Arch Grants, a nonprofit that awards grants to promising for-profit startups, hopes to boost the local economy and change the way investment and philanthropy work in St. Louis. Executive director Ginger Imster sees a connection between the work she recently did educating kids at City Academy and her new job making St. Louis an attractive place to work.
T&S | What are your origins?
GI | I grew up in Columbia, Mo., and attended University of Missouri with a political science major. When I moved to St. Louis in 1996, I developed a real interest in working in the city. I originally came here to work in retail corporate management, but I was more interested in getting into community-based work. I worked at Crossroads, then City Academy for 13 years, and I helped it grow into its own campus. From City Academy I came to Arch Grants; I started officially in December.
T&S | How did your education prepare you for your career?
GI | The opportunities available to students now to pursue careers intentionally in the nonprofit space did not exist when I was a student; there simply was no department of nonprofit management. This shift has happened since I came to St. Louis, and I’m thrilled to see it. We need well-qualified, well-prepared professionals.
T&S | Did you have a vision for your career, or did it unfold as opportunities arose?
GI | At Crossroads, I looked at the nonprofit space and became more informed about the organizations in town that were doing great work or on the cusp of doing great work. I’ve really only worked for nonprofits in startup mode. Nonprofits that are looking to ignite some kind of transformative change in the community is where I’ve had the privilege of being, and it’s the type of work that excites me. My work at City Academy and Arch Grants is on the same continuum. We have this tremendous talent pool coming out of City Academy and other schools, but I didn’t see the retention of the talent in St. Louis. They were asking for internships I was having a hard time finding in our market. Arch Grants is in St. Louis to ignite the type of business environment we need not only to retain local talent but also to attract talent from outside the state as well.
T&S | What’s your management style?
GI | ABC: always be calm. Try not to have real highs and lows. It doesn’t mean there aren’t flare-ups, but flare with humor. Anger doesn’t really help anybody. Generally, everybody’s overcommitted and stressed, so adding to the stress doesn’t help. I think we listen better, or at least we’re open to hearing another’s perspective, if we can get our own self under control.
T&S | What skills does it take to be the boss?
GI | I think perhaps the most important one is a sense of humor, followed by an ability to prioritize quickly, followed by a commitment to execute and follow through. Something I think that is unspoken but inherently important to every office is tone. One’s tone is very telling. When managed well it can change the dynamic of an entire conversation. Mutual respect has always been key, too, and appreciation.
T&S | What do you look for in an employee or team member?
GI | An ability to adapt and anticipate needs. Loyalty to a shared mission; not necessarily to a person, but to a shared vision. Playfulness is helpful. I think whimsy is underestimated in most offices. I think people who are problem-solvers are the best collaborators, at least in my space.
T&S | What’s the best advice you’ve ever received?
GI | I had some great advice from Don Danforth: Understand the value of hard work. When it gets really difficult and the projects or the lists feel oppressive, that’s probably when you need to become most resolute. Don’t lose sight of the value of hard work because the benefits are tremendous. In my space those values transcend me. It’s not about the individual, it’s about the whole.
T&S | What could St. Louis do to improve its business environment?
GI | Access to Series A capital, and getting St. Louis to be an investment community. There’s a great deal of wealth in St. Louis, but it’s up to St. Louis, and those who have access to that capital, to decide if they’re really in it to win it. I would be disappointed if in the next three to five to 10 years the bulk of Series A is coming from outside our community. We have some tremendous corporate figureheads in St. Louis, but there’s obviously room for more. What if we as a community could change the paradigm within which we distribute wealth, and be conscious about early-stage investment? Arch Grants is about getting capital to really thoughtful entrepreneurs who have great ideas that could catapult our business community and really propel St. Louis forward on so many levels. We’re not waiting for a Fortune 500 company to come set up shop; we’re growing our own. As people in the region get familiar with what we’re doing, I hope more doors will be opened to those who want to embrace this alternative approach to economic development.
Photo by Bill Barrett