A B O U T A L A N / Credo
Alan’s mission is to make the world a better place & have fun doing it.
Crucial to achieving this, he believes, are:
- Developing innovative ideas, and
- Empowering entrepreneurs – of all cultures & backgrounds.
If change is to happen, it needs dynamism, belief and genuine risk-taking (not the heads-I-win-tails-you-lose risk approach of bankers). Governments and state agencies can offer support, but they’re not going to create the necessary ideas and drive them forward. Change for the better requires entrepreneurs – people who take an idea and run with it.
Entrepreneurs come in many guises. The Sufragettes were entrepreneurs. Thomas Edison and Coco Chanel were entrepreneurs. Bill Gates, Oprah Winfrey and Richard Branson are entrepreneurs.
While Alan is happy to help start any company that fulfills a need and is not harming people or the planet, he is particularly enamoured with ideas, entrepreneurs and companies that could make the world a better place by improving:
- Earth’s climate, environment or sustainability.
- Health outcomes – particularly for the disadvantaged
- Literacy
- Social discourse
- Global happiness & wellbeing
While this might sound warm & fluffy, Alan is a firm believer that businesses seeking to effect change needs to make profits. When it comes to climate change, for example, there is no point relying on goodwill and hoping that companies or individuals will do the right thing. Entrepreneurs need to find solutions that offer cost savings or convenience to customers while also helping the planet. The customer will then purchase and employ the solution because they are incentivised to do so. It’s a triple-win. The customer wins, the environment wins and the new business wins.