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 at the end of the day 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 foundations
• 6:30 - 8:30 - Dinner hosted by Mozilla

The organizers will also hold a small session with foundations on the following day to help them think through ways to better engage hybrid organizations.

Tentative location is the Mozilla offices in Mountain View.

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?

The following people and organizations have been invited to the hybrid summit.

Hybrid organizations

1. Jessica FlanneryKiva.org
2. Jim Fruchterman, Benetech
3. John Lilly, Mozilla
4. Joi Ito, Creative Commons
5. Kathryn Taylor, One California Bank
6. Mark Surman, Mozilla (host organization)
7. Mitchell Baker, Mozilla (host organization)
8. Nicholas Reville, Miro / Participatory Culture Foundation
9. Jake Shapiro, Public Radio Exchange
10. Peter Bladin, Grameen Foundation Technology Program
11. Premal Shah Kiva.org
12. Stephen DeBerry, Kapor Enterprises
13. Sue Gardner Wikipedia
14. Tiffniy Cheng, Miro / Participatory Culture Foundation

... more invitations will be added in the coming days.

Foundations and journalists

1. Alberto Ibarguen, Knight Foundation
2. Darius Cuplinskas, Soros Foundation
3. John Markoff, New York Times
4. Lee Davis, NESST
5. Rick Aubrey, Stanford Centre for Social Innovation