Fostering Innovation in Social Enterprise Across Harvard

The Social Enterprise Track, which is sponsored by HBS’s Social Enterprise Initiative (SEI), fosters innovation across Harvard University. This year’s competitors included 53 teams comprising over 140 students from nine Harvard schools. Entries included nonprofit, for-profit, and hybrid business plans.

“The SEI aims to educate, inspire, and support leaders across all sectors to tackle society’s toughest challenges and make a difference in the world,” explains Director Rob Zeaske (MBA 2002). “NVC is a key program for us, because it gives emerging leaders an opportunity to explore social entrepreneurship and test ideas for social innovation in a rigorous yet supportive environment.”

This year, the $75,000 Peter M. Sacerdote Grand Prize was awarded to Mosaic, a health care data aggregator that gives doctors access to a patient’s entire health record. The $25,000 Peter M. Sacerdote Runner-Up Prize went to DreamworldVR, a nonprofit that connects isolated pediatric patients battling chronic conditions to others in the same situation through a virtual reality multiplayer video game.

As always, every team received support through workshops and through feedback from the judges. The judges included alumni and seasoned professionals from foundations, impact investing, capacity-building organizations, and social enterprise startups.

“We received valuable feedback from the judges around our corporate structure,” says Sam Obletz (MBA/MPP 2022), cofounder of finalist Lucidity Health. The company’s app uses artificial intelligence to analyze x-rays and help frontline physicians lacking access to a radiologist make a diagnosis and formulate a treatment plan—a boon for hospitals in low-income areas. Judges advised the team—comprised of joint-degree candidates from HBS, Harvard Kennedy School (HKS), Harvard Medical School, and the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS)—to set up a foundation alongside their company to maximize their impact as a social enterprise.

GenUnity, a civic leadership development program for young working adults, found access to the diverse expertise and resources across Harvard particularly beneficial. The team, which made it to the semifinals, included students from HBS, HKS, and SEAS. “Combining our experiences in different academic areas has shown us that there’s tremendous potential in taking an integrative approach,” says cofounder Jerren Chang (MBA/MPP 2021).

Judge Susan Wolf Ditkoff (MBA 2001), who cofounded the Social Enterprise Track when she was a student, observes that the growth in cross-Harvard teams has only strengthened the NVC over the years. “The business plans have benefited tremendously from an increasingly impressive variety of experiences and skills,” says Ditkoff, a senior advisor at the Bridgespan Group, a management consulting firm that works with nonprofits.

Competitors and judges alike showed their mettle in quickly adapting to the challenges of an all-online competition. “Even in this year’s virtual format, the competition was exceptionally well-run,” Lucidity’s Obletz concludes. “We’re excited to see how our fellow finalists tackle difficult challenges around the world.”

In addition to the Social Enterprise Track, the New Venture Competition includes a Business Track sponsored by the Arthur Rock Center for Entrepreneurship and an Alumni Track sponsored by the Rock Center and HBS Alumni Clubs & Associations.