In 2013, we helped start Esperanza to see the potential in young men who had been pushed to the margins. In its early years, it was remarkably successful, demobilizing all four gangs in San Felipe. However, as we tried to scale, we encountered the reality that high-impact social work requires immense focus. In 2020, we made the difficult decision to shut down the program to focus on our core neighborly business.
Lessons: Quality over quantity; Pragmatic ambition; Doubling down on core business responsibility.