Deadline: February 9, 2022
Applications are open for the Acumen Academy Gender Equity and Advancement Accelerator 2022. They are seeking a cohort of entrepreneurs who, like Acumen, believe that considering gender equity across strategies, processes, and day-to-day work improves how we address the problems of poverty, including the disproportionate problems for women in poverty, and thereby magnifies impact.
Gender inclusion in business isn’t just the ethical thing to do — it’s also good for the world’s economy and sustainability. And rather than add a gender-equity lens after scaling, Acumen believes it’s much easier to build an inclusive company by addressing and prioritizing gender from the start.
To support social entrepreneurs committed to leading the change in gender equity and advancement, the new accelerator will equip leaders with the moral leadership lessons, business skills, and learnings from Acumen’s portfolio companies to confidently scale their enterprises and embed gender inclusive approaches into their models.
Program Details
The program includes:
- Six Learning Labs alongside your cohort of entrepreneurs
- Three one-on-one consultation calls with Acumen’s team
- Video tutorials on customer discovery, sales and marketing, financial modeling, pitching, and more
- Unconscious bias training, workshops, and self-assessment strategies for embedding gender inclusivity into your scaling plan
- Case studies from social enterprises that have successfully scaled and contributed to gender equity and advancement
Benefits
You will learn to
- Refine and develop a profitable and scalable business model
- Embed and expand gender equity into your business through market, workforce, and value-chain entry points
- Develop hard-edged leadership skills — such as practicing courage, deep listening, and stepping outside the status quo — that are necessary for building better, inclusive, and sustainable business solutions
- Sharpen your presentation skills and practice pitching to an audience of investors and entrepreneurs
- Build a professional network and lifelong community of social entrepreneurs in East and West Africa who are committed to tackling injustice
Eligibility
- You need to be an entrepreneur running a business with primary operations in either Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, South Sudan, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Ghana, Sierra Leone, Liberia, the Gambia. You do not need to be a citizen of these countries to apply.
- Have a demonstrated track record of at least 12-18 months, some market traction, and are preparing to scale.
- Have a team equivalent to three or more full-time staff.
- Have a commitment to serving women across three entry points, and evidence of action in at least one:
- Market (products and services)
- Internal organization (workforce and policies)
- Value chain (supply and distribution)
Application
Applications will be reviewed after the program deadline. If you are selected for an interview, a member of the Acumen team will reach out to schedule a 40-minute video call with you on the Zoom platform.
For more information, visit Acumen Academy.
