Rainmaking partners with Ingrid Vanderveldt to further empower organizations to create real business impact
Rainmaking expands to the US to help corporations to deliver results-based impact
AUSTIN, Texas, Nov. 4, 2019 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Rainmaking, the global corporate innovation and venture development firm, today announces a partnership with Ingrid Vanderveldt, global impact advocate - an Emeritus member of the UNF Global Entrepreneurs Council and founder of the "Empowering a Billion Women by 2020" movement - to empower corporations that want to solve significant business challenges and create real impact in the world.
Driven by shared values around social good and business impact, this partnership will enable corporates to drive financial growth and real progress on business, environmental and social issues.
The partnership comes as Rainmaking expands its overseas reach, building stronger ties with corporations across the United States. Todd O'Brien, CEO of North America and Partner at Rainmaking, is leading the international expansion from the new office in downtown Austin, TX.
Todd O'Brien says: "We currently work with businesses in the US where we have an established presence in the market through our Startupbootcamp accelerator programs. Opening an office in Austin allows us to partner with more corporations that want to integrate impact into their business while leveraging the ever-growing tech startup scene in Austin and beyond. We are thrilled to join forces with Ingrid and grow our business here in the US together. The partnership is timely and gives us the extra knowledge and connection to this exciting and much needed space."
Rainmaking was established by a group of Danish entrepreneurs in 2006, who came together to build impactful businesses. To date, Rainmaking has scaled over 700 ventures in 15 different industries, which collectively secured $1.3 billion in investment and created over 1,500 jobs. Rainmaking has worked with large corporations across multiple industries, including IKEA, HSBC, Airbus, Jaguar, Engie, Facebook and VISA.
"Sustainable Development Goals are a trillion-dollar problem," says Ingrid Vanderveldt. "For most organizations, sustainability transformations remain challenging to achieve and comes with risks. I have met a lot of executives seeking to balance the desire to create impact while also driving bottom line business and financial results. Very often, results can be achieved faster by engaging with innovative startups.
"This is what excites me about working with Rainmaking. With hundreds of startup-corporate engagements under their belt, Rainmaking has learned what it takes to build value through effective collaboration. Every engagement is customized to match the technology interest areas and pain points of their partners with specific startups to design, prototype and execute new solutions together."
O'Brien adds: "The broader impact movement has gained critical mass. Over 80% of the top 200 corporates focus mostly on CSR and business-as-usual innovation. Delivering impact is a strategic direction that requires rethinking the way we do business. At Rainmaking, we help our clients at every stage: from refining and focusing on their strategic areas to sourcing and selecting the few startups who are the right fit. We mitigate all the key touchpoints to drive growth through the integration and balance of social, human, and financial capital."
Beyond helping clients make a positive difference, Rainmaking is committed to driving major initiatives on a broad spectrum of social impact issues. It is closely aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals and is a proud member of the UN Global Compact.
The partnership between Rainmaking and Ingrid Vanderveldt could directly impact those corporations who decide to embed sustainable innovation into their business models.
For more information about Rainmaking and its most recent projects, please visit http://www.rainmaking.io
Press contact
Diana Florescu
[email protected]
Head of Marketing, Corporate-Startup Engagement, Rainmaking
About Rainmaking
Rainmaking is a corporate innovation and venture development firm with 12 offices around the world, including major tech hubs such as London, Copenhagen, Dubai, Singapore, New York and most recently expanded to Sydney, Australia, and Austin, TX. They create, accelerate, and scale new business with the world's leading corporations and entrepreneurs.
Rainmaking has launched over 30 ventures, including one of the world's most active global investors and accelerators, Startupbootcamp. The group has partnered with over 10% of the Fortune500 companies, delivering positive change through entrepreneurship. They are also a proud member of the UN Global Compact, the world's leading voluntary corporate citizenship initiative.
About Ingrid Vanderveldt
Ingrid Vanderveldt is an innovation expert having built multiple tech companies, a former business television host with CNBC, and was the 1st Entrepreneur in Residence for Dell Inc. overseeing entrepreneurial initiatives worldwide reaching over 600M people in 12 months alone building a $250M business segment. She is an investor and is the Founder of the "Empowering a Billion Women by 2020" global movement http://www.ebw2020.com. She is an Emeritus member of the United Nations Foundation - Global Entrepreneurs Council during the time that UN SDG's were created. She specifically focused on goals #5, #8 and #17 and is ranked one of Oprah's Top 100 Global Leaders.
SOURCE Rainmaking
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