At the beginning of March, Maurice Ostro was in Singapore to accept an award from the Social Engagement Network of the Young Presidents’ Organisation. Here, he tells us about the experience.
Last week, in Singapore, I was presented with the Young President’s Organisation (YPO) Social Engagement Network’s (SEN) Philanthropy award. YPO is an international organisation made up of over 25,000 members running some truly great businesses.
But there was a slight problem. I was due to give an acceptance speech but had completely lost my voice. Heavy doses of honey, lemon and the odd spot of rum, simply didn’t do the trick. Luckily, my wife Katy was there and able to step in and speak for me; something at which she excels… no doubt due to much experience!
As exciting as it was to be awarded this trophy, even more exciting were the conversations that were had in the room about EG. This was a group of entrepreneurs from all over the world who loved the idea, that purpose should be embedded from the start. These are individuals with a wealth of experience who know how hard it is to introduce purpose meaningfully into a business, which is already well established.
Of all the conversations I did want to share one that particularly stood out. There were three individuals at this awards dinner from Sri Lanka, a country still recovering from years of civil war, and in the light of recent events, not out of the woods yet. These individuals see so much need for businesses in their country to heal and nourish their community. One man shared with me that it was on becoming a father to a little girl, he realised how much needed to be done within this recovering country. It is a country with many opportunities, and where there are opportunities there are entrepreneurs, and so the discussion turned to setting up an EG chapter in Sri Lanka. This is something we will pursue; as I hope to see EG chapters spring up across the globe, engaging with young entrepreneurs at the start of their journey.
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