Category Archives: Specialist People Foundation

Specialisterne in Denmark receives Growth Capital

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Specialisterne Denmark have received an injection of growth capital from the newly established The Social Capital Fund (“Den Sociale Kapitalfond”), Denmark’s first social venture fund, which is focusing on investing capital and competencies in promising social entrepreneurs to scale their social impact and economic performance.

The Chairman of The Social Capital Fund, Ms. Gurli Martinussen, calls Specialisterne a prime example of social entrepreneurship: “Specialisterne have spotted a unique potential in people who often is seen as a vulnerable group in society, and used this potential to create exciting and meaningful jobs. It is a sustainable social solution that also helps to further develop the understanding of how we create more opportunities for everyone in society. It is exactly the type of businesses we want to help spread and develop,” she says.

For Specialisterne Denmark the new financial platform will make an important difference in its endeavours to create more jobs for people with autism spectrum disorders. CEO Henrik Thomsen says: “We have lacked growth capital to exploit our potential in the market to a greater extent and expand our team of consultants with autism spectrum disorders. Where Specialisterne might have been too “social” for some commercial investors, but too “commercial” for some social funders, we have in the Social Capital Fund encountered an investor with the social aspect as a priority as well as knowledge and resources to help us in our business mission to create further sustainable jobs. We will now be able to take major step forward and get much more ‘specialist people’ in work”.

Links:
www.specialisterne.dk
http://www.densocialekapitalfond.dk/english/ (english)
http://www.densocialekapitalfond.dk/ (danish)

Specialisterne Acknowledged as Best Practice in Essl Foundation Report

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Specialisterne has been acknowledged as one of 27 good practice examples in the Essl Foundation’s Zero Project 2012 Report. The report is an international study on the implementation of the UN Convention on the Right of Persons with Disabilities.

Commissioned by the Essl Foundation, the report is a commentary on the state of the UN Convention in 36 countries based on 21 social indicators. Read the full report here.

Specialisterne Now in the USA!

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It is with great pride that we can reveal that Specialisterne Foundation, Inc. has now formed in the USA. Incorporated in Wilmington, Delaware. The foundation will drive and support the adoption of the Specialisterne model across the United States, and carry out fundraising to facilitate the global drive to enable one million jobs for people with autism and similar challenges.

Furthermore, Specialisterne Minnesota has also become an official entity, which will bring the Specialisterne model into the state of Minnesota. Continue reading →

Specialisterne Now in the USA!

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It is with great pride that we can reveal that Specialisterne Foundation, Inc. has now formed in the USA. Incorporated in Wilmington, Delaware. The foundation will drive and support the adoption of the Specialisterne model across the United States, and carry out fundraising to facilitate the global drive to enable one million jobs for people with autism and similar challenges.

Furthermore, Specialisterne Minnesota has also become an official entity, which will bring the Specialisterne model into the state of Minnesota. Specialisterne Minnesota is headquartered in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, with Local Coordinator Tim Hanson already working hard on fund-raising and business planning activities.

“Our plan is to model Specialisterne Minnesota as a consulting practice with a compelling portfolio of capabilities similar to that of Specialisterne Denmark,” says Hanson, a successful local businessman and the father of a child with ASD.  “Like Denmark, we will assess and train people with autism and similar challenges, and then employ them as consultants providing valuable services to corporate clients in sectors including technology, IT, telecommunications and software.”

The US market is ripe for Specialisterne (The Specialists in Danish).  According to the US Census Bureau, the population of the USA is 310 million. Research suggests that approximately 1% (3.1 million people) have ASD, 90% of whom are unemployed.

“There is so much opportunity for us in the US to create meaningful and productive lives for the growing number of people diagnosed with ASD,” says Thorkil Sonne. “We are confident that our seven years plus of operational experience in Specialisterne, combined with local partners adoption of the Specialisterne model will bring about a change in the US. And with Tim at the helm, we are confident that Specialisterne Minnesota will be a shining example of how the Specialisterne model can be adapted successfully throughout the US. This is a major step in our efforts to reach our goal of enabling one million jobs globally for people with autism and similar challenges, and we are thrilled about partnering with Tim and his team.”

Hanson has already assembled a team of business professionals and autism experts with the goal of establishing Specialisterne Minnesota as the gold standard for in the US.

“I believe that Minnesota is the perfect entry point for Specialisterne in the US. The business climate here is healthy and we are home to a large number of Fortune 500 companies,” says Hanson. “The social climate here is also encouraging, as Minnesota is the national leader in providing opportunities and services to individuals with special needs. Last but not least, the employment climate is ripe with a significant need for skilled technical employees.”

Although Specialisterne Minnesota plan to replicate the Danish model as much as possible, some modifications are necessary. The ongoing work to complete a comprehensive feasibility study will identify the specific conditions needed to make Specialisterne Minnesota a successful, self-sustaining consulting practice providing high-quality IT professionals to the market while employing people with autism.

As Thorkil Sonne is an Ashoka Globalizer, Specialisterne Minnesota will also benefit from the support of the  Ashoka Localizer Program.

“”The mission of our Localizer program is to ensure our community has access to the best social innovations from the world’s leading social entrepreneurs. By connecting Thorkil Sonne with local community leaders, we showcase the Twin City’s long-standing commitment to hosting and nurturing innovative solutions that have the potential for ground-breaking positive change,” Said Jennifer Aspengren, Director, AshokaTwin Cities

Specialisterne Minnesota plan to launch business operations in early 2012 with the first round of candidate assessment starting soon after.  For more information, follow this link.  

