Here's my first crack at the Micro-Funds concept. It's related to the Social Venture Commons and Social Capital work I've been developing. They are all based on the new mode of organizing I see emerging.
*** I've also added an illustration of 3 alternative models that have emerged in recent conversations. They are all interesting in their own right and it may be more about using them in according to specific situations. All comments/suggestions/alternatives welcome. ***
Ping me directly if you are interested in learning more - and if you have comments on the presentation below please add them to this post.
Working with the building blocks for a new kind of venture capital I've been shaping a couple of core components - micro funds, and the social venture commons.
Micro-funds: making small, flexible, intuitive, low-cost, high-leverage investments. Features:
Short life: fully invested within 3 years or less
Small, high-leverage investments: invest financial (e.g. $25-50k) and social capital in high-leverage ways - core capacity, incremental engagement, financial seeding
Low or no fee: offset with performance based incentives for financial and impact returns appropriate to the fund
Light-weight and dynamic operations: led by individuals or organizations that have a unique position or perspective on the 'frontiers' - run ...
Igniter "We are no longer in a universe of messaging and marketing. It’s a universe of doing." - Doug Rushkoff Quote... http://tumblr.com/xyj7c39xe [igniter].