Social Entrepreneur in Residence

The Mission Partners’ Social Entrepreneur in Residence is an 18-month executive-level program designed to shift capital to Black-led communications firms, in line with our Equity Action Plan and our 2025 Commitment to Black and women-led organizations.

According to PRWeek’s 2020 Agency Business Report, only 8% of agency leadership identifies as Black, while 89.8% identifies as white. And, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s Small Business Credit Survey: 2021 Report on Firms Owned by People of Color, “firms owned by people of color continue to face structural barriers in acquiring the capital, knowledge, and market access necessary for growth.”

In response to the racial disparity among agency owners, Mission Partners launched its Social Entrepreneur in Residence program in September 2022 as part of the agency’s ongoing commitment to shift $2.5M to Black and women-led organizations by 2025. The Social Entrepreneur in Residence program is aimed at addressing the racial disparity in communications agency ownership.

Our 2025-2026 Social Entrepreneur in Residence is now active.

Applications for the next residency will be available at the end of 2026. In the meantime, if you have questions about the program, please email Nimra Haroon, Director, [email protected].

Throughout this residency, the entrepreneur will receive executive level coaching and financial support to grow and scale their company. In return, the Social Entrepreneur in Residence will provide skilled expertise in their respective area of focus to Mission Partners’ employees and clients.

Mission Partners was named by PRNEWS to be among the world’s most impactful communicators, recognizing our agency with the 2024 Corporate Social Responsibility award. Mission Partners’ Social Entrepreneur in Residence program was also featured in Inc. Magazine.

Interested in becoming a vendor with Mission Partners? Please email Carrie Fox, [email protected], to be considered, as a part of our rolling vendor submissions.

Meet our 2025-2026 Social Entrepreneur in Residence

Our 2025-2026 Social Entrepreneur in Residence, Dianne Myles, is CEO of Denver-based Human Focused Media, a social impact video production firm that harnesses the power of storytelling to engage communities, inform culture, and foster authentic human connections.

Guided by their core values of creativity, empathy, and unity, Dianne and her team use video production and storytelling as a tool to unite people, celebrate humanity, and promote genuine human interactions. Dianne’s diverse life experiences uniquely position her as a powerful messenger and connector, enabling her to create impactful stories that resonate deeply with audiences.

Learn More About Dianne

Meet our 2022-2024 Social Entrepreneur in Residence

Mission Partners’ inaugural Social Entrepreneur in Residence is Ryan Pintado-Vertner, a Chicago-based activist and strategic marketing impact expert with two decades of experience guiding Fortune-level brands, building startups, and leading nonprofit organizations. He is the CEO and founder of Smoketown, a boutique brand consultancy, where empathy, purpose, and vision are at the heart of his work. As the inaugural recipient of this Residency, Ryan will help shape the growth and future of the program and be involved in the selection of future awardees.

“It’s one thing to believe in myself as a startup founder. It’s quite another thing to have others believe in me, too, especially when those allies are backing it up with money, resources, and expertise that I can rely on. That’s what Mission Partners’ Social Entrepreneurship in Residence program means to me.”

Ryan Pintado-Vertner, CEO and Founder, Smoketown

Learn More About Ryan

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