As a member on the Board of Advisors for a startup non-profit, I know how hard it is to get things going. Building a website, raising the first $1,000, and writing a “business plan” are all huge challenges that separate ideas from real non-profits. And that doesn’t even include getting started on the good work that is the organization’s mission. The first few years are filled with ups and downs, and leaders of non-profit startups can use every little bit of extra help that they can get. One way that they can get that help is to work with Sparkseed, a San Ramon, CA based non-profit organization “that exists to develop the next generation of social entrepreneurs and increase their impact on society.” It’s an incubator/angel fund for early stage, student-led social ventures (both for-profit and non-profit).

Spark Your Career

The way that Sparkseed works is that they select up to ten “student-led social ventures” every year to get “six months of high-impact support.” To some extent, it’s a contest, and the prize includes the following:

• Mentoring from entrepreneurs and executives
• Pro-bono consulting from business and nonprofit professionals
• $1,000 in seed money towards start-up costs
• Webinars that teach skills such as creating a business plan, managing a team, pitching to investors, leveraging social media, and measuring financial and social impact.
• $10,000 in web tools, including web site design, web hosting, & SEO consulting.
• A four-day summit in Silicon Valley that includes networking, skill-building, and strategic planning.

After the six months have passed, Sparkseed chooses three ventures to receive ongoing support. I think it’s a wonderful idea, and it has the potential to significantly push forward innovation in the social venture community. As of now, Sparkseed doesn’t have any full-time jobs listed on their website or their Idealist page, but they do seem to have a decent sized staff. My bet is that if you pitched them on why you’d make a great addition to their organization, they’d at least be willing to listen. Give it a try by using their Contact page to reach out to them.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

• Sparkseed.org
• Jobs at Sparkseed (Idealist)
• About Sparkseed
• Staff at Sparkseed
• Sparkseed’s Blog

What have you heard about Sparkseed?

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