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Social entrepreneurs fulfill a unique role in society. They are reformers and revolutionaries, as described by the economist Joseph Schumpeter, but with a social mission. However different they are from traditional entrepreneurs, the keys to a successful social start-up are the universal lessons commonly known for any type of start-up. In this panel discussion from the second annual Social Entrepreneurship Day at Stanford University, Kriss Deiglmeier, Executive Director of the Center for Social Innovation leads a talented panel in a discussion into the funding side of social entrepreneurship.
In this insight look into social entrepreneurship, Deiglemeier poses two sets of questions. One set for funders of social start-ups and another for social entrepreneurs. Jenny Shilling Stein, Executive Director of the Draper Richards Foundation and Amy Clark, Global Fellows Program Leader of Ashoka, address the funding questions, such as: "What does a successful candidate look like?" And "What is a common mistake that candidates make?"
Then in order to get both sides of this critical task, Jessica Jackley Flannery, co-founder of Kiva, and Suzanne McKechnie Klahr, founder of BUILD provide answers to questions about starting a social entrepreneurship. First, Deiglmeier asks, "How did you come up with the idea for your start-up?" and then asks "As successful organizations, what did you do right (or wrong)?"
What emerges from their answers is a useful set of guidance and actionable advice that anyone contemplating starting or funding a social start-up can use to improve their chances of success. In summary, the advice and useful answers to audience poised questions provides valuable advice to any entrepreneur.
Jenny Shilling Stein is the Executive Director of the Draper Richards Foundation, a foundation that funds the most promising social entrepreneurs and their start up nonprofit ventures. In the style of a venture capital firm, Draper Richards chooses a small portfolio of fast-growth, high-leverage organizations and works closely with them in their early years. Prior to joining Draper Richards, Shilling Stein was Director of Business Development & Strategic Partnerships at RealNames Corporation where her primary responsibility was the company's relationship with Microsoft. Shilling Stein graduated magna cum laude in English and Psychology from Amherst College. She received both her Master of Business Administration and her Master of Education from Stanford University.
Jessica Jackley Flannery is a co-founder of Kiva with her husband Matt. Jessica first saw the power and beauty of microfinance while working in rural Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda with Village Enterprise Fund and Project Baobab on impact evaluation and program development. Flannery has worked in the Stanford Center for Social Innovation to launch the inaugural Global Philanthropy Forum, and at Amazon.com, Potentia Media, the International Foundation and World Vision. Flannery serves on a number of non-profit boards, including Opportunity International. Jessica holds an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business with Certificates in Global Management and Public Management, and a BA in Philosophy and Political Science from Bucknell University.
Amy Clark came to Ashoka in 1999, having learned about Ashoka from David Bornstein's wonderful article in The Atlantic Monthly. Since joining, she has worked with Ashoka teams in Arlington, Virginia, and in Bangkok. Throughout her Ashoka career, she has focused on bringing greater operational efficiency and joy to Ashoka's annual selection of leading social entrepreneurs. Clark grew up in Tennessee and graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a B.A. in English.
Suzanne McKechnie Klahr founded BUILD in 1999 with a public service fellowship from Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom. Under Klahr's leadership, BUILD has grown to serve more than three hundred students from eight partner public high schools. BUILD maintains an incredible track record with 100 percent of its seniors having applied to and gone onto college. In 2008, Klahr was elected to the San Mateo County Women's Hall of Fame. Suzanne serves as a trustee of the Skadden Fellowship Foundation and as a board member of the Bay Area Community Equity Fund and the Glow Scholarship Foundation. She is currently a faculty adjunct at Stanford Law School teaching "Introduction to Social Entrepreneurship." She earned a dual degree from Brown University and a JD from Stanford Law School.
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