Meet Miriam Altman-Reyes | Social Impact Entrepreneur, Investor, and Advisor

We had the good fortune of connecting with Miriam Altman-Reyes and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Miriam, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
I have been an entrepreneur for more than 10 years. Brass Ring Impact is actually my second business, and I launched it largely based on my experience with my first company.

My first business was an edtech company called Kinvolved, which I founded and led as CEO from an idea through our exit last year to a publicly-traded company, PowerSchool. As an entrepreneur and a CEO, I attributed a lot of my personal success, and my ability to effectively lead my company, to the access that I had to knowledgeable, impact-driven, and committed advisors, board members, and investors. They helped me grow into becoming the leader that I was at every stage of Kinvolved’s life cycle, and the leader that I am today at the helm of Brass Ring Impact.

Particularly after selling Kinvolved, many colleagues in my network reached out asking if I would meet with other earlier stage founders to offer guidance or help evaluate them for possible investment. Through those conversations, I came away with five important learnings:

(1) There is a major market need for services and funding to support entrepreneurs, especially underrepresented founders.
(2) Founders value the experience of a person who has been in their shoes, and has achieved success, over almost any other experience.
(3) Entrepreneurs struggle to find the right talent with applicable startup experience, coupled with a solid track record, to drive their critical business needs forward.
(4) Most existing accelerators and incubator programs, venture studios, and venture capital firms, at least in the education and workforce fields, are not driven by applicable and relatable startup operator and founder expertise on their teams, something that entrepreneurs really need.
(5) I missed the energy and passion that founders possess and early-stage companies’ abilities to move nimbly.

In response, earlier this year, I launched Brass Ring Impact, a venture focused on supporting mission-driven, underrepresented founders who are closing global equity gaps in educational, workforce, and economic attainment through advising, investment, and startegic and execution support.

By the way, the name is a saying coming from my late mother and role model who encouraged me and others to, ”always reach for the brass ring,” meaning set, reach, and exceed goals, continuously improve, and push the boundaries of what we think is possible.

What should our readers know about your business?
From the outset, I knew that Brass Ring Impact needed to focus specifically on underrepresented and mission-driven entrepreneurs in education, workforce, and economic development, three areas that are intrinsically linked to lifelong outcomes. Not only does this set of focus criteria lead us to develop a fiscally sound and values-driven portfolio, but we are also addressing a specific market gap for founders in these areas. Our portfolio companies are run by eight female founders and six founders of color across the US, Latin America, and Southeast Asia.

Our focus on underrepresented founders is not only based on my personal experience as a female founder, but also on the data that shows how little funding and support goes to these entrepreneurs. To illustrate this, just two percent of VC funding in 2021 was invested in women-led companies, while data also shows that these same founders produce 35 percent stronger returns for investors.

Our focus on mission-driven ventures is based on my deeply ingrained personal values, beliefs, and lived experience that it is possible to build a strong, sustainable business that is not only focused on profits, but also impact.

Being my second venture, in many ways, Brass Ring Impact has been easier to get off the ground than my first company. I am grateful to have a solid foundation of entrepreneurial skills and experience, and a great network of peers, colleagues, mentors, coaches, and funders already, so that I am not starting from scratch this time around.

In less than nine months, we have grown our portfolio to 10 companies and launched and begun to execute our full-service program for Seed through Series A-stage entrepreneurs, starting with our Founder Advising Program, advancing to our Venture Studio, then making investments and providing board service. We’re able to do all of this with the backing of our incredible 10-person team of expert Operating Partners, Advisors, and staff.

Still, starting a new business is not easy. We are continually testing hypotheses around our business model, team structure, programming, portfolio company criteria, fundraising, and more. And, this is far from a 9-5 job; it’s a real passion that requires weekend and evening commitments a lot of the time. Like any business, we will continue to learn, grow, and evolve in the short and long term.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
My husband and I moved to Miami from New York in January 2022, and we love hosting family and friends who come to visit us. Here are some of my favorite local haunts and activities.

Monday
– Morning yoga on the beach
– A boat ride around Biscayne Bay
– Dinner at Garcia’s
Tuesday
– A visit to Vizcaya
– A stroll through downtown Coconut Grove
– Dinner at Planta
Wednesday
– Lunch at Verde followed by a visit to the PAMM
– An evening show (perhaps flamenco or an off-Broadway show) at the Arsht Center
– Dinner at Soya e Pomodoro
Thursday
– A stroll around Morningside and the Upper East Side
– Lunch at El Turco
– A visit to the Wynwood Walls
– Dinner at Amara at Paraiso
Friday
– A day on South Beach
– Dinner at Sexy Fish
– Drinks in Brickell
Saturday
– A snorkeling day trip to Islamorada
– Lunch at Robbie’s or the Square Grouper
– A stop at Robert is Here Fruit Stand in Homestead on the way home

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
It is difficult to choose just one person or entity to shout out. Mine is definitely a story that has taken a village to write. My village includes my family and friends who keep me grounded, my mentors and executive coach who have challenged me to stretch beyond my comfort zone and shown me excellent models of leadership, and my fellow founder friends and colleagues who have been peers for more than a decade in some cases.

Website: www.brassringimpact.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brassringimpact/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/miriam-altman-reyes/