Disruptive Thoughts

1) I’ve loved Kiva for months now. And yet I didn’t get involved.

That ended the other day.

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Volunteer organizations are run by passionate people looking to better our communities, our countries, and our world. While their efforts are unique, their goals are the same – to make the world a better place.

Fortunately, the individuals at the heart of these groups are able to provide assistance to many in need. Unfortunately, there are many more that still require help.

While the organizations should not lose focus on their goal of helping those in need, it is often the case that the goal becomes the sole focus. While this situation provides short-term results, it is not beneficial to the long-term viability of the non-profit.

And it’s the long-term sustainability of these organizations that will make a real impact on those in need.

These small volunteer groups need to focus some attention on the other side of the organization – the tasks that ensure long-term sustainability and viability. These tasks include, but are not limited to, strategic planning, budgeting, grant writing, and cash flow management.

This side of the organization often lacks the necessary attention for two reasons. First, the passionate people behind these groups often lack the skills to execute these tasks. Second, the individuals are often presented with a difficult decision when faced with allocating their time – do they budget/strategize/book keep or do they help an additional person in need?

Can you fault them for making the decision they make? Absolutely not. The world is a better place because of this decision.

Traditionally, these skill set and time-vs-focus chasms have been the limiting factors to the long-term sustainability and viability of small volunteer organizations. And this sucks.

Retune is a volunteer organization that offers other non-profits/ngos a solution. Consisting of innovative young minds who pair unique skill-sets with a passion for helping others, Retune provides a range of services - freeing organizations to focus on tasks that bring the most benefit. Retune focuses on an organization’s sustainability: ensuring short-term health while the proper training and processes are implemented to ensure long-term growth and viability.

This partnership, in the long-run, will help the organization help many others. This is a great thing. Together, we can make a real impact on those in need. This is a beautiful thing.

Retune, the intersection of volunteer entrepreneurism.

Ever since I was first introduced to the idea of microfinance I have loved it. My friend Eric was fortunate enough to attend the microfinance conference at the University of Chicago the other week and posted his thoughts following it.

Helping people is why microfinance exists and why all of us are so passionate about it but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t think about it like a business. Business is not a bad thing. It values efficiency which is going to be critical in taking microfinance to the next level. The more efficient microfinance becomes, the more people we can ultimately help and the better we can serve the worlds poor.

I couldn’t have said it better.

I’m looking forward to getting a moment to read a book that Eric has strongly recommended.

Thanks to everyone who submitted a design and to those who voted. Congratulations to Convex7 for the winning design. Stay tuned in the next little bit for more info on Retune.