Social Impact Fellowship

Explore your purpose and embed impact in your career

Helping Australian and New Zealand purpose-driven individuals gain the capabilities, knowledge and network needed to embed or drive greater impact

“Social Impact Hub is a goldmine of knowledge, opportunities and really good people! The Social Impact Fellowship offered not only access to a wide range of resources and experts, but also the opportunity to work collaboratively with a very wide range of social impact-focused individuals, whose diversity is very rich and professionally stimulating.”

Andrea Comastri, Co-Founder & CEO, Hotel Etico

About the Fellowship

Whether you are feeling ready to take the plunge and pursue a career in impact or looking to upskill and position yourself for success in your current role, the Social Impact Fellowship will equip you with the resources and clarity to take your next steps and unleash your potential.

The Social Impact Fellowship is a transformative program for Australian and New Zealand-based individuals seeking to explore their purpose and understand how they can drive greater social and environmental impact through their work and beyond.

Social Impact Fellows will:

Attend immersive and interactive masterclasses and exclusive sessions with leading entrepreneurs, impact investors, and purpose-driven leaders.

Gain access to high-quality masterclasses and other online learning content.

Gain practical and hands on experience by working on projects with social enterprises that address real-world challenges.

Join a diverse community of aspiring individuals intent on building an inclusive, just and sustainable world including social enterprise founders, impact investors, and for purpose leaders.

Receive mentoring support to foster their learning journey and guide their next steps for embedding impact in their career.

Experience a journey of self-discovery and learning designed to build individual capacity to contribute to and drive impact

Be the first to know about networking and professional development opportunities in the impact sector.

What Makes a Fellow

Social Impact Fellows are ambitious and driven individuals, eager to harness their energy and skills for good by gaining the community, knowledge and skills required to be effective, collaborative agents of change in the 21st century.

Fellows from our cohort have come from all walks of professional life, ranging from those deep in the impact sector, to individuals from government and banking, to architecture and education – united by a common desire to positively impact the world. Joining the Fellowship is about more than learning about social impact, it is joining a lifelong community of purpose-driven individuals with a passion for learning from each other.

We invite you to apply to the Social Impact Fellowship if you are Australia or New Zealand-based, and:

For those in the impact sector:

A burning desire to unlock your full potential for driving change and deepening your impact

For those new to the impact sector:

A passion for exploring and fulfilling your purpose and pursuing a pathway to drive impact

Key Dates: Cohort Eight

SEPTEMBER 2024

APPLICATIONS OPEN

NOVEMBER 2024

INTERVIEWS COMMENCE

FEBRUARY 9TH 2025

APPLICATIONS CLOSE

FEBRUARY 2025

FINAL INTERVIEWS & OFFERS

MARCH 2025

PROGRAM STARTS

JUNE 2025

PROGRAM ENDS

The Program

The Social Impact Fellowship is an immersive, interactive and evidence-based learning experience. The content and learning journey has been informed by our work on the ground with impact entrepreneurs and organisations, and is delivered in partnership with our Professional Impact Network and thought leaders from across the impact sector.

Fellows will build their knowledge and capability across the following areas:

  • 21st-century entrepreneurial skills including lean startup methodology

  • The world of social entrepreneurship

  • Impact investing and its exponential growth

  • Impact measurement best practice

  • Exploring purpose in your career and creating an authentic personal brand

  • Crafting your personal mission and values

  • Leadership and emotional intelligence

Early bird price for the Fellowship is $2,945 (plus GST & Stripe fee), closing December 1st, 2024. As part of our contribution to the impact ecosystem, Social Impact Hub subsidises this cost. Additionally, we are committed to ensuring that finance is not a barrier to participating and providing a number of scholarships each year. We encourage all interested to apply. We can also support you to work with your organisation to cover some or all of the costs as part of your professional development.

Program Structure

The Fellowship is a learning experience that you can curate based on your learning goals that we develop with you during the program. We run one to two sessions a week (2.5 contact hours in total). Sessions are not compulsory, as Fellows can choose which are most appropriate for their learning journey - with curation supported by our team. All sessions will be recorded and Fellows will have access to these during and following the program, alongside other online learning materials, so it is not essential to attend every session live.

