Because companies outside the education sector don’t think about students

Business leaders think about business. In the US, the business of education is often frowned upon because education is considered a “common good” a concept that can conflict with the quest for high profits. GEI helps businesses navigate this tricky space and access overlooked revenue.

Because businesses outside the US face barriers to access

Smaller and medium-sized business and investors — those who make up the vast middle — often lack the networks to identify credible opportunities and the resources to navigate foreign systems confidently.

Because students face barriers to success

International students often have great difficulty adapting to Western academic, campus, and local culture and struggle to navigate US social and professional environments. Too often, they graduate without the networks to optimize their time in the US. First-generation university students face many of the same challenges to success whether they enter higher ed at the undergraduate, graduate, or professional level.

Because institutions can’t be everywhere at once

The power distance between various administrative levels and students or between senior leadership and employees can be vast. The best attempts to serve the needs of students or employees are often insufficient; resources go unused, morale stagnates, productivity stalls, satisfaction rates dwindle, and talent is underutilized. Data collected to justify funding or progress are an inaccurate barometer of campus or work culture. How do we know? Because outcomes are often underwhelming. International students struggle to secure the coveted, game-changing internships they hear so much about prior to enrollment. Employees don’t recommend their companies to friends and colleagues.

We need to build bridges

GEI bridges gaps in knowledge creating a reciprocal flow of ideas that fuels the pipeline of prosperity and makes possibility a probability.