An Unreasonable Invitation: the Launchpad 2015

If you love TED talks, you would love the Launchpad. Let me first put this in a context. I have been enjoying an unreasonable 2 1/2 weeks with another 2 1/2 weeks to go. It has been like a fun summer camp... or what I would imagine a fun summer camp would be like, seeing as I have never experienced a summer, let alone camp.

Spending time with entrepreneurs from 10 social enterprises has proven to me that entrepreneurs are crazy. They are the most fun, most idealistic and most hard-working group of people anywhere. These are people who are daring to execute their crazy dreams... and that blows my mind. I am a huge believer in the solutions to Africa's societal problems lying in the hands and minds of small and mid sized businesses. Hundreds sprout up each year and most are driven by innovative solutions to massive problems. Honestly speaking, if each of these businesses successfully scaled we would probably have solved famine, illiteracy, lack of financial inclusion, high child mortality, unemployment and a myriad of other problems by now.

No matter, we still can! While we can't help all small businesses with a strong social impact scale (yet!) we can make a huge difference by accelerating the growth of just 10-15 at a time and seeing how that goes. These 10-15 businesses are exposed to such a huge network of experts in finance, strategy, operations, HR, operations, marketing and supply chain management that they gain an unreasonable advantage over everyone else in this space. Not to mention the potential investors and amazing team at Unreasonable East Africa.

By now you must be wondering what is so special about these 10-15 businesses. Why do they get to have this unreasonable advantage? Each of these entrepreneurs has a unique story behind their venture. I have had the amazing opportunity to live, work and play with them. You can get a sneak peek into their story by hearing them give a 6 minute presentation about their story and what they are doing to solve huge-ass problems.

Which brings me back to The Launchpad 2015! Each of the 10 ventures taking part in the 2015 Unreasonable East Africa Institute will tell their story. There will also be a cool exhibition before and cocktails after. I am addicted to dreamers and passionate people in general and to me, this sounds like great fun.

To find out more comment below or click here. Come on, be unreasonable! Join the movement! Drink the KoolAid already!

Comments

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