An economy that works.

For everyone.

We invest in businesses that reveal and reinforce the talent of people breaking through barriers to employment.

We call these businesses employment social enterprises (or ESEs, for short).

How We Invest:

Chef trainee at employment social enterprise Kitchens for Good holds out a bowl of fresh food

Capital

We fuel the growth of this movement through grants, impact investments, and by unlocking public sector capital, yielding these results:

$2.23 Social Return on Investment (SROI) for every dollar invested

$3.1 billion+ cumulative revenue earned by ESEs since 1997

157K+ people employed

Capacity

We combine that capital with customized capacity-building support that helps these businesses go further, faster.

6x growth in people employed

2x growth in revenue earned for ESEs

83k+ jobs created from 2021-2024

Community

As we build the field, we also build the sense of community that fuels it — connecting leaders more deeply with the work and each other.

94% of leaders feel a sense of support

87% of leaders feel a sense of belonging and inclusion

We're excited about the fact that REDF is so intentional about partnering with employment social enterprises to ensure that folks that are otherwise overlooked in our society really have a chance to achieve economic mobility.

It's incredibly exciting to see what REDF has accomplished since its origin, what REDF is doing right now to deepen its impact within populations in communities that need access to employment and opportunity most, and the incredible vision for where REDF wants to take this network going forward.

Through support of employment social enterprises, REDF helps create supportive job opportunities for individuals facing the most barriers to work. By investing in people and the enterprises that employ them, REDF is able to foster inclusive work environments and long-term change.