New Profit

Although getting money to fund a startup company isn’t what I called easy, there’s a pretty standard process for seeking investment. When it comes to starting up a non-profit, the process isn’t often so clear. This can make finding funding seem impossible. However, there are some smart people who have taken the venture capital model and adjusted it for the non-profit world. One of these organizations is New Profit, which is based in Cambridge, MA. They were founded in 1998 and they focus “on supporting innovative social entrepreneurs who have brought a pathbreaking, big idea to life in an innovative organization.” They do this through their philanthropy fund, which has funded a ton of non-profit organizations. (I’m having trouble determining whether New Profit is actually a non-profit, but philanthropy funds usually are.)

Make a New Profit

While New Profit does a lot of work behind the scenes, they’re really all about their portfolio organizations. You can take a look at both their current investments and their past investments. We’ve covered quite a few of the organizations that they’ve funded including Freelancers Union, Kickstart, Right To Play, and a few others. You’ll also want to read up on New Profit’s Model and Plan For Impact. If you like what you see, then you’ll want to take a look at New Profit’s Jobs page. Their offerings are a bit limited right now–there are two postings you might want to look at: Communications Fellow (which is really an internship) and a Staff Accountant (which requires a few years of experience). The other option is to check out jobs at New Profit’s portfolio organizations. You should be able to find some pretty interesting options.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

• NewProfit.com
• Jobs at New Profit
• About New Profit
• New Profit’s Team
• What New Profit Does
• New Profit’s FAQ
• New Profit’s Annual Report

What do you think of New Profit?

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