When Sumit and I first launched Tivix, it was to focus on developing software for nonprofit organizations. Since then, we’ve grown into supporting organizations of all kinds but we’re proud that some of our leading clients still are passion-driven organizations such as the United Nations World Food Program, Charity Navigator, and PROHEALTH.

I’ve come to believe that sustainable social impact can often be achieved by leveraging the power of economic markets, so one of my favorite programs is the Global Social Benefit Institute (GSBI) at Santa Clara University. I’ve served as a CEO mentor with the program for six years. Last night was this year’s welcome dinner for the current cohort.

We have 16 social entrepreneurs in the program this year, from Jordan, Nigeria, Mexico, India, China, Vietnam, Mali, Kenya, Bangladesh, South Africa, Brazil, Uganda, and Peru. They are all brilliant entrepreneurs, all working to make the world a better place using market-driven principals.

The social entrepreneurs at the GSBI are working with the same essential startup economics as Silicon Valley founders: they are looking for startup capital (often in the form of grants, instead of venture capital) but then they need an economic model that will get them to operating sustainibilty. They will spend the next two weeks here, immersed in an intense academic program while working with old, grey-haired Silicon Valley mentors (hey, that’s me!).

I love working with driven, passionate entrepreneurs (which is part of what I love about working with many of our clients at Tivix).

I’m very much looking forward to working with this year’s cohort at the Global Social Benefit Institute (view profiles of each).