The New Age of Startups
By James Sancto - Co-Founder & CEO, We Make Change
What is a startup? 🏠
For most of us, the most likely image we have of a startup is a group of people in a garage developing the latest tech thing. In just a few years some of those startups have revolutionised much of our daily lives. Everything from food delivery to movie streaming, taxi booking to apartment sharing, have been transformed by a few people united by an idea.
Why we need them ⏳
While we love the convenience of having food, movies, transport and accommodation available wherever we are, whenever we want; there is some other stuff we are dealing with right now - climate change, poverty, inequality and so much more. For so long these challenges have been seen as the responsibility of governments or NGOs to solve. Yet the size, urgency and type of these challenges mean we need new solutions.
Startups have the solutions 🚀
Fortunately, there is a new age of startups developing the solutions we need. But what makes them different? First, they exist to make impact. They are driven by purpose not led by profit. Second, they harness the power of tech for good. They are developing innovative, scalable solutions to the social and environmental challenges we face. Third, they are reimagining what business can do. They are disrupting the paradigm that says businesses are for-profit and NGOs for good. They generate their own income and attract investment to scale their impact. Just like startups have revolutionised countless industries, they are changing how change is made. We’re talking apps reducing gender based violence, social enterprises teaching underrepresented youth digital skills, platforms making buying more sustainably easy.
Startups need skills 🤯
Like any startups, they face challenges. Early-stage impact startups lack the time for day-to-day tasks, the skills to develop strategy, and the funding to pay for a team. As a result, they struggle to scale and the world loses out. This is often because the impact entrepreneurs leading them care more about their cause than they have experience running a business.
People have the skills 🙌
But impact startups don’t need to grow the way others startups do, because people and corporates want to help. So many of us as individuals care about the causes impact startups support, have the skills they seek, and are willing to give the few hours per week startups need for the day-to-day. While corporates have super-skilled teams and often give their employees volunteer time that can be used to help startups develop strategy. Together, this support can supercharge startups addressing the Global Goals.
Join the remote volunteering revolution 💻
To make it happen, impact startups need to be able to get the skills they need wherever they are, whenever they want. While individuals and employees need to be able to volunteer with impact startups who need their skills anywhere, anytime. It’s possible and it’s happening. This is the new age of growth, for the new age of startups, leading the new age of change. It’s called the remote volunteering revolution - and you’re invited 😉