Following a reorganization announced earlier this year at The Capital Network, details are now emerging regarding the future of the nonprofit that offers programs for entrepreneurs.
The Capital Network has supported the Greater Boston startup community for about 30 years through its hallmark programs like the Fellowship for Female Founders and Fundraising Readiness Workshops.
In early June, The Capital Network’s executive director and president Kat Lawlor announced she was leaving the organization as it underwent “a strategic review to determine its future within the ecosystem, primarily due to funding challenges arising from the economic conditions.” Lawlor joined The Capital Network in January and had plans to expand the nonprofit’s reach nationally.
While The Capital Network will still exist, its programs are now being absorbed by another organization The Entrepreneur Forum, according to Michelle Moulin, executive director of EF. EF is a 45-year-old organization that was formerly known as the MIT Enterprise Forum of Cambridge. It's a member of the Martin Trust Center for MIT Entrepreneurship, but supports startup founders from anywhere and across all tech industries.
As part of its focus on building collaboration and unity in the startup ecosystem, The Entrepreneur Forum also announced a partnership with Scroobious, which runs a pitch education and investor connection platform for under-networked founders.
“We are so excited about the partnership with EF and we are focused right now on working over the summer to transition programming. The Capital Network will still exist as its own entity and no other strategic decisions about its future are being made at this time,” Asad Butt, The Capital Network board chair, wrote in an email to BostInno.
A focus on partnerships
Moulin said some organizations serving entrepreneurs have been affected by the pandemic’s impact on their programs and revenue. For The Entrepreneur Forum, Moulin said last year was their first time trying to host programming in a hybrid environment.
“For us and I think for a lot of those focused in this space, our revenues are heavily tied to that programming,” Moulin said. “So last year was really about figuring out what do the entrepreneurs need and can we best deliver that programming.”
When Moulin came on as acting executive director a year ago, she said her priority was thinking about partnerships and programming to bolster both The Entrepreneur Forum and the startup ecosystem.
“Boston has a lot of really rich programming for entrepreneurship. And I think it’s important to unify that and work together to bring these programs not just to Boston, but outside of Boston as well,” Moulin said.
At the start of this year, The Entrepreneur Forum began talking with Scroobious about collaborating and eventually applied for a federal grant together to fund early-stage incubator services and accelerator services for growth-stage companies. The goal is to support socially and economically disadvantaged entrepreneurs in the tech and innovation space. Moulin said they’re still waiting to hear back about their application.
Conversations with The Capital Network started in the spring, Moulin said. She said The Capital Network was once part of The Entrepreneur Forum, back when it was known as MIT Enterprise Forum.
“Having them roll back into the organization is really exciting to kind of continue this legacy,” Moulin said. “It’s kind of a rallying of the ecosystem and making sure that these really great programs continue.”
For now, The Capital Network programming will continue as planned. The next Fellowship for Female Founders cohort kicks off in August, Moulin said. She said they plan to share more details as the summer progresses.
“We’re working to see what that looks like. But our intent is to keep great programming intact and keep the TCN brand and programming as is as much as we can, because it’s been hugely successful and impactful,” Moulin said.
The Capital Network says that more than 90 female founders have taken part in its fellowship program and 50% have been founders of color. These founders have gone on to raise more than $85 million collectively.
