A Marketplace Approach to Building and Supporting Sustainable Social Purpose Organizations

Abstract

The Social Innovation Forum (SIF ) builds the capacity and funding base of promising social innovations, both nonprofit and for-profit. SIF uses a marketplace approach, connecting social purpose organizations with a community of professionals who can provide financial, technical, and coaching support. The idea behind the marketplace is that all participants give value to, and receive value from, each other. SIF ’s marketplace consists of two accelerators: the Social Innovator Accelerator, focused on nonprofit Social Innovators, and the Social Business Accelerator, focused on for-profit social business Impact Entrepreneurs. Before, during, and after the accelerator experience, SIF pairs participants with philanthropists, coaches, and professional service providers who become deeply engaged in the organization’s work. The accelerator participants gain professional development and an opportunity to bring their organizations to the next level, while investors and volunteers have an opportunity to make meaning with their time and money by becoming part of a solution to a critical social problem. This marketplace improves the work of the nonprofits and business enterprises on the ground, strengthens their leadership and long-term capacity, introduces new resources (time, talent, and treasure), and creates the opportunity for lasting relationships between and among marketplace participants.