Dynamic Links

David Guendelman, MBA 06, knows that it takes a community to solve complex social and environmental problems. Which is why he’s repeatedly tapped into his Haas family to tackle poverty in the developing world and to champion strategic finance for other social entrepreneurs. And why he’s now paying it forward by mentoring and enlightening Haas students.

Guendelman’s story starts with co-founding World of Good, a marketplace connecting artisans from developing countries with mainstream retail markets, with Siddharth Sanghvi and the late Priya Haji, both MBA 03. The company, later sold to eBay, lifted thousands out of poverty and inspired new generations of social impact businesses. 

Over the last 15 years, Guendelman has helped ensure that those businesses—many of which have ties to Haas and UC Berkeley—thrive through Do Good CFO, which provides young mission-driven startups unable to afford a full-time finance veteran with part-time or fractional CFOs—nearly half of whom are Haas alumni. 

“These great social entrepreneurs are our modern-day heroes, and they deserve world-class financial talent to help them succeed,” he says. Mapped out, Guendelman’s career reveals a vast web of connections that speaks to not only the reach of the Haas network but also the power it wields for meaningful change.