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  • Fostering Innovation in Social Enterprise Across Harvard→

University Collaborations

University Collaborations

  • Fostering Innovation in Social Enterprise Across Harvard
  • Student Startups Help Fight COVID-19

Fostering Innovation in Social Enterprise Across Harvard

 
On April 16, video screens were glowing as spectators watched the finale of HBS’s annual New Venture Competition (NVC). COVID-19 turned the competition into a virtual affair, but the enthusiasm of the participants and quality of the entries were as strong as ever.

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.

Watch the Pitches

Video Embed

Mosaic

Mosaic

Grand prize winner
Aggregates health care data to give doctors access to a patient’s entire health record
Video Embed

Dreamworld VR

Dreamworld VR

Runner-up
Connects isolated pediatric patients battling chronic conditions through immersive virtual reality technology
Video Embed

Lucidity Health

Lucidity Health

Finalist
Uses artificial intelligence to help frontline physicians without a radiologist to make a diagnosis and treatment plan
Video Embed

Wala Digital Health

Wala Digital Health

Finalist
An innovative digital marketplace for blood donation, processing, and delivery

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).

“Combining our experiences in different academic areas has shown us that there’s tremendous potential in taking an integrative approach.”
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.

650
Teams since the Social Enterprise Track began in 2001
140
Student participants from nine Harvard schools in 2020

More on university collaborations

Student Startups Help Fight COVID-19

Current and former student teams in the Harvard Innovation Labs’ Venture Program doubled down or pivoted to help address the myriad challenges posed by the coronavirus pandemic.
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