulting firm was built upon insights gained from my participation in the “Innovation with the SDGs” workshop and aimed to leverage relationships and networks to support impact-driven ventures.
EL: What was the challenge/issue at the heart of what you were working on?
MS: Help someone who isn’t familiar with this place, organization, and the issues they work on to understand the context of your work. The core challenge was identifying the right partners, developing a clear and focused service offering, and understanding the specific needs and pain points of potential clients. It is one thing to get on a phone call with a client and support them with current needs. The largest question was how can I create a structured format so that consulting content is able to build upon itself. The greatest value add was finding a partner that already had a software program very much developed that allows me to consult in a fashion where it is almost like
conducting a course.
EL: What was your biggest insight?
MS: My biggest insight was the importance of leveraging existing relationships and networks to accelerate business opportunities and ideas. This experience underscored the value of focusing on a specific niche and partnering with the right organizations to enhance service offerings and streamline operations. Additionally this summer helped me come across more situations where I had to decide whether or not to continue partnerships with different individuals / businesses. Going through the process of having to say “No OR Yes” when I was to a degree already emotionally invested in the success of the relationship allowed for me to have more experience with pivoting when projects
are not functioning the way I would like them to.
EL: What was most eye-opening or surprising?
MS: What most surprised me was how quickly I was able to identify and pivot away from unproductive partnerships. The realization that not every relationship or partnership aligns with the business goals was a lesson in managing business relationships.
EL: What was your personal highlight of this experience?
MS: One of the personal highlights for me was successfully establishing a partnership with “Go To Market Partners”. Additionally I reopened relationships from my past which I have been able to make true headway on because from this experience I have really been able to define my career direction. Additionally it has helped to confirm that I will be staying in the area to continue to grow my network as opposed to trying to start anew in a different location.
EL: How did you draw upon your education and experiences at MIIS?
MS: I leveraged predominantly relationships that I have developed at MIIS in order to brainstorm and navigate the right network in order to help move this project forward. I was able to brainstorm with current professors as well as former professors and alumni which added ideas as well as direction for this project.
EL: What skills did you develop? How will this experience help you professionally?
MS: I developed skills in networking, partnership building, market analysis, and strategic planning. This experience will help me professionally by enhancing my ability to launch and manage consulting ventures, build effective business relationships, and understand client needs more deeply.
EL: What tips do you have for other students?
MS: Focus on leveraging your existing relationships and networks. One of the mistakes I have made from the past is always trying to network by developing new relationships. However it makes way more sense to leverage the relationships that are already closest to us. Additionally, this was an Entrepreneurially Focused experiential learning project. I would spend time focusing on a very clear roadmap from the get go to avoid spreading yourself too thin.
EL: How could other students connect to organizations or projects at this organization or in this location?
MS: Contact me. I’m definitely interested in collaborating with more students in the future on this project.