Last month, Andela had the pleasure of welcoming Mr. Al Gore to its New York City office for a distributed friendly fireside chat with Andela CEO and Co-Founder Jeremy Johnson. Afterwards, Mr. Gore took questions from employees across our offices in New York, Lagos, Kampala and Nairobi.
In addition to being the former Vice President of The United States, a Nobel Peace Prize Winner and sustainability leader, Mr. Gore is also the Co-founder and Chairman of Generation Investment Management aka the firm that led our most recent Series D round.
Mr. Gore’s Andela visit just so happened to be the same day Generation announced its $1 billion dollar fund focused on promoting sustainable solutions — no big deal. The fund backs startups across the environmental and healthcare industries, as well as the future of work. When vetting potential portfolio companies, Generation is not simply looking at revenue; rather, companies must also provide data around their impact, and how they make the world a better place. “How can we reduce what we don’t measure?” Mr. Gore tells Andela.
“How can we reduce what we don’t measure?” Mr. Gore tells Andela.
Generation recognized Andela as a company providing a sustainable model to solve the global tech talent shortage, while also cultivating a new generation of African technologists. “When you have a well-focused approach like Andela, that is the best way to achieve success,” says Mr. Gore, “When we dug deeper and understood Andela’s mission, we found a sweet spot. Your mission is also driving financial performance.”
“There was a clear sense of shared values.” says Jeremy Johnson. “We will not achieve our mission if we can not execute effectively and Generation reinforces the need to prove impact with data.”
How can the private sector ensure they are making both a profit and a difference? Mr. Gore urges companies to link their financial growth with sustainable solutions to the world’s pressing issues. We agree on that winning formula!
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