Jan 14, 2025
By Karen Billing
After leaving behind a 35-year corporate career in New York City to make a move across the country to Solana Beach, Peggy Maher was looking for a way to use her experience to start giving back in a different way. The new Solana Beach resident was grateful to find Social Venture Partners, a San Diego organization that pairs accomplished professionals like herself with local nonprofits, to provide pro bono consulting that helps them grow stronger and more effective.
“I stepped away from the corporate world when I relocated but I think why I got so interested in Social Venture Partners is that I’m really not ready to slow down,” said Maher, whose resume includes time in marketing and product development at American Express, working as the chief marketing officer for Barclays U.S. Cards, and vice president of business development at a FinTech startup. “I have a lot to contribute and I wanted to stay involved and engaged and I always wanted to find a way to dedicate my time to a nonprofit.”
Last year Maher worked on consulting engagements with the New Village Arts theater company in Carlsbad and Diamond Educational Excellence Partnership (DEEP), a nonprofit for students in Southeast San Diego focused on early childhood literacy. With the partnerships, she was able to share her expertise in financial management, strategic planning, communications and rebranding at no cost to the nonprofit.
“I didn’t know that anything like this existed,” Maher said of Social Venture Partners. “It’s much more fulfilling for me than a day of volunteering or making a one-time contribution.”
Since this summer, Social Venture Partners has been led by Chief Executive Officer Erica Halpern, a Del Mar resident and former Del Mar Union School District board member who stepped down last year after 10 years of service to her community.
Before getting involved with Del Mar Heights School where her children attended and joining the school board, Halpern was in investment banking management at Goldman Sachs in New York. She first came on board at Social Venture Partners in 2020 as the chief operating officer.
“I couldn’t resist the opportunity to work with this organization because we’re doing something that really no one else is doing, connecting professionals in San Diego and working with nonprofits and making them more impactful and effective in the community,” Halpern said.
Halpern came in right before the pandemic and one of the first things they had to do was form crisis response teams for nonprofits trying to navigate organizational challenges in a very challenging time.
“I couldn’t resist the opportunity to work with this organization because we’re doing something that really no one else is doing, connecting professionals in San Diego and working with nonprofits and making them more impactful and effective in the community,” Halpern said.
Halpern came in right before the pandemic and one of the first things they had to do was form crisis response teams for nonprofits trying to navigate organizational challenges in a very challenging time. While Social Venture Partners has been around since 2001 as a national affiliate, the local organization has developed its own program, focusing more on pro bono consulting rather than fundraising and grant giving. In the last few years they have expanded their outreach, trying to connect with more nonprofits around the county across all issue areas.
The organization continues to grow—when Halpern started, they were launching about two consulting engagements a year and last year was their biggest year to date with more than 33 total engagements.
“I love it, there’s really just nothing like it as far as being able to really make a difference where it matters,” Halpern said.
Social Venture Partners looks for nonprofits that have enough size and are typically at an inflection point, ready to grow, increase their impact, or make substantial improvements. Their team of partners can help with communication, facilities and real estate, finance and budget planning, strategic planning, board governance, program development, IT, marketing, operations and revenue stream development. The organization has previously worked with nonprofits such as Support the Enlisted Project, Interfaith Community Services, Community Resource Center in Encinitas, Ivey Ranch Park Association in Oceanside, and assisted the Boys & Girls Clubs of Northwest San Diego through their recent merger.
“It’s been wonderful and I think the model works particularly well, it’s really unique,” said Maher.
Read full article in the San Diego Union-Tribune