The Inaugural Apollo Opportunity Foundation Summit

In October, the Apollo Opportunity Foundation (AOF) hosted its first ever Summit convening in New York City, bringing together more than 60 nonprofit leaders from AOF’s global grantee portfolio of 24 non-profits to engage with more than 480 Apollo employees. 

The Apollo Opportunity Foundation was launched in 2022 with a unique vision to approach corporate philanthropy differently – to go beyond financial support by offering the support of the entire Apollo ecosystem to expand opportunity and foster partnership between Apollo and nonprofit organizations. AOF’s innovative and dynamic approach to giving back was demonstrated through the AOF Summit’s three goals: to offer capacity building support, to drive employee engagement and to foster community amongst the grantee portfolio.

Capacity Building

The Summit’s comprehensive two-day agenda engaged grantee leaders in meaningful and relevant professional development across a variety of learning modalities. Highlights included workshops led by Apollo Leadership Team members modeled after Apollo Academy, interactive and collaborative case studies, networking activities, keynote speakers and more. The AOF Summit amplified the impact of monetary grants with additional resources and knowledge in areas such as strategy development, financial leadership, communicating for impact, fostering a high-performance culture and harnessing technology for good. Yolonda Marshall, CEO of Student Leadership Network, shared, “What has been unique about this experience is the way the Apollo Opportunity Foundation has thoughtfully engaged senior leaders from across the organization to take time out of their day to show us exactly how ‘in this’ they are with us. There are resources I can tap into that I didn't know I could. It's not an organization or a foundation that's just writing a check. I really do feel like I'm a part of the Apollo ecosystem.”

Driving Employee Engagement

Employees have been central to the AOF mission since its inception: they nominate organizations, review applications, and serve on AOF Deal Teams for organizations in the portfolio. AOF Deal Teams work hand in glove with our grantees to steer these partnerships through relationship management, strategic advisory services, volunteer events and offer other ongoing support. The AOF Summit engaged all 24 AOF Deal Teams, comprised of more than 150 Apollo colleagues, for live workshops and strategic planning sessions. Robert Kalsow-Ramos, Apollo Partner and AOF Grants Council member, said, “I’ve been inspired by seeing our grantees learn from one another, the impact our employees have had on these organizations, and the breadth of people involved within these important causes here at Apollo.”

“I’ve been inspired by seeing our grantees learn from one another, the impact our employees have had on these organizations, and the breadth of people involved within these important causes here at Apollo.” 

Robert Kalsow-Ramos, Apollo Partner and AOF Grants Council Member

Foster Grantee Community

The AOF Summit was a unique convening that fostered community amongst the grantees and with our global workforce. It also illustrated Apollo’s values of Drive Collaboration, and Champion Opportunity, and Lead Responsibly. The power of the AOF platform was best seen in the honest dialogue around shared challenges, the collective commitment to expanding opportunity and the partnership and dedication from Apollo colleagues and AOF grantees alike. Taken together, this allowed the AOF grantees to feel a deeper sense of camaraderie with each other, and closer connection and trust with Apollo. From post-event survey feedback, we know that all participants – grantee leadership and Apollo colleagues – left the Summit with a stronger community: one with closer relationships, a renewed sense of partnership, and an invigorated commitment to Expand Opportunity.

Reflecting on the event’s impact, AOF Executive Director Lauren Coape-Arnold said, “I'm energized by the wealth of incredible ideas and innovations that were spurred by our grantees across these two days. These exchanges have planted the seeds for exciting new initiatives that I look forward to building with the entire Apollo team.”

"I'm energized by the wealth of incredible ideas and innovations that were spurred by our grantees across these two days. These exchanges have planted the seeds for exciting new initiatives that I look forward to building with the entire Apollo team.” 

Lauren Coape-Arnold , AOF Executive Director

The Apollo Opportunity Foundation seeks to expand opportunity in communities where we live and work around the globe by deploying our capital and by engaging our people to invest in career education, workforce development and economic empowerment for all.  Read more about the Apollo Opportunity Foundation here.