A Purple Cow at Drishtee

Drishtee is a remarkable organization. While the first priority is the village communities that we work with, our founders have also established relationships with powerful business and social leaders across the globe. And these friendships have benefits.

This week, marketing maven Seth Godin visited Drishtee. He is a Stanford Business School grad who has published several business bestsellers including Purple Cow, Permission Marketing and All Marketers are Liars. His most recent book is The Dip. He normally commands thousands of dollars in speaking fees but he is such an avid supporter of Acumen and Drishtee that he came to us.

Seth spent several hours at the head office before heading out to the village kiosks. He recognized Drishtee for its vision, innovation and courage in taking on the challenges of working in rural India. At the same time, he asked tough questions and challenged Drishtee to be extraordinary. To make a difference, we have to be great.

Having Seth here made me realize that people are almost always an organization’s most critical assets. As we develop models that use markets to create social value, we have to enrich the human capital within these organizations, especially if we want them to grow rapidly. It sounds strange but we need to focus more on middle management; as these social businesses grow, lots of less-prominent leaders need to be trained and supported to ensure ultimate success.

For another great article on Drishtee and the Acumen Fund, click here.