Watch Live: 2021 Goldman Sachs Gives Analyst Impact Fund Finals

Event Overview and Participation

• The 2021 Goldman Sachs Analyst Impact Fund is the sixth iteration of the competition, held live from multiple global locations.
• Over 600 analysts from 30 locations competed, advocating for more than 300 non-profit institutions.
• Four finalist teams were selected to present before a panel of judges, including David Solomon and the Partnership Committee.
• Total participants included 1,600 colleagues from 10 offices, select clients, and incoming analysts.
• Asahi Pompei, Global Head of Corporate Engagement, highlighted the competition's alignment with the firm's culture of excellence, service, and entrepreneurship.

Competition Structure and Criteria

• Each of the four finalist teams was allotted six minutes for presentation followed by a two-question Q&A session.
• Judging criteria comprised five weighted categories: Innovation, Impact, Scalability, Measurement, and Overall Presentation.
• A "Fan Favorite" award of $25,000 was determined by a live vote from the global audience.
• Audience voting instructions involved emailing events@gs.com with the subject line "#AIF" followed by the team letter (A, B, C, or D).

Team Presentations and Proposals

Team A: Prasarana Trust (Bengaluru, India)

• Mission: Address gender disparity in India's education system to increase women's workforce participation, currently at less than 20%.
• Problem Context: Cites a 40% secondary school dropout rate for girls in 2019, exacerbated by the pandemic, noting that a 10% increase in women's workforce participation could add over $700 billion to India's GDP by 2025.
• Grant Allocation ($250,000):
  • 65% ($162,500) for formal education scholarships, targeting 500–750 girls.
  • 20% ($50,000) for vocational training in tailoring, computer skills, and handicrafts.
  • 15% ($37,500) for awareness campaigns and mentorship programs.
• Projected Impact: Target to support nearly 900 women in India within the upcoming year through scholarships, skill development, and mindset change initiatives.
• Operational Model: Utilizes a rigorous governance process including government ID verification, academic transcript reviews, and direct payment to educational institutions to prevent fund misuse.

Team B: Hello World (London, UK)

• Mission: Bridge the global digital divide by deploying "Hello Hubs," solar-paneled, Wi-Fi-enabled structures providing free internet and educational resources to remote communities.
• Problem Context: 40% of the global population (approx. 3 billion people) remains offline, hindering access to education, health information, and family connectivity.
• Grant Allocation ($250,000):
  • 14 new Hello Hubs to be deployed in Nepal.
  • $100,000 covers hardware kit costs and maintenance for a minimum of five years.
  • $150,000 funds local team training, internet infrastructure, and impact assessments.
• Cost Efficiency: Projects a cost of less than $10 per person per year, compared to the significantly higher costs of building traditional schools or training teachers.
• Scalability: Current impact includes 24,000+ lives improved across three countries; partnerships include NASA, MIT, and UKA.
• Firm Partnership Proposals:
  • Reverse mentoring program connecting GS employees to hub users via Zoom.
  • Leveraging corporate partners for preferential rates on hardware kits.
  • Hardware donation drive to repurpose unused devices for hubs.

Team C: Div Inc (Dallas, USA)

• Mission: Support underrepresented entrepreneurs (Latinx, African American, women of color) to increase access to venture capital, which currently represents less than 1% of total VC dollars despite these groups comprising 31.9% of the US population.
• Problem Context: A $29.3 billion gap in VC funding for minority founders; eliminating this gap could create 9 million jobs and boost national income by $3 billion.
• Grant Allocation ($250,000):
  • $50,000 to scale the online "Pre-Excelerator" program nationwide.
  • $150,000 to support 10 "Social Justice Innovators" with an average projected valuation of $3.5 million.
  • $50,000 for the "Portfolio Mentorship Program" to foster long-term sustainability.
• Projected ROI: Projects that every dollar invested will return $3.50 in business valuation within 24 months.
• Dallas Expansion Goals: Aims to launch a GS-Dallas campus by 2023, resulting in 40 new companies, 200+ jobs, and $20 million in capital raised by 2025.
• Long-term Strategy: Integration with GS 10,000 Small Businesses and 1 Million Black Women initiatives; alumni will serve as mentors for current cohorts.

Team D: Lime Connect (Salt Lake City/New York, USA)

• Mission: Rebrand disability through achievement and connect corporate partners with a network of 11 million high-potential candidates in the US.
• Problem Context: Employment rate for people with disabilities is one-third that of non-disabled peers; 30% of the white-collar workforce lives with a disability.
• Grant Allocation ($250,000): Funding for "The Hub," a new disability-accessible website and mobile app.
  • $200,000 for technical development, including hiring accessibility-specialized engineers.
  • $50,000 for creating online educational resources.
• Projected Growth: PWC forecasts 3x membership growth by 2024 and 3x corporate partnership growth by 2026.
• Strategic Benefits for GS:
  • Access to a talent pipeline proven to reduce workplace attrition by 30%.
  • Development of a singular platform to track hiring metrics and ROI for corporate partners.
  • Alignment with GS's neurodiversity hiring initiative and seventh business principle ("Diversity is not optional").
• Total Project Cost: $1.25 million; GS funding will catalyze remaining support from private foundations and individuals.

Post-Event Commentary and Legacy

• Winner Update (Serum): The 2020 winning team, Serum, reported serving 88,000 patients with over $2 million in medication, expanded into three new states (Minnesota, North Carolina, Wyoming) ahead of schedule, and plans to open in Illinois.
• Analyst Experience: Participants cited the process as enriching, fostering cross-divisional networking and providing opportunities to leverage firm expertise.
• Participation Scale: While 18 analysts presented, 600 analysts globally participated in the preliminary rounds, with 3,500 incoming analysts invited to watch.

Final Results and Announcements

• Fourth Place & Fan Favorite: Prasarana Trust received the $25,000 Fan Favorite award, totaling a $50,000 grant.
  • Decision Rationale: High audience engagement and support for the gender education initiative in India.
• Third Place: Div Inc received a $75,000 grant.
  • Decision Rationale: Strong economic projection and alignment with minority entrepreneurship goals.
• Second Place: Hello World received a $100,000 grant.
  • Decision Rationale: High scalability and cost-effectiveness in solving the global digital divide.
• First Place: Lime Connect was announced as the winner, though the specific grant amount for first place was not explicitly quantified in the closing remarks beyond the implication of the primary award.
  • Decision Rationale: Direct alignment with firm talent strategy, inclusion initiatives, and proven attrition reduction metrics.
• Future Outlook: The event concluded with a commitment to maintaining long-term partnerships with the winning organizations and continuing the firm's philanthropic legacy.