June Social Impact News Roundup: Selling With Impact

Guide to Grow Your B2B Sales

B2B sales represent a $500 billion market opportunity for social entrepreneurs to develop stable revenue streams while scaling impact — and we want to help this network tap into it! That’s why we’ve teamed up with Yunus Social Business to launch “Selling With Impact: Guide to Grow Your B2B Sales,” a series designed to get your social enterprise corporate sales ready. Over the course of 6 months, we’ll take you through each step of the process: from building your sales strategy, to finding clients, to perfecting your pitch. At the end, you’ll have a chance to make your pitch to potential impact investors and corporate buyers curated by Yunus Social Business and MovingWorlds! Register your interest here to join us on this journey. 

Building Skills to Make Viable Products

80% of workers in Kenya work in the informal sector. Among them are many young women with creative skills (designers, tailors, dressmakers etc.) that haven’t had the training they need to earn income from their skills. At the same time, Kenya sees vast swathes of textile waste, with over 900 million items sent to Kenya from around the globe in 2021. Our partners at TRANSFORM invested in two Kenyan startups working to change that – MESH and KikoRomeo. In its latest insight paper, it shares best practices for working with women in the informal sector and producing commercially viable products from waste materials based on their experiences. Check out this interview with the Founders to learn more about their unique approaches to creating lasting change.

Charting a Responsible Course for AI in Social Impact

While the possibilities are immense, addressing the challenges and ethical considerations that accompany AI technology is essential. From environmental demands and workforce restructuring concerns to data confidentiality issues and biases in algorithms, ensuring equity and accountability must remain paramount. That’s why it’s so important for social entrepreneurs to do their due diligence of evaluating the possibilities and obstacles associated with the technology before making the leap. In this Impact Entrepreneur article, our partners at Miller Center for Social Entrepreneurship share real-world examples of how alumni of its programs have successfully navigated this complexity to supercharge their impact with the help of AI.

Social Impact Job Openings

• B-Lab is hiring for an Analytics Engineer (remote within Brazil)
• CapShift is hiring for Manager, Client Experience (hybrid out of Boston, MA)
• Center for Effective Global Action is hiring for a Program Associate (based in Berkley, CA)
• Evidence Action is hiring for a Senior Associate, MLE Strategy (based in Washington, D.C.)
• Global Impact Investing Network is hiring for a Communications Associate (based in New York, NY)
• Mercy Corps Ventures is hiring for multiple positions, including:
  • Program Manager, Transforming Humanitarian Energy Access (THEA) – UK (based in London, UK)
  • Communications Officer, Global Corporate and Foundation Partnerships – UK (based in London, UK)
  • Senior Treasury Analyst – Treasury Team (remote within U.S.)
• New Energy Nexus is hiring for a Regional Director (based in Nairobi, Kenya)
• New Ventures is hiring for Senior Finance Analyst (hybrid out of Mexico City, MX)
• Silicon Valley Social Venture Fund is hiring for an Operations Manager (based in Redwood City, CA)
• Spring Impact is hiring for a Resource Mobilization Advisor (remote within U.S.)
• Stay in the Game is hiring for a Business Development Representative (remote) 
• Upaya Social Ventures is hiring for Development Associate (hybrid out of Seattle, WA)
• U.S. International Development Finance Corporation is hiring for a Project Finance Specialist (based in Washington, D.C.)
• VisionSpring is hiring for an Editorial Associate (remote within U.S.)
• WEConnect is hiring for multiple positions, including:
  • Director of Project Management (remote within U.S.)
  • Certification Coordinator (remote within Asia/Oceania)
  • UK and Ireland Market Lead (based in UK or Ireland)
• Yunus Social Business is hiring for an Investment Analyst (based in São Paulo, Brazil)

Upcoming Events & New Programs

• June 6: Join MovingWorlds and Yunus Social Business for a roundtable discussion on B2B opportunities for social enterprises! This event will feature Daniel Nowack, the Head of Global Alliance for Social Entrepreneurship at the World Economic Forum, and social entrepreneurs who have successfully closed B2B sales. Learn more and register here.
• June 12-13: The Responsible Investor Europe 2024 conference will be taking place in London. Learn more here.
• June 14: Join Sopact in Oakland, California for “From Data to Impact: Workshop for Nonprofits & Practitioners.” Learn more and register here. Note: there is a fee to participate in this event.
• June 30: Deadline to apply for Cohort 6 of the 100+ Accelerator, which will award $100k USD to innovative startups in its 7 challenge areas: circular economy, sustainable agriculture, water stewardship, climate action, biodiversity, inclusive growth, and health and wellness.

Wins from our TRANSFORM Support Hub Community

• Arro launched an AI FinConcierge chatbot to help its customers optimize their financial lives!
• Bayer Foundation announced the 15 winners of its Women Empowerment Award 2024, including TRANSFORM Support Hub member Kosmotive!
• Bruce Elliott, Co Founder and CEO of Memory Lane Games dementia app, was just featured on Arizona PBS TV, talking about work to engage underserved populations with living dementia (Hispanic, rural, veterans etc)!
• Farm to Feed secured funding from Renew Capital to help it scale!
• Koru has recently secured a lead investor contributing $100k to our pre-seed raise, as well as an angel contributing $90k! 
• Lasso Loop Recycling was selected as a finalist in the ‘Driving the Circular Economy’ category of Packaging Europe’s Sustainability Awards, the leading global competition for packaging sustainability!
• Memory Lane Games was selected to participate in the Texas Medical Center Innovation Digital Health Accelerator! 
• Mona Andrews appeared on the ABC to CEO Podcast to discuss the mission and purpose of her enterprise, Stay In The Game, highlighting its various initiatives and programs designed to support women in the workforce!
• Nazava Water Filters transformative approach was featured as a comprehensive case study in a groundbreaking global research report on businesses and investments in the care economy! 
• Nazava Water Filters was featured by K24, one of Kenya’s main broadcasting agencies! 
• Socialbnb is launching a number of new Impact Experiences in June to help individuals travel with impact by embedding within local communities!
• Spotify and Klarna purchased Carbon Removal Credits from BIOSORRA!
• Srikrishna Sridhar Murthy and Daniel Rostrup of Sattva Consulting will be facilitating a session on the ‘Business of Impact’ at Impact Europe in the Hague!
• SuperBetter was proven to significantly reduce anxiety and depression in users after 6-months in a newly published randomized controlled trial among university students in South Africa!
• Swiss Capacity Building Facility recently welcomed Merck & Co. as its 32nd member!
• Without by Ashaya was accepted into Marico Innovation Foundation’s accelerator program!

A Final Bit of Inspiration

“In most corporate organizations, every employee is a ‘buyer’ and social procurement empowers them to go beyond volunteering and donating to charities to help social enterprises grow their for profit business and expand their impact.”

Stephen Young, former Global Social Procurement Lead at SAP