Blog
Coca Cola: Guinea pig for measuring the social impact of Olympics sponsorships
In an age where you can’t search the web or even walk down the street without being overwhelmed by advertisements, we’re used to seeing brands being associated with something they’re, well, not associated with. Yet, sponsors of the London Olympics, such as Coca Cola, McDonalds and Cadbury, are being criticized for doing just that. Their […]
Jul 14, 2015 – Impact Consulting •
Crowdfunding & Small Business: CircleUp and Episencial
Access to capital is one of the biggest obstacles that many small businesses face. We see the frustration that entrepreneurs go through when their companies are growing, yet they can’t get more money to fund that growth. I read an article recently about a company (not in the PCV network) that felt similar growing pains, […]
Jul 14, 2015 – Small Business Loans • Small Business Resources •
Tell the President Which Regulations Are Hurting Your Small Business
In January 2011, the President directed all executive agencies to undertake an unprecedented government-wide review of regulations on the books, in order to figure out what is working and what is not, and where appropriate, to streamline or eliminate ineffective, overly burdensome, and outdated rules. Over two dozen agencies responded with regulatory reform plans, listing […]
Jul 14, 2015 – Small Business Advising And Mentoring • Small Business Resources •
Social Entrepreneurs in Action
Last Wednesday InSight visited Hub Ventures, a new startup accelerator for social entrepreneurs located in downtown San Francisco. There we joined a packed house to watch as seven companies presented their “pitch” to potential investors at Hub Venture’s Demo Day. Each of the seven companies had eight minutes to sell their businesses in hopes of […]
Jul 14, 2015 – Small Business Loans • Small Business Resources •
Piecing together impact investing, $4 billion at a time
Ben Thornley, PCV’s Director of InSight, responds to the critics that cite impact investing as being ill-defined and lacking integrity in his blog for the Huffington Post. Read the full post here! One of the great myths about impact investing is that the practice is ill-defined and therefore lacks integrity. In reality, the two clear-cut […]
Jul 14, 2015 – Impact Consulting • Impact Investing •
Five Findings from New InSight White Paper
This morning we’re excited to release a new white paper that sizes the social impact investing private equity market in the United States at $4 billion. While $4 billion represents a very small segment (.5%) of the broader private equity market in the U.S. ($1 trillion) our findings demonstrate that social impact private equity investing in […]
Jul 14, 2015 – Impact Consulting • Impact Investing •
Small Business Tax Break Approved by SF Board of Supervisors
This Tuesday, the SF Board of Supervisors approved new rules stating that small businesses in San Francisco that create new jobs or give their existing employees a raise or increase in hours will get a break on their payroll tax. Mayor Lee is expected to sign this legislation into law, which would be effective for […]
Jul 14, 2015 – Small Business Loans • Small Business Resources •
A case for manufacturing in the USA
When Sonja Zozula and Jerry Anderson founded LightSaver Technologies three years ago, everyone told them that they should manufacture their emergency lights for homeowners in China. After two years of outsourcing to Chinese factories, Sonja and Jerry shifted production back to the US. The owners admit that having their products manufactured just 30 miles from […]
Jul 14, 2015 – Small Business Advising And Mentoring • Small Business Resources •
Darden School of Business PCV Case Study
Check out the Darden School of Business’ recent case study on PCV, “Pacific Community Ventures And Galaxy Desserts: Community Development Through Private Equity Investing.” Eduardo Rallo, better known to his colleagues and friends as Edo [pronounced ED-oh], ran up to a row of turnstiles at the Powell Street Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) station as he heard […]
Jul 14, 2015 – PCV News •
Inside the (restless, curious and eager) minds of great entrepreneurs
There are some traits inherent to great entrepreneurs like creativity, tolerance for risk and the desire for achievement that can, unfortunately, not be taught. However, when Saras Sarasvathy, still a Carnegie Mellon graduate student at the time, sought to discover how the minds of accomplished entrepreneurs worked, she uncovered some tips that less experienced entrepreneurs […]
Jul 14, 2015 – Small Business Advising And Mentoring • Small Business Resources •
Thank You Letter to PCV Advisor Chuck Sinks
All-Safe Pools is a PCV-advised company that recently won the SBA Family-Owned Small Business of the Year Award. They just wrote their PCV Business Advisor Chuck Sinks an awesome thank you letter that we are excited to share. We are so proud of the work our companies, and our Business Advisors, are doing!
Jul 14, 2015 – Small Business Advising And Mentoring • Small Business Clients And Success Stories •
InterSchola Recognized as One of America’s Most Promising Social Enterprises
PCV-advised company InterSchola was recently recognized as one of America’s most promising social enterprises by Bloomberg Business Week. The top social enterprise will be decided by a vote. Please take a second and vote for InterSchola today! From the Bloomberg Business Week article – InterSchola sells surplus goods for school districts and public agencies on EBay (EBAY), […]