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About Endeavor

Founded in 1997, Endeavor fosters economic growth in countries worldwide by selecting, mentoring, and accelerating high-impact entrepreneurs. Endeavor’s entrepreneurs lead fast-growing businesses that generate jobs in Latin America, the Middle East, Asia, Africa, Europe, and North America. Endeavor provides its entrepreneurs with a network of seasoned business leaders who provide key ingredients to entrepreneurial success: mentorship, networks, strategic advice, and inspiration. Over the past 17 years, Endeavor Entrepreneurs have created more than 400,000 high quality jobs, directly reaching more than two million people across the world. Endeavor has achieved tangible results, with individuals working for Endeavor companies doubling their income over baseline or previous jobs, and Endeavor companies growing revenue 2.4 times faster than comparable firms over three years.

Current Operations of Endeavor

Endeavor is dedicated to high-impact entrepreneurship. Its main operations focus on identifying and supporting the continued growth of a select group of entrepreneurs, creating jobs, and adding revenues to foster entrepreneurship in those societies. Endeavor currently works in 21 countries across the world. In recent years, Endeavor’s operations have expanded into several countries; Endeavor launched in Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, and Greece in 2012, Miami (US), Malaysia, and Morocco in 2013, and Peru and Spain in 2014.In 2011, Endeavor launched Endeavor Catalyst, a passive co-investment pool that uses donated funds to support Endeavor Entrepreneurs’ professional funding rounds and to provide funding for Endeavor’s growth and financial sustainability. Endeavor Catalyst has raised approximately $15 million to date and has made its first nine investments.

Approach and Distinguishing Features

Endeavor is an organization of, by, and for entrepreneurs. Endeavor believes that entrepreneurship is vital to economic growth and job creation, and recognizes the reality that entrepreneurs in growth markets face obstacles that inhibit successful scaling of businesses, such as limited management expertise, lack of role models, contacts, investors, etc. To this end, Endeavor provides immense support to rising entrepreneurs and acts as a springboard to catalyze their success with business establishment and job creation. Over 80% of Endeavor’s entrepreneurs give back to their local affiliates and commit to mentoring the next generation of entrepreneurs.

Endeavor’s entrepreneurs lead fast-growing, typically for-profit businesses that generate jobs and create revenues in growth markets. Endeavor looks for businesses with the potential to scale and become world-class ventures and industry leaders. Endeavor is distinct from many other organizations in its focus on high-growth, high-impact, for-profit companies that can scale. Academic research demonstrates that high-impact entrepreneurs generate a disproportionate number of jobs over other entrepreneurs.

2015 Kravis Prize


mothers2mothers: Pioneers in HIV education

Last week, we had the honor of finally meeting mothers2mothers co-Founder and International Director Robin Smalley at the Kravis Prize ceremony, which was full of CMC students this year. Not only did she offer her inspiring words to our students, Smalley also shed light on the issues that the organization is working to change. In the video below on mothers2mothers from the Red Ribbon Foundation, she discusses the statistics and issues underlying the organization’s mission: “There really isn’t a reason why a single baby should be born infected [with HIV] today. We have fewer babies born in the U.S., the U.K. and Europe combined in a year than in a single African clinic. It’s unacceptable and it’s unnecessary. … For us, we believe prevention is the best way to start. If we can keep babies from getting infected, we don’t have to worry about treating them later on.” m2m may have started in Cape Town, but since then its impact has spread far and wide. It has grown to almost 700 sites across seven sub-Saharan African countries, employing more than 1,600 HIV-infected mothers to mentor over 300,000 pregnant women and new mothers each year! m2m has broadened African women’s access to not only medical care and HIV education, but also emotional support. m2m mentor Rebecca said: “Since I joined mothers2mothers, I got employed and I get a salary. My life has changed because I’m able to look after my children, to buy whatever they want. I’m also able to look after myself … but apart from the money that I get from mothers2mothers, I also get satisfaction by working...

2012 Kravis Prize Ceremony

The big day is here! In addition to the 2012 Kravis Prize winners mother2mothers and INJAZ Al-Arab CEO Soraya Salti, we’ll be joined by past winners including Landesa Founder Roy Prosterman, BRAC, FAWE, Escuela Nueva Foundation Founder Vicky Colbert. Our winners will be offering their expert advice and insights on a variety of topics including grassroots innovations for poverty alleviation, innovation in education and community engagement and much more! Check out the live stream here and our live Twitter...

Countdown to the 2012 Kravis Prize ceremony!

We’re only one week away from the 2012 Kravis Prize ceremony, where we will be hearing from this year’s winners, Soraya Salti and m2m, as well as past winners! Stay tuned to our Facebook page and Twitter feed for daily highlights and features on our 2012 winners in the coming week! We’ll also be live Tweeting from the event next Wednesday, so be sure to join in on the conversation then! In the meantime, you can get more acquainted with the Prize’s winners...