The name of our organization is Culture shifting foundation

Our solution focuses on entrepreneurship and venture capital to reduce inequality.

Entrepreneurship
We are building the nation's largest library of case studies on successful black entrepreneurs (to inspire and provide examples for current and future generations). We are creating a library containing a new generation of successful entrepreneurs who have generated considerable wealth, and serve as role models and inspirations to others; their stories (through video technology) provide current and future generations with information about how they too can achieve success and overcome challenges. 

We are creating a Center for Black Wealth Creation to increase the flow of capital and opportunity to black businesses and leaders. We will identify 50 Black high potential individuals (25 men|25 women) to accelerate their wealth over the next 5 years and make them high profile "change agents" for the black community. We will align this group with the best wealth-creation opportunity sources to create new, real-time success stories. This work addresses the wealth gap and the need for financial inclusion. 

Venture Capital
We will host Black Investor and Fund Manager Forums to enable & improve outcomes for entrepreneurs and venture investors. Building off the decade of success with the annual Culture Shifting Weekends (which have enabled $1 billion of deals and collaborations with black businesses), we will produce a series of regular engagements that put investors together with black fund managers. Investor forums content is videotaped and made available via our website.

The problem is racial inequality and the racial wealth gap, which is a result of systemic racism, and affect the majority of black Americans. Most Americans think the racial wealth gap is not bad and is narrowing. (1) In reality, black families hold, on average, about 20% of the wealth of white families. In addition, the racial wealth gap has been widening since 1998. (2) 

 Today, we have is a patchwork of half-solutions, micro-programs, and slow-moving policy efforts - which due to their lack of connection - make progress toward narrowing the inequality gap slow and uncertain. The current policy-based approach typically focuses on individual parts of the problem – like college education or home ownership – but fall short because they are not integrated and seen through to a final economic outcome.

“Getting Serious About Closing Racial Wealth Gap Means Looking For New, Large Solutions.” - Christian Weller, Sr. Fellow, Center for American Progress, 2020

Without a change in how we approach the racial wealth gap, this national problem will persist into the 22nd Century. 

“It will take African-American families 228 years for their household wealth to reach that of white families.” -Corporation for Enterprise Development, 2016.

We focus on three areas (entrepreneurship, venture capital and health equity) to accelerate progress toward narrowing the racial inequality gap.

References:

1. “The Misperception of Racial Economic Inequality” Institute for Social and Policy Studies, Yale University, 2019

2. “Has Wealth Inequality in America Changed over Time? Here Are Key Statistics” Federal Reserve Bank, 2020

Culture Shifting Foundation aligns with the Challenge through the following Programs.

ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Black Wealth Case Studies: We are building the nation's largest library of case studies on present day successful black entrepreneurs to inspire and provide examples for current and future generations of entrepreneurs. We are scaling the idea of "if you can see it, you can be it" by creating a library of success stories that will provide role models and inspiration to others. The stories will provide information about how individuals can achieve success and overcome challenges.

Center for Black Wealth Creation: We will narrow the wealth gap by increasing the flow of capital and opportunity to black businesses and leaders. We will identify 50 Black high potential individuals (25 men|25 women) to accelerate their wealth over the next 5 years and make them high profile "change agents" for the black community. These individuals will agree to provide wealth creation opportunities in the black community. This work addresses the wealth gap and the need for mentoring and financial inclusion. 

VENTURE CAPITAL
Culture Shifting Weekend’s Black Investment Forums: We will host Black Investor and Fund Manager Forums to enable & improve outcomes for entrepreneurs and venture investors. Building off the decade of success with the annual Culture Shifting Weekends (which have enabled $1 billion of deals and collaborations with black businesses), we will produce a series of regular engagements that put investors together with black fund managers. This work addresses the wealth gap and the need for mentoring and financial inclusion.

Our programs will benefit the Black Community, and as a result, the US population as a whole. 

"Data from the 2019 Survey of Consumer Finances (SCF) show that long-standing and substantial wealth disparities between families in different racial and ethnic groups were little changed since the last survey in 2016; the typical White family has eight times the wealth of the typical Black family and five times the wealth of the typical Hispanic family." -  FEDS Notes, February 28, 2020, by Neil Bhutta, Andrew C. Chang, Lisa J. Dettling, and Joanne W. Hsu with assistance from Julia Hewitt

Capital does not flow proportionally to the Black business community, nor do Black Households receive wealth management services that align well with their average financial condition. We aim to narrow the inequality gap by increasing the flow of capital to Black businesses (Entrepreneurs) and Black fund managers (Venture Capital, Private Equity, etc.). Our Black Success Case Studies program provides inspiration, motivation, and education for the black community. The objective of the program is to benefit the black community by providing examples of successful business people in the black community that can serve as role models to inspire, motivate and educate future generations of entrepreneurs. Our Center for Black Wealth Creation and Investment Forums will increase the flow of capital and wealth opportunity to black businesses and leaders by supporting business leaders that will create opportunities for wealth and inclusion in the black community. This program addresses the wealth gap and the need for financial inclusion. Our Black Investor and Fund Manager Forums will enable & improve outcomes for entrepreneurs and venture investors by bringing together small business owners, investors and fund manager to create more wealth opportunity within the black community; the program addresses the need for financial inclusion and wealth opportunity.