Fellows also receive mentoring and have the opportunity to participate in an interactive impact project and gain practical experience working to address a real-world problem from a social enterprise.  

Alongside the core impact-focused content and building connections and networks across the cohort of diverse individuals, Fellows have the opportunity to nominate a stream that best aligns to their intended impact pathway, and have access to curated knowledge, experiences, mentorship, and connections that align with this stream.  More on the streams below.

Fellows will also get access to the Scaling Impact Accelerator Program masterclasses covering topics, including:

  • Scaling a social enterprise.

  • Building best practice social enterprise financial models.

  • Branding and marketing.

  • Raising capital.

  • Engaging investors.

  • Impact measurement.

  • Team, governance, and culture.

 Nominate a Stream: Fellowship Impact Pathways

To accompany the core impact-focused content within the Fellowship, Fellows have the option to nominate a stream aligned with their intended impact pathway. There are five impact pathways: Impact Exploration, Corporate Innovation, Impact Innovation, Impact Investing, and Social Entrepreneurship.

These pathways enable fellows to access curated knowledge, experiences, mentorship, and connections that align with their chosen stream, alongside the broader impact and sector knowledge shared with the whole cohort.

  • The Impact Exploration pathway is for changemakers who are at a transitory point in their life, eager to explore professional impact related pathways and approaches to grow their impact. Whether you're in a career gap and seeking an impact-focused role, aiming to transition into a more purpose-driven career, or simply feeling lost but determined to make a difference, this pathway is designed for you. Gain the essential skills, knowledge, and network needed to thrive in an impact driven career.

    “I’ve been passionate about social impact for a long time and was lucky enough to be accepted in the inaugural Social Impact Fellowship cohort in 2021. I was looking to transition from my career in law and government to the for-purpose sector. I found my current dream job at Social Traders through the Fellowship. I am indebted to Social Impact Hub for providing me a pathway to work with and for business for good" .

    Matt Panayi, Social Procurement Lead QLD & NT, Social Traders

  • The Corporate Innovation pathway is for professionals working in a corporate or government role and wanting to either embed impact within, or alongside, their current role. The pathway provides the tools, knowledge, and network necessary to champion impact and drive change from within an organisation.

    “The Fellowship provided me with greater direction on how I could create social impact. The Social Impact Hub carefully curated a program that empowers you to own your career. Following the end of the program, I feel well-equipped and wiser, and determined and excited for the career adventure ahead at Macquarie and the positive impact I hope to make.”

    Sigma Sultana, Senior Manager - RMG Behavioural Risk, Macquarie Group

  • The Impact Amplification pathway is for for-purpose sector professionals looking for new skills and approaches to amplify their existing capability to drive impact and bring greater value to their organisation. This pathway has been developed for leaders across the sector, and will provide a network of impact-driven professionals coming together to build new knowledge, share insights, and learn and apply best practice tools relevant to the impact space.

    “Social Impact Hub is a goldmine of knowledge, opportunities and really good people! The fellowship offered not only access to a wide range of resources and experts but also the opportunity to work collaboratively with a very wide range of social impact focussed individuals, whose diversity is very rich and professionally stimulating.”

    Andrea Comastri, CEO & Founder, Hotel Etico

  • The Social Entrepreneurship pathway is for changemakers leading a social enterprise, or aspiring to launch one. This pathway helps you develop the capabilities, network and confidence required to grow the impact of, or start your venture.

    “The Fellowship has been an incredibly valuable experience and opened up a world of ideas around how I can embed social impact through my everyday work, life, and actions. It has increased my awareness surrounding career directions and options to begin my social enterprise. The projects were a great way for me to gain practical experience in working with several social enterprises, stakeholders, and fellows from diverse career backgrounds."

    Melinda Farrar-Rabbidge, Lived Experience Engagement Manager, Butterfly Foundation

  • The Impact Investing pathway is for professionals looking to understand how capital is being mobilised for impact and how it can be applied to their field of work.

    Whether you're working in a Foundation and want to lead or contribute to investment opportunities; a financial advisor looking to this model for sustainable investment options, or a professional from a non-profit or social enterprise wanted to understand diversifying revenue to enabled greater impact, this pathway will provide the knowledge and connections to further your understanding.

