Rather than the usual give-and-move-on scenario, a new breed of philanthropic investing is taking root in Fairfield County.
To help strengthen social enterprises and nonprofits in the community, a new chapter of Social Venture Partners (SVP) is opening in Fairfield County that will not only donate its money to growing businesses, but time and expertise as well.
“We don”™t just give grants and walk away,” said Don Kendall, co-founder of the Fairfield County SVP Chapter. “We roll up our sleeves and get to work.”
The SVP model first began in Seattle in the 1990s when former Microsoft employees wanted to do more than just make charitable donations, Kendall said. They wanted to lend their business and financial expertise to help grow charities to make an even bigger impact.
And now that idea has quickly spread. Today there are more than 35 SVP chapters across the globe that have contributed more than $46 million to hundreds of nonprofits.
With the support of the Fairfield County Community Foundation (FCCF), Fairfield County will now have its own chapter, but with a small twist. The group doesn”™t plan to work with charities. Instead it plans to work only with scalable social enterprises or businesses that have charitable aspects built into their business models.
“Our belief is that charities are terrific but ultimately run into a glass ceiling because the charity business model doesn”™t scale,” Kendall said. “There are very few charities that are billion-dollar operations. We want to work with organizations that have a business model we feel is scalable and can create more good in the world.”
So far the group includes 15 investors and is in the process of selecting its first social enterprise to work with, which is scheduled to be announced in September.
The chapter plans to give grants as large as $75,000 a year and help organizations overcome growth roadblocks, whether that means building a larger volunteer base, management training, new marketing campaigns or better cash-flow management. With each partnered organization, the chapter makes a three-year commitment at a similar level that a board of directors might.
Any returns on investment will go back into the chapter”™s fund for future investments.
“This is a great economic driver, especially in terms of starting a new business,” said Juanita James, FCCF CEO. “The impact on the community could be huge.”
As many of the organizations the SVP chapter will work with will either be nonprofits or organizations directly donating to nonprofits, James said she was excited to see the program take off. She said that when the nonprofit community is strengthened, the broader community is as well.
“Think about decreasing unemployment and increasing the number of skilled workers,” James said. “It”™s creating job opportunities for people.”
Whereas the community foundation typically focuses on helping nonprofits through workshops and seminars, the SVP chapter will be a new way for the foundation to partner with organizations in an ongoing manner, James said. It also will help build on the foundation”™s relationships with the corporate and business sector, she said.
“This is about going into communities that have been underserved, and leaders making it a more healthy, vibrant community,” James said. “It”™s breaking down the boundaries between rich and poor, the haves and have nots.”
