Andrew Wolk
Encyclopedia
Andrew Wolk is founder and Chief Executive Officer of Root Cause, a Massachusetts
-based non-profit that focuses on advancing innovation for social impact
.
Now known as a pioneering teacher of social entrepreneurship
and a social innovator, Andrew Wolk began his career as a private-sector entrepreneur
, having built and sold a multi-restaurant delivery business in the 1990s. Wolk designed and taught one of the first courses on social entrepreneurship in the U.S. at Boston University
’s School of Management in 1999. He went on to bring the course to Boston College
, Tufts University
, Brandeis University
, and Washington University. In 2002, he began teaching social entrepreneurship at the MIT Sloan School of Management
and the Department of Urban Studies and Planning at MIT, where he remains a senior lecturer.
Wolk launched his first social enterprise, the Social Innovation Forum, in 2003 with several colleagues who sought to help nonprofit leaders obtain the resources needed to solve problems plaguing Greater Boston. Around the same time, he and Boston University sociology professor Daniel Monti developed another enterprise, InnerCity Entrepreneurs (ICE), to support existing businesses interested in growth in the inner city
. By creating a social network
for entrepreneurs and using professional business tactics, they developed a blueprint to help inner-city businesses function more efficiently and effectively.
As he focused on growing his two social enterprises, Wolk recognized a need for an incubator that would nurture and guide the development of nonprofits. He created Root Cause in 2004 to foster entrepreneurship and innovation, and to develop enduring solutions to social and economic problems. Using his methodology has allowed Root Cause to specialize in developing business plan
s for nonprofits and government agencies focusing on growth, sustainability and impact. Under Wolk’s leadership, Root Cause serves as the umbrella organization
for six initiatives: Root Cause Consulting, Root Cause Knowledge Sharing, Social Impact Research, Public Innovators, the Social Innovation Forum, and InnerCity Entrepreneurs.
As part of Root Cause’s knowledge sharing initiative, Wolk has authored three publications: a Root Cause How-to Guide, entitled Business Planning for Enduring Social Impact; a chapter in the Small Business Administration
’s annual report to the president of the United States
, titled “Social Entrepreneurship and Government: A New Breed of Entrepreneurs Developing Solutions to Social Problems”; and a white paper copublished with the Aspen Institute
, titled Advancing Social Entrepreneurship: Recommendations for Policy Makers and Government Agencies.
Wolk also helped to establish the Boston chapter of Social Venture Partners. He was the program co-chair for the 4th National Gathering for Social Entrepreneurs, and he served on the board of the Social Enterprise Alliance.
He holds an M.B.A. in entrepreneurship and nonprofit management from Boston University and a B.A. from Lehigh University
.
A resident of Boston, Massachusetts, Wolk is based in Root Cause’s Cambridge, Massachusetts
headquarters.
magazine and The Monitor Group.
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
-based non-profit that focuses on advancing innovation for social impact
Social impact
In business and government policy, social impact refers to how the organization's actions affect the surrounding community.See also the psychological "Social impact theory". is also the name of a service provider to NGOs and international agencies....
.
Now known as a pioneering teacher of social entrepreneurship
Social entrepreneurship
Social entrepreneurship is the work of social entrepreneurs. A social entrepreneur recognizes a social problem and uses entrepreneurial principles to organize, create and manage a venture to achieve social change . While a business entrepreneur typically measures performance in profit and return, a...
and a social innovator, Andrew Wolk began his career as a private-sector entrepreneur
Entrepreneur
An entrepreneur is an owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative.The term was originally a loanword from French and was first defined by the Irish-French economist Richard Cantillon. Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to a person who is willing to...
, having built and sold a multi-restaurant delivery business in the 1990s. Wolk designed and taught one of the first courses on social entrepreneurship in the U.S. at Boston University
Boston University
Boston University is a private research university located in Boston, Massachusetts. With more than 4,000 faculty members and more than 31,000 students, Boston University is one of the largest private universities in the United States and one of Boston's largest employers...
’s School of Management in 1999. He went on to bring the course to Boston College
Boston College
Boston College is a private Jesuit research university located in the village of Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, USA. The main campus is bisected by the border between the cities of Boston and Newton. It has 9,200 full-time undergraduates and 4,000 graduate students. Its name reflects its early...
, Tufts University
Tufts University
Tufts University is a private research university located in Medford/Somerville, near Boston, Massachusetts. It is organized into ten schools, including two undergraduate programs and eight graduate divisions, on four campuses in Massachusetts and on the eastern border of France...
, Brandeis University
Brandeis University
Brandeis University is an American private research university with a liberal arts focus. It is located in the southwestern corner of Waltham, Massachusetts, nine miles west of Boston. The University has an enrollment of approximately 3,200 undergraduate and 2,100 graduate students. In 2011, it...
, and Washington University. In 2002, he began teaching social entrepreneurship at the MIT Sloan School of Management
MIT Sloan School of Management
The MIT Sloan School of Management is the business school of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, in Cambridge, Massachusetts....
and the Department of Urban Studies and Planning at MIT, where he remains a senior lecturer.
