Will Poole, 2009

Most exciting new venture:  SVP Seattle's Social Innovation Fast Pitch

Best new headline: "Social Innovators" make pitch, win grants at Seattle Center.

Call to action: Learn more about SVP's SIFP 2012 program here.

 

A Social Technologist's Approach to Creative Capitalism

Creative Capitalism. I am working both in the commercial realm and with non-profit endeavors, applying the model commonly called creative capitalism. My interpretation of Creative Capitalism is applying rigorous capitalist business principles to build products, organizations, and markets that grow and thrive in their own right, while at the same time achieving social and economic development goals. I am working to help companies do this at scale, with global impact.

Walking the Talk. Starting in 2008, I've been working to apply advanced technological solutions to some of the most fundamental issues facing under-served populations of the world, focusing primarily on education.  I'm also interested in environmental and bottom-of-pyramid economic development ventures, and in driving social innovation in our local community through my efforts at Social Venture Partners, including leading our new Social Innovation Fast Pitch. 

Current Projects.  As of the second half of 2011, my activities include:

  • Co-chairman of NComputing.  An innovative company that is pursuing a conventional high-growth venture startup path, and at the same time delivering vital infrastructure to technologically under-served customers and markets. NComputing is already improving the education of millions of school children and the efficacy of teachers around the world, with over 2.5 million units installed and up to 20 million total users, as of H1 2010. 

  • Co-Chairman of Pengala Learning, which is helping students "Learn More, Faster".  Pengala shipped its version 2.0 learning platform software in June 2010, and is ramping up deployments in schools and with various partners in India.

  • Co-Chairman of Volt Boats, building environmentally-friendly cutting-edge small personal watercraft .

  • Strategic advisor to Boopsie, a search-based mobile apps startup which gives organizations a fast and powerful way to mobilize their business at a disruptively affordable price by developing apps and deploying across all types of phones in under two weeks.

  • Angel investor, coach, and board member to a small group of startups, bringing creative capitalism and environmentally-sound development perspectives.

  • Lead SVP partner driving Seattle's new Social Innovation Fast Pitch program

  • Board member at the Voices Education Project, increasing peace and cross-cultural understanding through storytelling.

  • Board member at VilliageReach, saving lives and improving well-being in developing countries by increasing last‐mile access to healthcare and investing in social businesses that address gaps in community infrastructure.

  • Member of the University of Washington Center for Commercialization advisory board, helping the Vice Provost and her team accelerate the pace of quality of commercialization of the $1B of research conducted through the UW every year. 

  • Member of the advisory board for University of Washington's Institute for Learning and Brain Sciences (iLABS), an interdisciplinary center dedicated to discovering the fundamental principles of human learning. 

  • Member of IT advisory board at Brown University.

Please see Press or Resources pages which are updated frequently.  More of my views on on Creative Capitalism here.