Foundation:Planning:HybridSummit

More and more, we see new organizations that mash up public benefit missions, market strategies and web-like organizing structures. Mozilla. Miro. Wikipedia. Kiva. And many others. For lack of a better term, we call these mission+market+web hybrids.

On June 16, 2009, a dozen of these organizations will gather in Mountain View California for an informal Mission+Market+Web Hybrid Summit. The goal is to swap stories, strategize and better understand what makes hybrid organzations hum.

A select group of journalists and foundations will be invited as a way to share what we learn at the event.

What, where and when?

Mission+Market+Web Hybrid Summit - June 16, 2009

• 9:30 - 3:30 - Hybrid orgs gather, swap ideas and strategize
• 3:30 - 5:30 - Lightning talks and idea sharing w/ journalists and others
• 6:30 - 8:30 - Dinner hosted by Mozilla

Location: new Mozilla offices at 650 Castro Street in Mountain View. See the full draft [Hybrid:Summit:Agenda] for more details.

What's a hybrid organization?

We are talking about public benefit organizations born from the web that sit at the intersection of the sharing and market economies. They typically ...

• Put mission first in everything they do, but especially in their decisions about products and services.

• Use market strategies to reach scale and have impact. They often compete with dominant commercial players -- or whole industries -- as a way to create massive social impact.

• Are born from the culture of the web, with participation, openness and networks at the core of how they operate.

At this stage in the game, a hybrid org is a 'know it when you see it' animal. There is no clear and simple definition. But there is an important story to tell. Which, in part, is the reason we need a summit.

Why get together?

We're all in the midst of inventing a new kind of organization. This is exciting. It also means there are no road maps. We want to gather hybrid organizations to:

• Learn how each other works, and gather stories that make sense of the world we're building.

• Swap skills and techniques that are working (and aren't), from revenue models to community management to organizational structure.

• Figure out lightweight ways to share ideas and grow the hybrid org concept on an ongoing basis.

• Share our story with journalists to to help them understand why this strange new type of organization is neither a company nor a traditional charity.

• Discuss our thinking foundations who want to understand how to invest in organizations with the potential for vast social impact and long-term sustainability.

It's pretty much guaranteed that everyone will leave with new friends and new ideas.

Who have we invited?

People we've invited (most of whom have confirmed) ...

1. Alberto Ibarguen. Knight Foundation
2. Austin Hill, Akoha
3. Charles Best, Donors Choose
4. Dave Geary, Endeavor
5. Erik Moeller Wikimedia
6. George Conrad, Grameen / MIFOS
7. Greg Baldwin, [Volunteer Match]
8. Jessica Flannery, Kiva.org
9. Jake Shapiro, Public Radio Exchange
10. Jeff Weiner, Donors Choose
11. Jim Fruchterman, Benetech
12. Johnatahn Greenblatt, GOOD Worldwide
13. John Lilly, Mozilla
14. Liz Allen, Public Library of Science
15. Mark Surman, Mozilla
16. Mike Linksvayer, Creative Commons
17. Mitch Kapor, Kapor Enterprises
18. Mitchell Baker, Mozilla
19. Nancy Lublin, DoSomething.org
20. Nicholas Reville, Miro / Participatory Culture Foundation
21. Premal Shah, Kiva.org
22. Reid Hoffman, Linked In
23. Stephen DeBerry, Kapor Enterprises
24. Tiffniy Cheng, Miro / Participatory Culture Foundation
25. Vince Stehle, Surdna Foundation

... a few more invites are still pending.