Apply Now: East Africa Acumen Fellowship

Acumen invests in social entrepreneurs across the capital continuum and accompanies them on the journey to create transformational change. At Acumen Academy, they identify and prepare these leaders with the hard skills required to build scalable solutions to poverty and the harder skills of moral leadership to re-imagine and build a better world.

Through the program curriculum and a supportive cohort, participants peel back notions of themselves as leaders and build greater self-awareness. They hone their skills to become better team leaders, authentic storytellers, and navigate values in tension. They leave the program with the ability to negotiate across differences, motivate themselves and others, challenge traditional ways of working, and reshape the people, organizations, and systems around them.

Benefits

• Upon Successful completion of the program, participants join the Foundry, their global community of 1600+ alumni from around the world. They help Foundry members build and scale organizations through access to these selective opportunities:
  • Tools and mentorship: Get specialized tools and exclusive coaching opportunities from their partners at Bain and Company
  • Community: Join a community of award-winning social entrepreneurs
  • Amplification: Get exposure to a global audience of investors, entrepreneurs, and industry leaders
  • Early-stage funding: Pitch for early-stage catalytic capital through Acumen Angels to go from seed to scale

What makes an Acumen Fellow?

• You want to get yourself and your work to the next level. You’re looking for people to support you on your journey. You have a bold vision for yourself and your work. You want to develop yourself as a credible and inspiring leader in pursuit of the lifelong practice of moral leadership and gain a nuanced understanding of how you can be of the greatest service to yourself, your work, and the world.
• You believe the opposite of poverty isn’t wealth, it’s dignity. Your organization gives people living in poverty the dignity of choice – in jobs, education, products, and services. You are using the tools of business to build scalable, market-based solutions to solve problems of poverty and you are improving lives.
• You have a sense of urgency to make a contribution to the world. You’ve grown impatient with the status quo – both within yourself and in the world. You have a burning ambition to scale your proven solution, and are searching for the tools and community to build impact.
• You are ready to join a global community of peers who are passionate about solving problems of poverty and will walk alongside you. You want to connect with others who have been where you are and join a community to give and receive and where it’s okay to define success differently, and put people and the planet at the center.

Eligibility Criteria

• You are a social entrepreneur or senior decision-maker solving problems of poverty.
• You have 5 years of work experience (minimum) and are able to demonstrate commitment towards solving issues of poverty. On average their Fellows have 10-15 years of work experience with 10 years working on problems of poverty.
• You have a reliable internet connection and will be fully available to participate throughout the entirety of the program.
• Women and individuals who identify as or who serve Forcibly Displaced Persons (FDP) are encouraged to apply.
• You must be over the age of 18 to apply for the Fellowship.

For more information, visit Acumen Academy.