by Daniel Myatt, co-founder and CEO of Mavuno
Entrepreneurship is ultimately about solving problems — and most often, these are other people’s problems. The best and brightest companies thrive because they create products or services that successfully and sustainably address ongoing issues.
However, when it comes to solving international social problems, the path to success is less clear. Generally, we fail to apply the same business savvy to global “do good” efforts. We supplant business acumen with soft-headed approaches — but these contexts are actually where a keen business acumen is most needed!
It’s enticing to apply reductionistic thinking to global issues and other people’s problems, approaching them as if they’re simple to solve. Many choose to parachute into complicated situations they know little about, provide temporary “relief,” and then depart. While their hearts are in the right place, their efforts often do more harm than good.
Take the problem of food insecurity, for example. Is rallying a few hundred Americans to pack and ship meals overseas really the best solution to worldwide hunger? The people sending the meals may feel good about their contribution, but such efforts are not sustainable — and they rarely have any long-lasting effects for the people they are designed to help.
Imagine if the tables were turned, and a family from East Africa wanted to solve gun violence in Chicago. After reading up on the epidemic, they decide to start a nonprofit organization around gun safety in America, estimating the problem will be eradicated in about two years.
It sounds silly, right?
Societal issues are complex, and many interconnected localized factors play into them. Therefore, instead of seeking to solve problems for people, entrepreneurs should strive to solve problems with the communities that understand them best.
Localized Ownership is Key.
Traditional social outreach endeavors frequently fail because they are not owned by local populations. Without this buy-in, sustainability cannot exist.
Rather than ignore regional nuances, entrepreneurs should embrace them directly by involving the people most familiar with them. No one understands a community better than its members, and no one is more motivated to solve problems than the people who experience them every single day.
As my good friend Darren Jackson says, “These people are needed, not needy.”
Mavuno, my organization, aims to end extreme poverty in the Democratic Republic of the Congo — and we do so by working alongside the brilliant, talented people who live there. Much of our staff — including our co-founder David Masomo — resides in the region and has an intimate understanding of the problems we want to solve.
Undeniably, our best ideas for improvement come from the local population. Even though these individuals didn’t attend fancy business schools, they often intuitively apply the same principles taught in economics classes — just with different terminology. They are resilient, hard-working people ready to innovate for the future of their communities and their country. My organization’s job is not to solve the problem for them, but to act as a catalyst for the change that they will ultimately create themselves.
This approach has helped Mavuno move the needle in the fight against extreme poverty, and we’ve learned a lot of important lessons along the way. Here are three that will help you as you seek to make a similar impact with your organization:
1. Prioritize firsthand experience.
When beginning a social impact venture, ask yourself whether you are solving a problem that has personally affected you in some way. If not, you might find yourself succumbing to the oversimplification of other people’s problems.
It’s pivotal to have someone at the decision-making level who intimately understands the region you’re aiming to help, the inherent complexity of the issue at hand, and the hard work necessary to make a real difference. This will keep you grounded and ultimately help you connect more closely with your target population.
2. Listen to diverse sources.
In order to catalyze locally driven solutions, you must do more listening. If you actually embrace the ideas that come from local communities, you showthem they have value, dignity, and knowledge that will make the difference in solving their issue.
It’s important to find the right forums for this dialogue. Community forums might not be the best places. Based on particular contexts and customs, certain voices may be amplified while others are diminished. Find ways to engage people in one-on-one conversations that allow you to solicit honest feedback. Understand how these nuances relate to your specific context, and find the forums that allow you to see the clearest picture.
3. Create an asset map.
Don’t just focus on problems and needs; focus on assets as well. Mavuno does asset mapping drills to identify the tools, knowledge, and systems a community already has that can generate wealth and accelerate change. Adopting this mindset allows us to listen with positivity and focus on the potential of the people we’re seeking to help.
People are people; they’re not projects or statistics. Every person you meet is a powerful vessel full of talent and potential. When you approach social impact work with this mindset, you put people in the driver’s seat of their own development.
Social impact business and traditional commercial business aren’t as different as they may appear. If you engineer a great product and no one buys it, you must not be listening to what the market needs. If you think you have a solution that’s not resonating with the people it’s meant to help, you need to adjust your approach. By testing, iterating, and listening to the market, you can adjust based on customer feedback and create a solution that initiates meaningful change.
Similarly, when you listen, reach out, and work with people along your social impact journey, you promote local ownership of real solutions. As communities build their own solutions and lead their progression, you can step back and see the sustainable, positive effects of your intervention.
Daniel Myatt is the co-founder and CEO of Mavuno, a nonprofit organization that empowers local leaders in the Democratic Republic of Congo to end extreme poverty in their own communities. Mavuno organizes communities and builds businesses at the grassroots level.
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