The Capital Stack Game

A 90-minute activity that helps a group understand how equity investment, lending, grants and donor management applies to social enterprise.

Learning Outcomes

  • Participants can summarize what motivates the key decision-makers that control equity investment, lending, grants, large donations and small crowdfunding donations.

  • Participants experience several types of situations where different capital sources are more aligned or less aligned with the goals of their organization.

  • Participants can use a capital stack worksheet to begin to solve a need relevant to their organization.

Setup & Materials

Modalities

  • Role play - Step into the shoes of different decision makers

  • Breakout groups - Work through a scenario with 4-5 people

  • Rounds - Discuss takeaways or key scenario decisions using a consent process.

  • Core roles - Assign a participant-facilitator and a participant-scribe.

  • Visual puzzle pieces - Use visual metaphors for different capital sources to make them more tangible and less abstract.

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