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For those of you who have worked in non-profits, you may laugh at the thought of profit-motivated philanthropy. In fact, you may even have gone into non-profit because you wanted to escape the money-lusting and greed that has branded Corporate America. You look around at your colleagues, and no doubt see underpaid, overworked dedicated folks with passion. However, you probably see news faces often, because burn-out is so high.

How would this change is profit was one of the incentives of your work?

The New York Times ran an interesting article about a new generation of philanthropists who are using the market and capitalism that has served them so well, and applying it to doing “good work”. The call them “philanthropreneurs.”

The approach of these philanthropreneurs reflects the culture of the business that brought them their wealth: information technology, with its ethos that everyone should have access to information. By their way of thinking, the marketplace can have the same level-the-playing-field impact, and supply the world’s poor with basic needs like food, sanitation and shelter.

I like what I see here. I have found that while the “work for passion and pennies” mentality of non-profits may work for those who are either truly motivated by passion, rich kids with trust funds, or those have a martyr complex, the rest of staff usually leaves frustrated, broke, and jaded. I think being able to reward their hard work with more money would not only make them feel more appreciated, but also allow them to do their good work even longer.

Any thoughts? Leave a comment below.

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