    “If you want to work in impact investing, or think you have what it takes to build a social enterprise, this is the program to help you achieve your goals. It was a pleasure working with the Fellows and sharing my experience in impact investing with them.”

    Andrew Tyndale, Chief Investments and Assets Officer, Wesley Mission & Professional Impact Network Member, Social Impact Hub

Mentors, Speakers, Advisors & Facilitators

Drawing on our wide network, we handpick a range of experienced and exceptional individuals to be involved in the Fellowship program.

Mentors

An experienced mentor/s will support and guide you on your journey. Drawing on their own experiences exploring their pathways to impact, they will help you translate your skills, build your network and navigate the impact space with confidence. Current mentors include:

Andrew Tyndale

Chief Investments and Assets Officer at Wesley Mission

Sector Leader & Impact Investing Expert

Kate Kennedy

Non-Executive Director at Campbell Page & Chair at Barlow Impact Group

Sector Leader & Impact Expert

Noel Clement

Director and Chair at Community Refugee Sponsorship Australia

Not-for-Profit Sector Leader & Social Change, Policy and Impact Expert

Poppy Rouse

Strategy and Innovation Consultant at Powered by Purpose

Strategy & Impact Innovation Expert

Adam Long

Managing Director and Head of Strategy at ThunderLabs

Strategy & Social Entrepreneurship Expert

Peter Boyd

Board Member at The Bread & Butter Project

For-Purpose Sector Leader and Impact & Strategy Expert

 

Speakers, Advisors and Facilitators

Fellowship speakers and facilitators cover a diverse range of impact areas and themes, from social entrepreneurs, not-for-profit pioneers and impact leaders. Current and past speakers and facilitators include:

Daniella Alhadeff

Senior Manager at PwC

Corporate Impact Expert

Kathy Hoyt

Strategy Consultant and Coach

Impact Measurement Expert

Lorna Parry

Co-Founder, Board Director and MD, Underwater Earth

Communications Expert

Craig North

Founder at Indigenous Impact

Danny Hui

Founder at sameview

Marissa Sandler

Co-Founder & CEO at Careseekers

Tony Sinclair

Impact Investment Readiness Consultant

May Samali

Founder & CEO at Coaching by May

Belinda Morrisey

CEO at English Family Foundation

Anthony Bohm

Partner at Pangaea Impact Investments

Debbie Jamieson

Strategy and Impact Consultant

Paul Ronalds

Founder & CEO at Save the Children Ventures

Agnes Abelsen

Founder & CEO at Travengers AU

Natalie Collins

Head of Commercial Partnerships at Woolworths Group

Jane Marx

Founder at The Beautiful Bunch

Allie Rosen

Founder at Leap Theory

Irma Del Mundo

Founder at StrategyMundo

 

“There are so many different ways to embed social impact in your career - and there really are opportunities that exist for everyone. The Social Impact Fellowship allowed me to explore how I might pursue a career in social impact and helped me to understand how I might apply my values and skillset to align with this. I have already applied the skills I acquired in my current role!"

Michelle Noble, Program Manager - MECCA M-Power, Mecca Brands

About Us

The Social Impact Fellowship is an initiative of the Social Impact Hub.

Social Impact Hub are a purpose-driven intermediary that collaborates with a broad range of impact-focused organisations and individuals. Through advice, education, mobilising capital and ecosystem building, we build capacity to amplify impact.

FAQ

The Fellowship is for individuals who want to embed or deepen impact in their lives. You may already be in the impact space and want to develop your networks, build a toolkit of relevant resources and approaches to grow your impact, or maybe you just want to learn more about other parts of the impact ecosystem like impact investing, impact measurement, and social enterprise. You might also be new to the impact space and want to learn how to apply your experience in another sector to creating impact. Either way, the Fellowship is an incredible opportunity for personal growth and professional development. We invite applicants of all ages, abilities, races and cultural backgrounds and LGBTQIA+ to apply.

Social Impact Hub will review all applications and curate a cohort with Fellows with a diversity of experience, knowledge and skills to create the best possible peer learning community.

