Blog
Tech for good
This is an abridged version of an article we’ve just had published in Techspark.
Some of the world’s smartest minds work in the tech sector. From Palo Alto to Pakistan, the power of code is finding creative solutions to problems many of us didn’t even realise we had.
There’s the rub – is the tech revolution just about consumer convenience, or can tech deliver real value to society?
At The House, we get excited and inspired by “tech for good” companies that apply human ingenuity and tech know-how to real problems. This is all part of our wider view that the future belongs to enterprises with purpose: a purpose that creates real value for society as well as for shareholders.
When Techspark asked us to write an article about ‘tech for good’ enterprises, we decided to ask what it’s like to actually work for one, and how it changes the way firms compete and attract talent. We spoke to four startups - Neighbourly, Localgiving, CiteAb and Shuddle – to find out.
Attracting and retaining talent
Neighbourly is an online platform that connects community projects with businesses that want to help. According to founder Nick Davies, the startup’s social purpose has been a major factor in attracting talent, with a lot of people approaching him to join the firm and “feel a purpose in life”.
Nick Allen, founder and CEO of Shuddle, a San Francisco-based firm that allows parents to schedule safe car rides for their children, told us that he is hopeful that his employees will stick around longer because they share a “common view” that Shuddle is a “genuinely useful service” that makes family life less stressful and more manageable.
Allen acknowledged that the Shuddle attracts a “more seasoned crowd” who understand that “doing things right takes a lot of time and effort”.
Unique work challenges
David Kelly of Storm Consultancy, a digital design agency that worked with the University of Bath to create CiteAb, the world’s largest citation-ranked antibody search engine, was more cautious about the power of social purpose to attract and retain talent – it is the work challenge that tends to motivate people in the tech sector, he argues. This is especially true of younger workers who are focused on building their career and haven’t got to the ‘what am I doing with my life stage’. Purpose is important, but it doesn’t necessarily have to be social purpose.
On the other hand, it can be argued that the “tech for good” sector can stretch tech workers and provide them with unique work challenges, even if these won’t be for everyone.
Marcelle Speller OBE is founder and chairman of Localgiving, a not-for-profit online platform that helps charitable organisations connect with supporters, fundraise online and take control of their future.
Marcelle argues, in order to succeed in the “tech for good” space, tech workers must draw on multiple sources of inspiration and innovation – both from tech and business, but also the frontlines of social engagement.
Competition
“Tech for good” status affected our startups in different ways as far as market competition goes. One thing was clear, however – employees absolutely have to understand that each startup must function properly as a business or enterprise in order to deliver its social mission.
Finally, it’s worth noting the importance of having investors, customers and suppliers who fully understand a “tech for good” firm’s aims and pursuit of the “triple bottom line”.
Click here to read the full article with further insights from our four featured startups.