Wolk launched his first social enterprise, the Social Innovation Forum, in 2003 with several colleagues who sought to help nonprofit leaders obtain the resources needed to solve problems plaguing Greater Boston. Around the same time, he and Boston University sociology professor Daniel Monti developed another enterprise, InnerCity Entrepreneurs (ICE), to support existing businesses interested in growth in the inner city
Inner city
The inner city is the central area of a major city or metropolis. In the United States, Canada, United Kingdom and Ireland, the term is often applied to the lower-income residential districts in the city centre and nearby areas...
. By creating a social network
Social network
A social network is a social structure made up of individuals called "nodes", which are tied by one or more specific types of interdependency, such as friendship, kinship, common interest, financial exchange, dislike, sexual relationships, or relationships of beliefs, knowledge or prestige.Social...
for entrepreneurs and using professional business tactics, they developed a blueprint to help inner-city businesses function more efficiently and effectively.
As he focused on growing his two social enterprises, Wolk recognized a need for an incubator that would nurture and guide the development of nonprofits. He created Root Cause in 2004 to foster entrepreneurship and innovation, and to develop enduring solutions to social and economic problems. Using his methodology has allowed Root Cause to specialize in developing business plan
Business plan
A business plan is a formal statement of a set of business goals, the reasons why they are believed attainable, and the plan for reaching those goals. It may also contain background information about the organization or team attempting to reach those goals....
s for nonprofits and government agencies focusing on growth, sustainability and impact. Under Wolk’s leadership, Root Cause serves as the umbrella organization
Umbrella organization
An umbrella organization is an association of institutions, who work together formally to coordinate activities or pool resources. In business, political, or other environments, one group, the umbrella organization, provides resources and often an identity to the smaller organizations...
for six initiatives: Root Cause Consulting, Root Cause Knowledge Sharing, Social Impact Research, Public Innovators, the Social Innovation Forum, and InnerCity Entrepreneurs.
As part of Root Cause’s knowledge sharing initiative, Wolk has authored three publications: a Root Cause How-to Guide, entitled Business Planning for Enduring Social Impact; a chapter in the Small Business Administration
Small Business Administration
The Small Business Administration is a United States government agency that provides support to entrepreneurs and small businesses. The mission of the Small Business Administration is "to maintain and strengthen the nation's economy by enabling the establishment and viability of small businesses...
’s annual report to the president of the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, titled “Social Entrepreneurship and Government: A New Breed of Entrepreneurs Developing Solutions to Social Problems”; and a white paper copublished with the Aspen Institute
Aspen Institute
The Aspen Institute is an international nonprofit organization founded in 1950 as the Aspen Institute of Humanistic Studies. The organization is dedicated to "fostering enlightened leadership, the appreciation of timeless ideas and values, and open-minded dialogue on contemporary issues." The...
, titled Advancing Social Entrepreneurship: Recommendations for Policy Makers and Government Agencies.
Wolk also helped to establish the Boston chapter of Social Venture Partners. He was the program co-chair for the 4th National Gathering for Social Entrepreneurs, and he served on the board of the Social Enterprise Alliance.
He holds an M.B.A. in entrepreneurship and nonprofit management from Boston University and a B.A. from Lehigh University
Lehigh University
Lehigh University is a private, co-educational university located in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, in the Lehigh Valley region of the United States. It was established in 1865 by Asa Packer as a four-year technical school, but has grown to include studies in a wide variety of disciplines...
.
A resident of Boston, Massachusetts, Wolk is based in Root Cause’s Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, in the Greater Boston area. It was named in honor of the University of Cambridge in England, an important center of the Puritan theology embraced by the town's founders. Cambridge is home to two of the world's most prominent...
headquarters.
Honors and awards
Andrew Wolk received the first Rising Star Award from Boston University’s School of Management. For the third year, he served on the 2007 Advisory Board of the Social Capitalist Awards, sponsored by Fast CompanyFast Company (magazine)
Fast Company is a full-color business magazine that releases 10 issues per year and reports on topics including innovation, digital media, technology, change management, leadership, design, and social responsibility...
magazine and The Monitor Group.
External links
- Root Cause
- Andrew Wolk, "Advancing Social Entrepreneurship: Recommendations for Policy Makers and Government Agencies," (Aspen Institute and Root Cause, April 2008) (PDF)
- Andrew Wolk and Kelly Kreitz, "Business Planning for Enduring Social Impact: A Root Cause How-to Guide," (Root Cause, March 2008)
- Andrew Wolk, "Social Entrepreneurship and Government: A New Breed of Entrepreneurs Developing Solutions to Social Problems" (Chapter from The Small Business Economy: A Report to the President, December 2007)
- Boston Globe, 'Streetwise MBA' Program Helps Small Business Owners Advance, August 21, 2006
- Boston Globe interview with Andrew Wolk, May 11, 2008
- Chronicle of Philanthropy, Spreading Innovative Solutions to Society's Problems, May 3, 2008
- The Advocate (Baton Rouge, Louisiana) "Our Views: Pioneering Social Change." Editorial quoting "nationally known social entrepreneurship expert Andrew Wolk."
- Boston Business Journal, September 5, 2003. Article quoting Wolk as an expert on social innovation.
- Fast Company Magazine profile of Andrew Wolk
- MIT Entrepreneurship Center, Profile of Faculty Member Andrew Wolk
- Boston College, Carroll School of Management, Profile of Faculty Member Andrew Wolk