The Social Impact Fellowship costs $2945 (plus GST and Stripe fee) for the program. We are committed to ensuring that finance is not a barrier to participating and provide a number of partial scholarships each year. Note, we don't provide full scholarships. We encourage all interested to apply. We can also support you to work with your organisation to cover some or all of the costs as part of your professional development.

The fee goes towards funding the operational cost of running the Fellowship to ensure the best experience possible for all Fellows. Our educational sessions are run by experts in their field including those from our Professional Impact Network who are paid for their time. Members of our Professional Impact Network are also compensated for their time to support the projects.

Yes. We can assist you in the request process with your organisation by providing letter of support outlining the program. We can then create an invoice for your company and allocate this time to your learning and development budget.

1. Application: The first stage is to fill in an application. Here we collect your basic information and understand your interest in the Fellowship Program. We will review your application for suitability and if you meet the program criteria, we will contact you by email.

2. Interview: If your application has been shortlisted, you will be invited to an interview.

3. Offer: Once the selection process has been finalised and you have been selected, you will be offered a Fellowship position in writing.

We will assess the following areas:

  • How will the Fellowship help you achieve your personal and professional goals?
  • Do you have a real curiosity for social impact, social entrepreneurship or impact investing?
  • Are you willing to take the initiative to create opportunities for yourself on the Fellowship journey?

No, you don’t need to quit your current role to take part in the program. The program is a professional development opportunity designed to fit around your current personal and professional commitments. We are looking for individuals who want to improve themselves, who are deeply curious about the impact sector and who want to make a difference. We welcome Fellows that will apply the skills and knowledge they will gain from the Fellowship back in their current roles, hence upskilling themselves in their careers

The Fellowship is a three-month program that focuses on developing both your sector knowledge of social impact, social entrepreneurship and impact investment, and upskilling in 21st century skills, such as lean start-up methodology, design thinking and personal branding. The program includes content led by our Professional Impact Network who are subject matter experts in the sessions they run as well as networking and practical learning opportunities. This includes:

  • Demystifying the social entrepreneurship and impact investing landscape.
  • Meeting other amazing talented individuals from diverse backgrounds in your cohort.
  • Hearing from leading social entrepreneurs, impact investors and sector leaders who will share their insights on different parts of the impact ecosystem and help you explore opportunities to embed impact in your career.
  • Receiving introductions to social enterprises and founders in our Social Impact Hub network to support your professional development.
  • Receiving bespoke career guidance and sessions with your Fellowship mentor/s.

We recommend you see the Fellowship program as a chance to curate your own learning experience. We run one to two sessions a week (2.5 contact hours in total). The Fellowship sessions will typically run on Wednesday nights from 5.30pm-7pm and Friday from 12pm-1pm. Fellows can choose which sessions they attend live, which they watch as recordings, and which might not be as relevant to them. All recordings will continue to made available after the program ends, alongside other online learning materials, so it is not essential to attend every session live. In addition to the two sessions a week, you will have sessions with your mentor which can be organised around your schedule.

That being said, we believe you get out what you put in so you can make the program as ‘intensive’ as you’d like. There is the opportunity to go through additional online learning and Fellows can also have the option of taking on a project with a social enterprise, doing an online hustling for more introductions, attending events and generally immersing themselves in the world of social impact.

Sessions with your mentor/s as well as projects with social enterprises are structured around your availability.

The Fellowship will be delivered virtually. Outside of the Fellowship, we will facilitate state based catch ups and networking opportunities.

The project is a practical learning experience where you will be able to apply your existing knowledge and skillsets as well as learning from the program to a real-world problem a social enterprise is experience. The social enterprises come from the Social Impact Hub's community. There will be flexibility around the timing and location of the project depending on the Fellows and enterprises' availability and preference. The project can be completed virtually or in person during work hours or after hours.

You will have an opportunity to preference the enterprise you would like to work with. The project for the Fellows component of the program is not limited and spots will be guaranteed if you choose to undertake the optional placement.

If you would like to organise the project as a workplace volunteering opportunity, we are happy to support you with any materials you need from us to take to your employer. Similarly, we are also happy to provide a reference letter to you confirming your participation in the Fellowship so you are well-equipped for your next career move!

If you have any other questions, please reach out.

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