Emma Vaughn ’13
My Experience
At Acumen Fund I worked to hone their media strategy and strengthen their portfolio of strategic partners. I helped create a media database that prioritized all outlets, contracts, pitches, and content ideas. With this, I worked with both the Media and Innovation teams to come up with a list potential platforms and stories for promotion. In addition, I helped work with the director of Strategic Partnerships to secure a handful of partnerships aimed at specific sectors or regions of investments. The work in both these arenas helped to spread Acumen’s notion of “patient capital” - philanthropic capital in the form of loans or equity that is used to make strategic investments in low-income communities. All of Acumen’s investments involve innovative products or services that can fundamentally alter the way of life for some of the world’s poorest citizens. Throughout the summer, I was helping them to disseminate this message and raise the funds and profile needed to make an even greater difference.
I used both hard and soft skillsets that I learned from the MBA program during my summer at Acumen. In addition to doing most of my work on Excel (a platform I had little exposure to before CBS,) I was also able to understand all of the metrics and financials that went into every investment decision. This allowed me to take the work that Acumen does in the impact-investing realm and break it down into language that people outside of the sector could understand. I was also able to create financial reports for partners on various investments using just the raw data and investment memos. My various networks and friendships created through the MBA program also proved to be invaluable. I was able to reach out to other members of the Social Enterprise Program and discuss industry-wide trends at various events organized within the sector.
Because I came from a media atmosphere prior to business school, I found the pace at Acumen Fund to be an initial adjustment. In media there is always a rushed deadline, and projects are usually completed without the same careful diligence that I saw at Acumen. This was an important adjustment for me because it allowed me to become more invested in a given product or process without rushing to the end result. When you’re dealing with intricate investments that impact thousands of lives, it’s really important to take the time to get everything right from the wording to the calculations to priorities. I also found a slight language barrier initially because it was my first venture into the sector and I didn’t know many of the terms and organizations that were referred to. However, because of the SEP and organizations like GIIN (Global Impact Investing Network) and the Apsen Institute’s ANDE, I felt that I was quickly indoctrinated into the world. While there is always a lot more to learn, I feel that I know have a very strong understanding of the sector and its various components.
I think the impact Investing realm and Acumen in particular has really capitalized on the importance of “choice” when it comes to philanthropic work. Acumen seeks to empower those in communities across Africa and Asia to seek their own betterment. They provide the tools that allow for both a physical and psychological improvement in the lives of these citizens. The investment model allows this to happen because it is a business transaction between two parties. By investing in innovative entrepreneurs in low-income communities, Acumen is creating a path for sustainable progress and not just a one-time fix. I think this is a powerful model that will continue to expand. Because it is relatively new, there are still many developments that are being discussed. The role of grants and metrics for measuring social impact are two issues that Acumen has been devoting much time to lately. Overall the internship made me more excited about the sector and Social enterprise in general.
