Social Entrepreneur Profile
Edward
Mannix
Co-Founder
OneEarth Mortgage
Shadowed
by:
Debra Kurshan, Peggy Hermida and
Anjali Shah
Entrepreneur
Contact Data:
Email: edward@oneearthmortgage.com
Phone: 812-333-1200
Website: http://www.oneearthmortgage.com/
Basics:
Founding Date: 2004
Corporate Form: S Corporation
Geographic Focus: At the
time of the project, the company operated only in Bloomington, IN and was considering a second site for
national expansion. It has since expanded to Austin, TX.
Full-time employees: 4 full time and 1 part
time
Industry: Mortgage
Social Mission Area:
Community Development
Mission:
To empower people to make a positive impact on
their communities and the world around them simply through the
otherwise ordinary act of financing their home, investment property or
construction project. The Company achieves this mission by donating 1/3
of profits to charities that its customers choose.
Q
and A with Students:
Q:
Can you give us some background on Edward Mannix?
A: Edward returned to his hometown of Bloomington, IN
during July of 2004 after earning an MBA at Columbia University – where
he studied social entrepreneurship – and completing an MA in
International Policy and Economics at Johns Hopkins University. Prior
to graduate school, Edward spent several years in the private sector as
a management consultant, international entrepreneur and venture
capitalist.
His career spans 10
countries on five continents, and his most interesting work experiences
include: helping launch a telecommunications company in Mongolia,
developing foreign economic policy for the Mexican Government, and
working for an eco-friendly real estate developer in Seattle. Edward’s
educational pursuits began at Indiana University where he studied at
IU’s world-renowned School of Music before switching majors and
graduating as the top student in the Economics Program and with a
second major in Psychology. Edward is dedicated to building a better
world through business, and he can think of no better place to start
than in his home state of Indiana.
Q:
What led you to choose to shadow him?
A: We were interested in the idea of how mortgage
banking could be a social enterprise.
Q:
What issues did your social entrepreneur face during the project?
A: Geographic Expansion, Strategy, Financing, Growth,
and Product Expansion
Q:
What was interesting, surprising or inspiring about shadowing this
SE?
A: Edward Mannix is a passionate entrepreneur who
exemplifies many of the traits of typical entrepreneurs. He is trying
to create change in a market that is traditionally undifferentiated and
has been able to successfully pilot his idea in Bloomington, IN.
Watching him work through the process of deciding the best way to
expand his business generated a number of insights. One such insight is
that it can be challenging to strike a balance between developing and
executing a top-down strategic plan for a social enterprise while at
the same time remaining open to opportunities that arise. Also, we
observed that when making decisions in the context of a social
enterprise there can be even more factors to consider than with
traditional businesses.
Over the course of three
months we had the opportunity to watch Edward evaluate several markets
he is considering for expansion and saw the different criteria that he
used to make decisions - business model fit, health of local real
estate markets, and concentration of socially conscious consumers. It
was inspiring to shadow Edward Mannix because he saw each decision as
an opportunity and maintained his passion and vision even in the face
of difficult choices.
Q:
What did you learn about being a social entrepreneur from this project?
A: That you need to have vision,
be flexible and surround yourself with the right people and mentors.
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