Business
Tony Rothacker spoke about keeping open communication, and discussed building mutual benefit into a social enterprise. He is the co-founder at Youngster.co, which provides job opportunities to youth and empowers elders to use technology better. Youth assist elders with learning new technology they may need to interact with the world, or programs they may need help to use in daily life. Both sides of the connection, youth and elders, benefit from the intergenerational service as the initiative addresses common issues on the respective sides. Opportunities arise from the youth and elders connecting, which is a bonus to the impact of the initiative itself. Young people get paid upfront to help seniors with technology. Tony shared that most youth don’t need any particular training, since the youth grew up with the technology. Elders, however, grew up in a different time. They may not be familiar with the latest technology, but they can teach youth what they learned about life. Tony observed that the initiative helps elders who typically deal with isolation have more personal interactions, and youth have a chance to practice patience when explaining technology. In the beginning, Youngster.co faced a moment that depended on how they could respond to the situation. Tony shared that the initiative started right before the COVID-19. Like many other companies, Youngster.co transitioned online to keep their business alive. Tony expressed how they found success in the online model, and the angle the initiative discovered to boost their mission. After finding a good flow, the initiative could depend on their reputation to serve more youth and elders. Tony explained that the power of word of mouth made connecting with a larger audience more easy for the team. At first, good service and a good experience kept people coming back. Tony emphasized that this dedication to good service and good experience led to getting referrals. For the youth, a bonus pay incentive encourages the youth to keep up good service and continue participating in the initiative. Tony shared thoughts on calculating the before and after impacts created by the team’s efforts. Youngster.co is working with an impact tool that measures social value called Australia Social Value Bank. Tony expressed what he pays attention to when considering the impact that’s happening. Ultimately, he suggested that one way to find a perspective on social impact is to ask the question: “What is our social return on investment?” Tony began sharing his story of being introduced to social enterprise and taking on that journey to merge social impact with business. His connection to social impact goes back in his own life, like when he experienced times of having a disproportionate need for resources. While discussing all this impact, Tony shifted the topic to the meaning of life. He expressed his feelings about powerful and meaningful connections. Through work with Youngster.co, Tony is able to contribute those connections to the world, and also bridge the gap between generations. If you would like to learn more, you can visit their website, LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. Read Full Transcript Adam: [00:00:00] Welcome to People Helping People, the podcast to inspire greater social change and give you ideas on how to take action. I'm your host, Adam Morris. Today, we are sitting down with Tony Rothacker, co-founder at youngster.co, a platform, providing job opportunities to youth and empowering elders to use technology better, bridging the gap between generations. I'm excited to explore conversations around providing employment to youth and how we can leverage inherent talents from any age. So Tony, welcome on the podcast. Tony: [00:00:29] I'm glad to be here. Thank you for inviting me Adam. Adam: [00:00:32] Yeah, I'm really excited. Can we start off, can you tell us a little bit about the journey that led to youngster.co ? Tony: [00:00:38] Um,