The Babson Entrepreneur Experience Lab has published a Masterclass report about a new category of entrepreneurs and leaders who are finding novel ways to create economic and social value. The Babson Entrepreneur Experience Lab is a partnership between Babson College and the Business Innovation Factory.
Heidi Neck, the Director of the Babson Entrepreneur Experience Lab and a professor of entrepreneurship at Babson College, explained how the Masterclass Entrepreneurs set themselves apart: “Masterclass Entrepreneurs challenge the separation of profit and purpose; contradict current conversation about models and scale; disrupt our ideas of a market; and call into question exactly who gets to innovate. They deliver significant outcomes and generate socioeconomic value for the communities, markets and organizations they serve.”
The report lists three defining characteristics of Masterclass Entrepreneurs. First, Masterclass entrepreneurs often struggle to receive funding or investments and mentorship because they do not fit into predefined categories of entrepreneurship. Second, they tackle the world’s most important issues by building sustainable, systemic and scalable solutions. Finally, Masterclass entrepreneurs need to build new types of business relationships to ultimately succeed.
The report names eight Masterclass Entrepreneurs: Shainoor Khoja of Roshan and Aga Khan Development Network; Kevin Thompson from IBM; Independent Diplomat Carne Ross; Andrew Hessel of the the Pink Army Cooperative; Henry Donoahue from Purpose, Dries Buytaert of Drupal and Acquia; Robin Chase of Buzzcar and Zipcar, and Monique Sternin of the Positive Deviance Initiative.
