About EVC.
COURAGEOUS & TRANSFORMATIONAL LEADERSHIP | BUILDING COLLECTIVE POWER | PAY IT FORWARD
VISION.
Our Theory of Change: Greater Philanthropic Equity
We partner with nonprofit executives of color. We empower them through a collaborative growth process which includes personalized executive coaching, socially and culturally tailored technical assistance, and we join forces with funders for greater impact in creating racial wealth equity.
THE GOAL.
Combining Transformational Capacity Building and Enterprise Capital, to Create Financially Resilient Communities
Nonprofit leaders of color produce catalytic programs and policy alternatives to serve their communities despite systemic biases and racial inequities in the sector.
The Racial Organizational Capacity Gap
Disproportionately forced into vicious cycles of capacity-building training focused on their deficits rather than assets.
The Racial Leadership Gap
Systemic hiring biases and promotion barriers contribute to a significant underrepresentation at leadership levels of leaders of color in the social sector.
The Racial Funding Gap
Funding for the sector is inequitable, with non-White leaders receiving a mix of small dollar, short-term and/or restricted funding allocations that leave many systematically under-resourced.
At Enterprising Ventures of Color, we imagine a future where nonprofit leaders of color deliver impact from a place of abundance and opportunity rather than scarcity and limitation. As “Frontline Avengers” with close proximity to communities they serve, these leaders are best positioned to develop the solutions. While supporting the organizational capacity will always be a vital component of any effort to lift the sector, capital is the fuel that drives the operations and growth of any enterprise. Thus, we combine these two powerful approaches - capacity building and enterprise capital - for revolutionary level change.
BRIDGING
Transformational Capacity Building
Resources For Nonprofits
We support nonprofits' organizational development capacities through peer-to-peer mentoring and tailored executive coaching in the following areas: financial management, fund development, revenue generation, board governance, results-based accountability, dynamic communications, and strategic development.
BRIDGING
Collective People Power for Nonprofits
We support the collective leadership of nonprofits to advance racial economic equity by co-creating power-building strategies to advance shared interests through relationship building, collective identity and visioning, and coordinated public action.
BRIDGING
Social Network Capital for Nonprofits
We increase the relationship capital and networkability of nonprofits. We create pathways and avenues for nonprofits to increase their thought leadership and share their subject matter expertise as developers of promising community-level and national change models.
BRIDGING
Enterprise Capital For Nonprofits and Funders
We collaborate with funders to develop enterprise capital funds that aim to replace or supplement short-term restricted contributions. Enterprise capital is multi-year, flexible funding paired with technical assistance that supports nonprofits in identifying the financial model that can build financial sustainability to advance their mission and overall financial strength.
BRIDGING
Trust-based Philanthropy Practices
for Funders
Nonprofit leaders of color have close proximity to the communities the sector seeks to serve and understand the multi-dimensional root causes of social issues but receive only a fraction of philanthropy's resources aimed at solving them. This creates a perpetual disadvantage in their fundraising compared to White peers, limiting their capital for growth or experimentation. We partner with philanthropy to examine and assess their current practices with the goal of improved equity.
THE APPROACH.
THE ACTION-BASED VALUES
THE CORE PRINCIPLES OF ENTERPRISING VENTURES OF COLOR
Courageous &
Transformational Leadership.
The battle for racial equity will not be easy, so determination and tenacity are required to combat structural and systemic inequities. EVC Fellows must lead with courage and practice open integrity (publicly and privately) as they pave new pathways.
Building Collective Power.
Oppressive systems cannot be dismantled by any one leader or organization but require mobilization, alignment, and coalition. EVC Fellows embrace that they are stronger together and subject their egos to the greatness of the cause.
Pay It Forward.
EVC Fellows are disruptors of the status quo, who not only position themselves at the table but create space for those barred not by merit but by opportunity. They create bridges from their nonprofit organization to the next for increased opportunity for the larger nonprofit ecosystem.
