Building Impact-Focused Ventures: Success Stories, Tips, & Resources
Developing sustainable business and revenue models are an excellent way to drive social and environmental impact, ensuring that impact lasts beyond grant funding. Social impact can be embedded into your business decisions, from corporate structure and governance to business strategies and products/services.
This event will provide an overview of several organizational tools and blueprints for social impact, including a feature founder story by Cara Martin on how her team used the worker cooperative model to amplify impact.
This event is intended to provide a space for socially-motivated entrepreneurs and innovators to convene, connect, and share tips and resources, while being introduced to a suite of entrepreneurial support services and funding opportunities. Come be a part of the community!
Lunch and refreshments will be served.
The finalized agenda is below. Please feel free to come in and out as your schedule allows. We have Zoom Pods in our space for folks who need to take calls during the event. Please contact Scott Christensen at schris14@umd.edu with any questions.
10-10:15 a.m.: Introduction, Overview, & Agenda (Jordana Armstrong, Strategic Advisor, Social Innovation, UM Ventures)
10:15-10:30 a.m.: An Ecosystem Map of Social Innovation Entrepreneur Support Organizations (ESOs) and Funders in the DMV Region (Scott Christensen, Fund Manager, Chesapeake Bay Seed Capital Fund)
10:30-10:45 a.m: Entrepreneur Flash Talk (1 minute for each entrepreneur to introduce their business and their current asks/needs)
11 a.m- noon: Founder Story: How OTS R&D Adopted a Worker Cooperative Model for Talent Retention, Increased Employee Engagement, and Innovative Decision-Making (Cara Martin, Chief Executive Officer, OTS R&D)
Noon-1 p.m: Lunch
1- 1:15 p.m: ESO (Entrepreneur Support Organization) Flash Talk (1 minute for each ESO representative to introduce their organization and how they can support entrepreneurs)
1:15-1:45 p.m.: Making Intentions Real: Governance Matters, (Noemi Giszpenc, Executive Director, Keystone Development Center)
2-2:30 p.m: Introduction to Funding for Worker Cooperatives (Taji Amani, Business Relationship Steward, Baltimore Roundtable for Economic Democracy)
2:40-3 p.m: Learning from Mirlo’s Experience as a Worker Cooperative (Simon, Co-Founder, Mirlo)
3:10-3:40 p.m: Employee Ownership: An Impactful and Tax Advantaged Exit Strategy (Eduardo Cabral, Senior Consultant & Analyst, Triple Beam Advisors)
3:40-4 p.m: Recap & Reflection