Much of the credit for Boston's resilient startup scene goes to the city's strong technology, healthcare, and finance sectors, as well as its prestigious colleges, universities, and hospitals. However, another important resource is the incubators and accelerators that support entrepreneurs.
MassChallenge, a 12 year old non-profit that promotes startups in their earliest stages, has pioneered this. On Tuesday, the group announced that managing director Siobhan Dullea is stepping down after three years to take care of a serious health situation in her family. The current Executive Vice President, Cait Brumme, will take on the role of CEO.
One of the first things Brumme explained to me when we met at Zoom this week was the origin of the group's name.
"Most people think the name has something to do with Massachusetts and I don't want to break anyone's heart out there, but it's 'Massive Challenges,'" she says.
For starters, Brumme doesn't plan on major changes to MassChallenge's mission. If anything, then the emergence of startups like Moderna during the COVID brummes added to support for the mission.
"We know that really big problems require unconventional partnerships and unconventional models to get companies off the ground," she says. "Our goal and our belief is that we can increase the impact of entrepreneurship on sectors, regions and founders, as well as on major global challenges that are not yet resolved."
Since its inception in Boston in 2009, MassChallenge has not only expanded to other cities, but has launched acceleration programs focusing on specific sectors such as digital health. According to Brumme, the group is planning another program for cryptocurrencies and web3.0, the evolving ecosystem of applications and services based on blockchain technology.
A current project on air conditioning technology from Switzerland is also to be expanded. "We believe this should and will be a global project," she says. "The climate is our top priority."
MassChallenge plays "a vital role in developing the early-stage business ecosystem," said Jody Rose, president of the New England Venture Capital Association. While Dullea's departure is a "big blow," Brumme will be "spectacular," says Rose. "She's balanced, she's energetic, and she's a solid operational leader.
Brumme joined MassChallenge almost three years ago from the Impact Collaboratory at Harvard Business School, an impact investing research program, where she, as director, set strategy in collaboration with the school's faculty. She previously worked for the investment advisory firms Social Finance and Strategic Value Capital.
Diversity and inclusion have always been part of MassChallenge's mandate, but were given even greater consideration during Dullea's tenure. The forced move to virtual education programs and meetings during COVID has worked for MassChallenge and could help "support more people, more communities and more economies around the world" in the future, according to Brumme. At the same time, it "allows more talent to join existing ecosystems like Boston," she says.
Still, the ongoing pandemic has forced MassChallenge, like many other organizations, to postpone plans to return to the office. The group has just moved its headquarters to one floor of the new MassMutual building in Seaport.
"We were planning our big return to the office, and now we're back to soft launch mode," says Brumme.
