Root Cause's Social Innovation Forum (SIF) brings together nonprofits, philanthropy, government, and business to support the spread of emerging social innovations in Greater Boston to solve longstanding social problems. SIF provides promising local nonprofit and social enterprise leaders with opportunities to build the capacity of their organizations. To date, SIF has directed more than $15 million in cash and in-kind services to 70 Social Innovators and Impact Entrepreneurs.
In 2003, the Social Innovation Forum was created to address a persistent problem in the nonprofit sector: less-connected nonprofits with promising and innovative solutions to important social issues lack access to the resources required to achieve maximum impact, while nonprofits with existing relationships consistently obtain financial support regardless of their ability to address social problems.
Selected Social Innovators and Impact Entrepreneurs that participate in our program each year are SIF's direct constituents; these are promising nonprofit and social enterprise leaders that are poised to transform their fields with exciting innovations. Our intensive, strategic consulting process addresses the particular needs of taking these new ideas to scale. SIF enhances these groups' ability to articulate their models, talk with funders, communicate their visions, and demonstrate success.
We currently offer support to 70 past Social Innovators and Impact Entrepreneurs in our portfolio; within the next two program years, we anticipate this number to grow to over 100 organizations. $1 invested in the Social Innovation Forum corresponds to an average $3 increase in budget for our Social Innovators within 24 months of their engagement with the Social Innovation Forum. On average, Social Innovators increase their revenue 200% and their FTE's 275% within five years of working with us.
