In this episode of Scouting for Growth, Sabine VdL interviews Erlijn Sie, a seasoned social entrepreneur, leader, and social business advisor. Erlijn wrote a book on Reimagining Financial Inclusion, a must-read for all corporate business leaders concerned with the future of our planet. In the book, Erlijn discusses the 5 levers that shape our financial system.  Erlijn also talks about ESG, focusing on social innovation and how social innovators support companies in achieving their impact.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

BEST MOMENTS

‘I became a social entrepreneur by accident because I felt I needed more meaning in my day-to-day life, that’s why I founded a micro-finance institution providing very small loans to the most excluded people in the world.’ 

‘ESG stands for Environmental, Social, and Governance. I’m mainly focused on the ‘S’, I feel that the ‘Social’ angle goes first.’

‘Most systemic issues are too big for one of us to solve; the solution needs to be co-created among like-minded experts or people you feel can contribute to solving the issue best.’

‘Entrepreneurial qualities are much more needed nowadays than they were last century. This has a lot to do with how fast change happens these days. The most important skill for all of us to learn is how to cope with change, how to be resilient, how to be able to constantly adapt to change.’

ABOUT THE GUEST

Erlijn is a seasoned social entrepreneur, leader, and social business advisor to both the social and business/corporate sectors. Her background is rooted in business management, and her focus is on social innovation and financial inclusion. She has supported a range of systems that have enabled social entrepreneurs, as well as impacted the corporate sector, to develop new strategies, approaches, and models to drive inclusion in society. Erlijn brings a combination of deep insights, hands-on experience, and the latest trends in social innovations, blended business models, hybrid value chains, and new ways of organizing. She is dedicated to catalyzing impact, in general and specifically in financial inclusion, by connecting innovative and inclusive solutions with the challenges corporations face.

ABOUT THE HOST

Sabine VanderLinden is a corporate strategist turned entrepreneur and the CEO of Alchemy Crew Ventures. She leads venture-client labs that help Fortune 500 companies adopt and scale cutting-edge technologies from global tech ventures. A builder of accelerators, investor, and co-editor of the bestseller The INSURTECH Book, Sabine is known for asking the uncomfortable questions—about AI governance, risk, and trust. On Scouting for Growth, she decodes how real growth happens—where capital, collaboration, and courage meet.

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