Here's How (Most) Accelerators Have Missed the Mark

Here are some pertinent statistics for you to take note of:

• According to a report by the Failure Institute conducted in Mexico, 83.5% of social enterprises last less than 3 years.
• A 2018 Gallup survey showed that 7 in 10 millennials are experiencing some level of burnout on the job.
• A 2013 study out of the University of Economics in Katowice clearly demonstrates that strong leadership is the #1 critical success factor to an organization's success.

So much support and resourcing is available to social entrepreneurs but it has become evident that something is missing...

Getting down to business

Accelerators spend a lot of time and money on training and developing founders in what I'll call "business acumen":

• How do they validate their market?
• How do they create a minimum viable product?
• How do they craft the perfect pitch?

These are critical skills to learn as an entrepreneur, but it is only one half of the picture to create a successful venture.

The other half of the picture involves a whole set of different questions that typically go ignored, and that's also where things get spicy:

• What’s their relationship to failure?
• What do they do if they're having a conflict with their co-founder?
• How do they keep focused at work if they're having difficulties at home?

Social impact founders and their stakeholders have made launching successful businesses their primary focus while mostly band-aiding the support and work that is needed to create resilient and adaptable leaders. 

This leads to more failed businesses, money lost, and high burnout rates for social entrepreneurs. 

I call this "The Leadership Gap."

Bridging The Leadership Gap

It is quickly becoming clear that yesterday's tools and resources are insufficient to support the development of the leaders of tomorrow.

What’s needed is a reexamination of what it will take to lead in an increasingly volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous world.

Amanda Blake, Master Somatic Leadership Coach, put it best:

“Exemplary leadership emerges [...] from a way of being that is effective, consistent, committed, and trustworthy. One’s primary source of power as a leader – what makes others want to follow – comes not from position or rank or technique, but from the qualities that enable a leader to connect, inspire, and engage. These are personal qualities, and developing them requires developing oneself. By definition, then, expanding your ability to influence and shape the future requires self-cultivation.”

The interesting part about this support gap is that entrepreneurs around the world are actually ASKING for it to be filled.

Research has shown that making coaching and leadership development available to them has made the most difference in accelerator programs around the world.

It's clear that more and more youth are seeing the importance of leadership development in their efforts to take on the world’s toughest problems.

Creating resilient and adaptable leaders

That's why I'm committed to ushering in a new paradigm of leadership for a more sustainable future.

For founders, this looks like:

• Not being worried about making mistakes, knowing that failure is part of the process
• Managing conflicts within their team with ease
• Knowing how to manage, regulate and express their emotions, allowing them to stay focused and productive at work
• Knowing how to delegate without issue
• Avoiding burning out, staying energized and remaining aligned to their goals
• Understanding how to balance persistence and grit with flexibility 

For accelerators, this looks like:

• Entrepreneurs who can maintain momentum in their business, regardless of the circumstances
• Less difficult conversations and more time spent envisioning an exciting, new future
• Fewer concerns around founders feeling burnt out and dropping out of programs
• Lower business failure rates and increased ROI on the support you provide
• Supporting entrepreneurs who are feeling satisfied and fulfilled while running a thriving organization

Most importantly, I see a huge opportunity for the world under this new paradigm of what it takes to run a business.

When social entrepreneurs succeed, their communities transform, sustainable long-term solutions to the world’s toughest problems thrive, and a new possibility emerges: the possibility of creating a world that works for everyone.

It's time to bridge The Leadership Gap.