The Knowledge for Impact Award

At VB Ideas we train students from marginalized communities how to use education to achieve a better life. We turn them from “test avoiders” to “test attackers,” and improve their SAT and ACT scores so they can attend college and pursue their career aspirations.

Business Essentials for Executives was life-changing for me. Wharton addressed my knowledge deficits as a CEO in practical ways. The program helped me strike a balance between my aspiration to stay innovative and relevant, and my tendency to be blindsided by striving for perfection.

I can now quantify and speak effectively to people about the economic value of what I’m bringing to the market, and I can communicate better with my CFO. I have a stronger grasp of economics and can delve confidently into terms and concepts. For example, I realized that my business was a demand economies-of-scale company that was about to experience a network effect. I’ve put that on a vision board for my company. As someone who works with marginalized communities, it’s critical for me to be able to articulate the financial worth of my business to those who are not from marginalized groups.

Recently I was chosen to be a state speaker for ACT and incorporated principles I learned at Wharton into my speech. We were selected for Cohort IV of the University of Southern California’s Ed Tech Incubator, founded by Doug Lynch and Mark DeGennaro, and my company is now in a seed round for up to $30 million. Before Wharton, I wouldn’t have had the courage or knowledge to stay in a pitch round like that.

Professor Gad Allon was an amazing teacher, and you could tell that all the faculty members love what they do. I highly encourage anyone interested in taking their business to the next level to apply for this program."

Valencia Belle Founder and CEO, VB Ideas

I'm the CEO of DiverseForce, a human capital solution firm specializing in diversity, equity and inclusion. We evolved from a professional network that we grew in the greater Philadelphia area, consisting of over 20,000 professionals of color. Our mission is to engage, empower, and connect the next generation of business and civic leaders in the region.

I enrolled in Finance and Accounting for the Non-Financial Manager because as a business owner, understanding the numbers and looking at ways to scale our impact was a critical competency that I wanted to brush up on. As an undergraduate at Penn I studied engineering and entrepreneurship, so I did take some Wharton classes in accounting, but this was an opportunity to refresh my skills.

The program was critical in giving me a roadmap to continue my journey of financial literacy. Among the most valuable things I learned was how important it is to correctly time the reporting of revenue and expenses. Another was learning the math around the time value of money, so that my colleagues and I can accurately assess investments. Because of this program, I now have more productive conversations with my accountant about my plans for the business. In addition, the course gave me an opportunity to think about how I could lead my organization more effectively.

Wharton has an amazing reputation and posting my certificate of completion will absolutely help my business. It has already generated some good conversations for me. I would recommend the course 100 percent. I’ve already begun thinking about some of the other Wharton programs that may make sense for our DiverseForce network, many of whom are serving on boards and starting businesses.”

Sulaiman Rahman CEO, DiverseForce

At FLIPANY we work with disenfranchised communities and community partners to level the playing field in the area of health. We promote health equity, providing professionals such as fitness educators and dieticians to marginalized populations so everyone can reach their full potential.

I loved Business Essentials for Executives and I highly recommend the program. To learn from the professors in various areas such as operations and marketing was extremely valuable for me. The program bridged the gap from the population that I work with, to the funders and PhDs who write the research papers, by helping me become a better communicator. During the program I thought, wow, here’s a framework for exactly what my mind is trying to express to my external evaluators that they just don’t get. And now I have the vocabulary.

Taking this program is also going to help me scale my business. I learned about the operating structure, the framework, and the modeling language. I have a meeting scheduled with someone I’ve hired to help me with the model, and we’ll create a SOP document so my organization can expand into a new market in Florida.

I really liked the faculty. Professor Gad Allon was fantastic. I enjoyed his teaching style and all of the Wharton research that he shared to show how real-world corporations operate. I also benefitted from the other participants. Hearing about the experiences of the for-profit sector — including large national corporations — made me realize that they face some of the same challenges as my regional nonprofit. I highly recommend the program. It’s how education should be.”

Lynne Kunins Founder, President, CEO, FLIPANY (Florida Introduces Physical Activity & Nutrition to Youth)