Profile

Andrew Wolk

Andrew Wolk

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Check out Root Cause’s web site at www.rootcause.org

Widely recognized as a leading social innovator and a pioneering teacher of social entrepreneurship, Andrew founded Root Cause in 2004 and now leads its overall strategic direction as CEO.

Andrew Wolk began his career as a private-sector entrepreneur, having built and sold a multi-restaurant delivery business in the 1990s. Andrew designed and taught one of the first courses on social entrepreneurship in the country at Boston University’s School of Management in 1999. He went on to bring the course to Boston College, Tufts University, Brandeis University, and Washington University. In 2002, he began teaching social entrepreneurship at the Sloan School of Management and the Department of Urban Studies and Planning at MIT, where he remains a senior lecturer. In addition, recently Andrew was appointed a Gleitsman Visiting Practitioner in Social Innovation at David Gergen’s Center for Public Leadership at Harvard University.

Andrew launched his first social enterprise, the Social Innovation Forum, in 2003 with several colleagues who sought to help nonprofit leaders to obtain the resources needed to solve problems plaguing greater Boston. A year later, Andrew and Boston University sociology professor, Daniel Monti, developed another enterprise, InnerCity Entrepreneurs (ICE), to support existing businesses interested in growth in the inner city. By creating a social network for entrepreneurs and using professional business tactics, they developed a blueprint to help inner-city businesses function more efficiently and effectively.

As he focused on growing his two social enterprises, Andrew recognized a need for an incubator that would nurture and guide the development of nonprofits. He created Root Cause in 2004 to foster entrepreneurship and innovation, and to create a framework for developing enduring solutions to social and economic problems. In deploying Andrew’s proven methodology, Root Cause specializes in developing rigorous business plans for nonprofits and government agencies focused on growth, sustainability, and impact. Under Andrew’s leadership, Root Cause serves as the umbrella organization for five distinctive and effective initiatives: Root Cause Consulting, Root Cause Knowledge Sharing, Social Impact Research, Public Innovators, and the Social Innovation Forum.

As part of Root Cause’s knowledge sharing initiative, Andrew has authored three publications: a Root Cause How-to Guide, titled Business Planning for Enduring Social Impact; a chapter in the Small Business Administration’s annual report to the president of the United States, titled “Social Entrepreneurship and Government: A New Breed of Entrepreneurs Developing Solutions to Social Problems”; and a white paper co-published with the Aspen Institute, titled “Advancing Social Entrepreneurship: Recommendations for Policy Makers and Government Agencies.”

Andrew received the first Rising Star Award from Boston University’s School of Management. For three years, he was among a select few serving on the Advisory Board of the Social Capitalist Awards, sponsored by Fast Company magazine and The Monitor Group. He also helped establish the Boston chapter of Social Venture Partners. Andrew was the program co-chair for the 4th National Gathering for Social Entrepreneurs, and he served on the board of the Social Enterprise Alliance.

He holds an M.B.A. in entrepreneurship and nonprofit management from Boston University and a B.A. from Lehigh University.