SmartJob launches New Donor Pools: Democratizing Access to disability impact investing through DAF
At SmartJob, we have reached a new milestone, launching the donor counseling experience for new “donor pools” to the SmartJob Fund at ImpactAssets’ Donor Advised Fund. Donor pool members work together to make decisions about catalytic investment and philanthropic opportunities in a small group, under the guidance and counseling of the SmartJob team.
After beta testing this new feature of our platform during the first half of this year, we have observed the power of a diverse small group of donors coming together in common cause to close the disability wealth gap, while we at SmartJob source deals and opportunities to build meaningful change in the disability market, provide strategic insight, and measure the impact. It’s been thrilling!
Here’s what we know so far: we have learned that when donors unite together to pool and invest their philanthropic assets, they have access not just to a dynamic experience, but also to a collective scale and powerful set of insights often out of reach if they sought to invest in impact opportunities individually. This democratizes impact investing, allowing more people to participate at a range of contribution levels, and it unlocks the considerable possibility for learning and change in donors, investees, and grantees. Together, we are building an ecosystem and community for disability innovation.
Individual donors can approach SmartJob with a target area of disability impact that they are passionate about (i.e. investing in entrepreneurs with autism or the next generation of blind technology), or alternatively, donor pools can be groups interested in investing and philanthropic opportunities across SmartJob’s areas of impact to close the disability wealth gap (i.e. circles of friends or family, alumni clubs, corporate ERGs or affinity groups). If one is not already a part of a group, SmartJob can pair donors with a pool.
How it works is quite simple: individuals donate their tax-deductible philanthropic dollars to the SmartJob Fund at ImpactAssets, are brought together in a multi-donor pool, and start impact investing (and making grants) as a small group as soon as the total pooled capital reaches $300,000 across no more than 10 pool members.
Worldwide, two-thirds of working-age adults with disabilities are unemployed.
As a result, almost a billion people are left behind.
And it leads to a multi-trillion dollar hole in the global economy.
Despite billions being spent by governments and nonprofit organizations, this disability wealth gap has continued to persist.
So it makes me wanna do something.
SmartJob has the essential and ambitious aim of ending the global wealth gap for people with disabilities.
The possibility can best be unlocked by having people with disabilities driving those solutions.
SmartJob is bringing capital to entrepreneurs that are disabled. Entrepreneurs that are explicitly addressing the needs of the disabled population.
This is a great way to invest in brilliant, innovative and imaginative solutions that are actually better for everyone.
You can invest in different tier levels or you can invest as part of a pool along with other donors.
Then SmartJob works with this pool by bringing to them a variety of opportunities.
SmartJob knows what they're talking about. They take the time to do the research, to find the places that are really gonna make a difference, that are run by people with disabilities or that are making a difference within the disability community. SmartJob can also put you in a pool with other people. And that's what we've been a part of.
We've had a blast figuring out how to use the resources of our pool to launch successful businesses and accelerators.
Your money can be invested into four key impact areas.
Upskilling, reskilling, and future-proofing work.
Work-related technology.
Seeding underrepresented founders with disabilities.
Disability-led accelerators and incubators.
And what's exciting to me is that when they have a financial return, that money comes back into your donor-advised fund, can be recycled out in further investment or further donations.
SmartJob has been a rewarding investment opportunity. It's allowed us as a couple to decide on where we want our money to go. What are we committed to?
Then my mom said, "You can come, you can get involved in this much smaller financial level" and it was something that my mom and I could do together.
We already had a donor-advised fund and the process of transferring to SmartJob was really easy.
Literally, it might take you a minute or two.
And you're directly contributing to improving the economy and to support disabled entrepreneurs.
Are you ready to help us close the disability wealth gap?
Take the first step at SmartJob.net.
SmartJob just released a short informational video that you can view here (and, an Audio Described version is here). If you're ready to start your journey with us, you can donate via credit card here. For more information as to how to transfer money via ACH or between DAFs, please email comms@smartjob.net.
The information contained within this blog post is not a solicitation to buy or sell securities, nor a private placement offering. It describes charitable donations, and charitable activities that may be undertaken therewith. The investment activity that is described is made from the donor pool to charitably oriented, social purpose investments that do not accrue financial benefit to donors other than the potential tax deduction for the donation.