Specialisterne Now in Austria

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The Specialisterne model continues to spread to more locations around the world, and we are delighted to announce that Specialisterne Austria is now an officially registered association. Local Coordinator Stephan Dorfmeister is leading the operation and is already in full swing with fundraising activities and the Feasibility Study. Continue reading →

Specialisterne Now in Austria

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The Specialisterne model continues to spread to more locations around the world, and we are delighted to announce that Specialisterne Austria is now an officially registered association. Local Coordinator Stephan Dorfmeister is leading the operation and is already in full swing with fundraising activities and the Feasibility Study.

“We are progressing well and have already secured part of the funding needed to conduct the Feasibility Study thanks to contribution from the Essl Foundation,” says Stephan Dorfmeister. “If things continue to progress well, then we hope to launch Specialisterne Austria in the spring of 2012 with assessment and training beginning in the early summer.”

Stephan Dorfmeister MBA is an accomplished independent management consultant with a background in business development in Europe, the Middle East, the US and Asia, and has always had a strong focus on social responsibility and sustainability.

Ashoka Austria was instrumental in connecting Stephan with SPF Founder and Ashoka Globalizer Thorkil Sonne, through the Ashoka Localizer program. This program helps Ashoka Fellows, such as Thorkil, to scale their business ideas in other countries by creating networking opportunities and by providing important support to accelerate market entry and the growth of the venture.

“It is really great to see the Ashoka Localizer program helping to facilitate connections and establish new socially innovative businesses such as Specialisterne here in Austria, “says Marie Ringler, Director for Ashoka Austria. “We’re looking forward to working with Specialisterne Austria as it is a great example of a company striving for social change.”

It was also through Ashoka Globalizer, that Specialisterne came to the attention of the Essl Foundation.  “The Essl Social Prize 2010 was given to Bill Drayton, Ashoka Globalizer and Founder of Ashoka,” says Dr Michael Fembek, Program Director, Essl Foundation. “Since Thorkil Sonne is an Ashoka Globalizer, and the Essl Foundation is especially supporting innovative projects in the field of persons with disabilities, we decided to support this great project and its high potential.”

The Specialist People Foundation is also thrilled at the establishment of Specialisterne Austria. “This is an important addition to the Specialisterne global community, and a natural step for us in our mission to enable one million jobs for people with autism and similar challenges,” says Thorkil Sonne, Chairman of the SPF Board. “Specialisterne Austria are well on their way to providing excellent assessment, training and meaningful job opportunities for people with autism in Austria.”

For more information on Specialisterne Austria, please use this link.

Specialist People Conference 2011 – A success

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“My dream is that the Dandelion approach will be the management model of the 21st century.”

This is how Thorkil Sonne expressed his dream at the first global conference of the Specialist People Foundation (SPF) in May. The conference was held in May in Copenhagen, Denmark, hosted by Nokia Danmark and with participants from a total of 25 different countries, united in a common goal to create career opportunities to improve the life for people with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). The conference was another step in reaching the Specialist People Foundation’s goal to create 1 million jobs globally for people with ASD and similar challenges.

The time is ripe for global change

We had a couple of fantastic days with inspiring presentations, knowledge sharing and cross-border collaboration, with an atmosphere clearly reflecting that the time is ripe for global change in attitude and approach with regard to employment of people with ASD. It was inspiring to see  so many like-minded people gathered, dedicated to realizing the vision of creating respect and understanding for people with ASD, with a goal to get more such ‘specialist people’ into the global workforce.

A sustainable business model and strong partnerships

The first day of the conference focused on an introduction to the concept of ‘dandelion management’ and the conceptual framework behind SPF. With a very strong and sustainable business model based on numerous successful case studies, SPF introduced some key partners, such as Ashoka, Lions Club and World Autism organization. We also heard several examples of companies who have successfully worked with specialist people from through their partnering with Specialisterne, including companies such as Nokia, Deloitte, the largest Danish telecoms company TDC, and innovative IH Food from the food-technology sector.

Getting operational – replicating “Specialisterne” around the world

On day two the focus was on operationalization matters with a deep dive on the operational framework of Specialisterne and the different key elements of the sustainable business model. We reviewed cases from countries that have already started up Specialisterne operations, or are about to. We then had three break-out sessions where discussions of “how” continued. We also shared current plans to start up Specialisterne operations in more countries including Ireland, Spain, Germany and Poland, and the U.S. The ambition is that many more countries – not just the Western world – will become part of the vision.

The dream of leadership in the 21st century

We’ve had a huge amount of positive feedback in the wake of the conference, proving that there is both support and confidence that it is time to change attitudes, and work towards helping people with ASD become valuable and worthy members of the global workforce. Robert Austin, professor at CBS expressed his view of leadership and innovation in the 21st century:

“Innovation needs variation…placing value on differences creates innovation. That’s the key for 21st century management.

Specialist People Conference was the first of its kind, but it is certainly not the last!  Since the end of the conference, planning for starting up Specialisterne around the world has truly accelerated. Teams are now progressing the planning in Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Canada, USA, Turkey, Singapore, Dubai and many other countries.

See pictures from the conference here:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/specialistpeople/sets/72157626627464375/