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Seven does business: Ogunte

Written by Sevencam
Sunday, 08 February 2009 00:00

Seven: Why did you set up your business?

I set up Ogunte Ltd (www.ogunte.com) to help female social innovators get the skills and acknowledgement they deserve to carry out their vision of a fairer world.

Seven: Tell me about your background; how is it relevant to your business?

I have a background in activism. I worked in the performing arts industry and in international community development in Holland, Brazil, France and the UK. I had to be an entrepreneur in my mind to start from scratch and adapt in new countries and new sectors.

Seven: What inspired you to become an entrepreneur?

I like to work flexibly and apply my learning and my skills 24/7, not just from 9 to 5. I also want to combine social purposes with sustainable ways of living. The ultimate inspiration was to be able to design my own job and have a great social impact, my way.

Seven: Who are your business heroes?

Janine Benyus (scientist who explains innovation through biomimicry) and the actress Vanessa Redgrave.

Seven: What inspired you to set up the business?

My own story: I once had a lot to say and a huge energy, but no networks and no business skills to support my convictions and run campaigns efficiently. So I had to learn. Now I share this.

Seven: What's innovative or ethical about it?

We work across sectors, across silos, enabling women to create a huge positive social impact with tools and people that they wouldn’t have accessed in other circumstances - new technologies, new thinking methods, new collaborations.

Seven: What makes your business stand out from others in its sector?

Definitely the warmth and the energy that comes from our interventions. Our clients say they are listened to and accurately networked. We refuse to work with vague outputs or indicators that are not connected to what people really want to achieve on the ground. We are a leverage for women’s talents, across sectors, across silos, as long as they genuinely want to contribute to positive social change.

Seven: What are your future plans for your organisation?

Expand the Manifesto for Female Social Innovators (which will be launched on March 3, 2009 at the Hub in King’s Cross). Connect and develop members of our network on www.globaltribal.co.uk to help them become more visible and achieve a bigger social impact.

Seven: What have been the best/worst moments since you set it up?

Best: Forming a team of 17 associates: women who are great communicators and expert in many domains - from business, education and campaigning to cybernetics.

Worst: When one of our hard drives died; that was our temporary back-up too. We lost two weeks of work. That’s about it.