Our solutions are offered to participants from all states within the US. We see substantial market opportunity for our processes and programs as we offer unique, innovative and much needed solutions to an on-going, wide-spread problem (racial inequality). To our knowledge, there are no other businesses that offer our solutions. 

Our organization's mission is to  narrow the inequality gap and increase wealth creation by implementing programs and processes that focus on health equality, entrepreneurship and venture capital; these programs help launch and sustain small businesses. 

Our Black Wealth Case Studies program provide examples of success stories that demonstrate how to meet challenges and overcome adversity. These stories provide inspiration, motivation and information helpful to launching and sustaining small businesses. 

Our Center for Black Wealth Creation will help launch and sustain small businesses by increasing the flow of capital and opportunity to successful small black businesses (sustaining them) which agree to "pay it forward" and create business and investment opportunities within the Black community (launching small businesses).

Our Black Investor and Fund Manager Forums will enable & improve outcomes for entrepreneurs and venture investors through deals and collaborations which will sustain small businesses and create new business opportunities.

Our foundation was created by CSL’s CEO Andrea Hoffman with 23 years of first-hand knowledge of the challenges and opportunities that accompany the process of generating new Black Wealth. Our intent is to become a national source of solution for the economic prosperity of the Black American Community.

Culture Shifting Foundation is an offshoot of Culture Shift Labs (CSL), a professional service firm which has pioneered new ways of accelerating access and opportunity for Black business people, entrepreneurs, and venture capitalists, and has been working at the intersection of racial equity and addressing the racial wealth gap since 2006. The Foundation was incubated during our annual Culture Shifting Weekend Conference which has been in existence for 13 years and takes place in New York, Silicon Valley, Miami and London (2022). Culture Shifting Weekends have enabled over $1 billion to be placed into the hands of black entrepreneurs, fund managers and non-profits, and has provided our community of over 11K Black professionals with high level career and board member opportunities. Culture Shifting Weekends have a proven track record and Culture Shifting Foundation will build off that track record during the Investment Funds Forums. 

We are building the nation's largest library of case studies on successful black entrepreneurs (to inspire and provide examples for current and future generations). We are scaling the idea of "if you can see it, you can be it!" We are creating a library containing a new generation of successful entrepreneurs in tech, real estate, media, etc. These individuals will serve as role models and inspirations to others. Many are living legends whose stories go beyond sports and music; their stories provide current and future generations with information about how they too can achieve success and overcome challenges. Research has shown that positive role models serve as motivation and inspiration for success.

"Seeing someone like you, doing something that you would love to do,  at a more senior level can be the most empowering and motivational resource for anyone in the early stages of their careers." - https://wearethecity.com/the-i...

We are currently building the nation's largest library of case studies on successful black entrepreneurs. These are individuals who serve as role models and sources of inspiration to others; their stories provide current and future generations with information about how they too can achieve success and overcome challenges. Our aim is to create at least 16 stories per year and 80 over a five year period (these numbers depend on the funding we receive). The Case Studies will be published and distributed through select media channels, schools, universities and the public to drive action among tens of thousands in the Black community in a year and hundreds of thousands over a five year period.

Our Center for Black Wealth Creation will identify 50 Black high potential individuals (25 men|25 women) to accelerate their wealth over the next 5 years and make them high profile "change agents" for the black community. Our plan is to scale up once the pilot program is perfected. This program will initially serve 50 individuals and those 50 individuals will serve the black community, increasing the number we serve. We expect the program to service 50 individuals in the first year and hundreds over a five year period.

Black Investor and Fund Manager Forums will build off the decade of success we've had with the annual Culture Shifting Weekends. Each event hosts approximately 400 attendees; we expect to host at least three events annually, serve approximately 1200 individuals each year and 6,000 over five years. 

The communities where our Black Wealth Case Studies solution will be implemented are select media channels, schools, universities and the public. The key decision makers are the authority figures of those entities (i.e. school presidents, principals, program directors, editors, etc.). The stakeholders are the Foundation partners, affiliates, board members, employees, sponsors, college communities, and the Black community as a whole.

