How Kiva CEO Uses Social Media to Spark a Dialogue of Change
Submitted by Steve on September 20, 2011
Matt Silverman of Mashable holds a Q&A with Kiva CEO Matt Flannery:
What does it mean to lead a non-profit in the social media age? For Matt Flannery, the CEO of micro-lending network Kiva.org, it’s about maintaining personal connections with thought leaders and engaging in constructive dialogue with his organization’s supporters.
The site, founded in 2005, has grown up with social media and matured with the platforms that are now so active in driving awareness to causes and campaigns. After lending more than $241 million to entrepreneurs in developing countries, we can’t help but wonder if the worlds of micro-finance and micro-communication have somehow become intertwined.
We connected with Flannery to discuss how he perceives the current social media landscape, and why it has become so important to his personal mission of empowering entrepreneurship in the developing world.