First Steps into Impact Investing

The journey from uncertainty to confidence in consulting has been both intense and rewarding. As we progress, I hope to further explore impact measurement and gain deeper insights into how investors can effectively integrate sustainability into decision-making.

I have been wanting to take the SIRI Practicum course since I joined SIPA last semester. I came to SIPA to pivot into the impact space (from an investing/corporate perspective), having previously worked in the nonprofit world, and I believed that SIRI could provide valuable insight into what to expect in that field. While it has only been a few weeks since the class started, I already feel like I have learned a lot.

To begin with, nothing feels more real-world than being given a scope of work and having to figure out the exact details ourselves. Our client laid out an elaborate scope of work, which was very exciting, but it took us a few internal meetings to determine our pathway (and it continues to take shape). I have never done something like this in my previous work experience, and it has been thrilling to think about what our final deliverable could look like within such a broad scope, given the time constraints of the semester. I am excited to make the most of the time we have and to see what we can accomplish.

I also had the opportunity to participate in a workshop designed to familiarize us with consulting and what to expect from it. While I have over five years of experience, I still learned a lot from the workshop, which was unexpected. There were several skills introduced that I had not realized I wanted to improve or even learn. I have also enjoyed the moments of reflection in class and am trying to incorporate them into my other courses and as the weeks pass.

I have always enjoyed asking questions and thinking critically about problems; however, I have never had the opportunity to synthesize my thoughts into a case study. I am excited to explore the research question presented to us, use my own experience in scaling up an application in India as base, and then analyze it critically enough to present our findings to an external audience. Our client has taken a favorable approach and is eager to engage with us and challenge our thinking, which I am excited to learn from. He has asked us to approach him with “angles” that he has not yet considered—I am hopeful that we will be able to impress an expert in the field of investing like him.

Finally, I am excited to work and learn from my team. Everyone brings expertise from different domains and fits into the project well. I look forward to an enjoyable semester. We have already formed a good rapport, and I hope that translates into a strong working relationship. It will be a challenge to establish that since we don’t have much time and everyone has a lot on their plate. However, everyone is committed to the project and excited about it, so I am optimistic that we will get there eventually.

I am just worried that time is going by too fast and that we still have so much to do!