Our Center for Black Wealth Creation will be implemented through the black business community. The key decision makers are the business owners and authority figures. The stakeholders are the Foundation partners, affiliates, board members, employees, sponsors, program participants, and the Black community as a whole.

Black Investor and Fund Manager Forums will be implemented through the black business community. The key decision makers are the business owners and authority figures. The stakeholders are the Foundation partners, affiliates, board members, employees, sponsors, program participants, and the Black community as a whole.

Culture Shifting Foundation is a new nonprofit and an offshoot of Culture Shift Labs (CSL), a professional service firm which has pioneered new ways of accelerating access and opportunity for Black business people, entrepreneurs, and venture capitalists, and has been working at the intersection of racial equity and addressing the racial wealth gap since 2006. 

The Foundation was incubated during our annual Culture Shifting Weekend Conference which has been in existence for 13 years, takes place in New York, Silicon Valley, Miami and London (2022) and has significant ties to the communities in which it takes place. Culture Shifting Weekends have enabled over $1 billion to be placed into the hands of black entrepreneurs, fund managers and non-profits, and has provided our community of over 11K Black professionals with high level career and board member opportunities.

Our foundation was created by CSL’s CEO Andrea Hoffman with 23 years of first-hand knowledge of the challenges and opportunities that accompany the process of generating new Black Wealth. Our intent is to become a national source of solution for the economic prosperity of the Black American Community. 

Our CEO is African American, 40% of our Board of Directors is African American and many of our associates are African American. We have an acute understanding of the needs and desires of the Black Community and our programs are designed to meet those needs and desires.

We've built trust within the black community through our programs which were created to empower, inspire and educate the black community and through the long standing relationships generated by our founder (Andrea Hoffman) and affiliate company (Culture Shift Labs). Trust is built by honesty and we have developed a long-term relationship within the black business community through honesty and fairness; we honor our word and we do what we say we will do. Our founder and our affiliate company has been working with black business owners for over 26 years creating wealth and investment opportunities for small black businesses. Culture Shifting Weekends have enabled over $1 billion to be placed into the hands of black businesses, and has provided our community of over 11K Black professionals with high level career and board member opportunities. We greatly value our small business relationships which we cultivate through our projects, programs and communications.

Our Black Wealth Case Studies impact goals for the next year and the next five years are to have at least 32 and 80 Black Wealth Success Stories (respectively) available for distribution to colleges, universities, select media and the public. At this rate, we expect to impact thousands of individuals in the black community next year and in the next five years.

Our Center for Black Wealth Creation impact goals for the next year and the next five years are to have 50 Black individuals (25 men|25 women) as "change agents" for the black community. Those individuals will create investment and wealth opportunities within the Black community. At this rate, we expect to impact hundreds of individuals in the black community next year and in the next five years.

Our Black Investment Forums impact goals for the next year and the next five years are to host approximately 400 individuals at each of our annual Culture Shifting Weekends which will occur next year in London, Miami, New York and Silicon Valley. At this rate, we expect to impact approximately 1600 individuals next year and 8000 individuals in the next five years.

Culture Shifting Foundation's mission is to narrow the inequality gap through programs and processes which focus on entrepreneurship, venture capital and health equality. The Foundation's leadership consists of a team of highly skilled, racially diverse entrepreneurs and with significant experience in the areas of diversity, inclusion and racial equality. The Foundation's programs, processes and strategic direction are determined by its knowledgeable and experienced board members and executed by its knowledgeable and experienced CEO.

Cecelia Waterman-Santiago is the CEO of Culture Shifting Foundation, she has two decades  of experience in Corporate Leadership, Finance and Marketing.

Culture Shifting Foundation's Board of Directors consists of the following highly educated, highly skilled individuals who are leaders in the in the areas of technology, human resources and philanthropy:

Andrea Hoffman, is the founder of Culture Shifting Foundation
& CEO of Culture Shift Labs. She has two decades of commitment and successes in the pursuit of racial equality in the U.S.  

Fred Thompson is the CEO of F.T. Global Executive Search

Jill Ford is an Investor, Advisor & former Head of Innovation for the City of Detroit

Dustin Shay is the Sr. Director of Partnerships for Village Capital

Jacques-Philippe Piverger is the Co-Founder / Managing Partners of Ozone X Ventures

Partnering with the Truist Foundation would grant us the much needed funding to build our programs, processes and operations. 

N/A

Our partnership goal is to receive ongoing financial support for our programs and the day to day operations of the foundation.

We would like to partner with tech, public relations and financial organizations for funding and publicity to advance our mission.