BOSTON, Sept. 30, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Bridgespan Group today officially announced that it has opened a new office in Mumbai, India. The office is currently being led by Bridgespan Partner Rohit Menezes, formerly of the Group's New York office.
According to Bridgespan's managing partner and co-founder Jeff Bradach, "The social sector is at a tremendously exciting point in India. There is an uptick in indigenous philanthropy, a growing focus on results, and an extraordinary range of nonprofits doing innovative work. We believe that India will be an integral part of Bridgespan's future. More broadly, it will be impossible for anyone to find 'best practices' or identify solutions to major problems without being engaged with innovators from across the global landscape and especially from India."
Citing both the extraordinary innovation being displayed by Indian social sector leaders and the magnitude of the need (25% of India's 1.2 billion people living in severe poverty) Bradach said, "We have been encouraged by leaders in India that there is an opportunity for us to contribute with the Bridgespan model of sharing management tools and techniques, bridging funders and practitioners, and improving the effectiveness of philanthropists and mission-driven organizations. With we have much to learn – and the opportunities and challenges are certainly distinctive – but we believe that significant parts of the client work and content we have developed over the last 15 years in the US and other parts of the world are relevant to challenges and opportunities facing the social sector in India."
Bridgespan had already been doing work with social change leaders and attending and speaking at conferences in India for more than two years before opening the office. According to Bridgespan India's inaugural head Menezes, "Having an office in India with a local team will facilitate more regular, more focused work to help increase the impact of philanthropists and social sector organizations here, and will help us share what we learn with partners and collaborators in the U.S. and around the world. We see India as a crucible for the next wave of global solutions."
Both Bradach and Menezes acknowledged the support from Bain & Co., where Bridgespan was incubated, in helping to get the new office underway. "Bain has been incredibly generous and will help us build our local presence and support us with infrastructure and advice. We are independent organizations, but see this as one more step in deepening our unique partnership. It also is an experiment that could lay the groundwork for potential future global collaboration," said Menezes.
About The Bridgespan Group
The Bridgespan Group (www.bridgespan.org) is a nonprofit advisor and resource for mission-driven organizations and philanthropists. We collaborate with social sector leaders to help scale impact, build leadership, advance philanthropic effectiveness and accelerate learning. We work on issues related to society's most important challenges and to break cycles of intergenerational poverty. Our services include strategy consulting, leadership development, philanthropy advising, and developing and sharing practical insights.