Task management startup Exec launched with a pretty simple premise — let users rent someone else’s spare time for a small fee of $25 an hour. That has enabled San Francisco-based users to outsource any number of tasks through its easy-to-use mobile interface, from having Ikea furniture put together to delivering various office supplies to cleaning someone’s apartment to dropping off dry cleaning. But now Exec is trying to use its system for good, by enabling users to outsource volunteer work to one of three local charities.
This isn’t the first charity drive that Exec has put forth: In April, the startup lined up a number of popular startup founders who volunteered to let users rent their time. Over the course of a weekend, founders from companies like Parse, Reddit, Hipmunk, Sincerely, and yes, even Exec itself, took phone calls and Skype chats from interested users, who mainly asked them about, well, startup stuff. That fundraiser brought in more than $3,000 for DonorsChoose.
But this time, instead of just sending money to various charities, the startup is proposing a novel way for its users to give back, by letting them pay for its Execs to stand in and volunteer their time. In other words, for those who want to volunteer but might not be able to find the time, Exec has got your back. They need only pick a charity, determine how much time they’d like to “volunteer,” and an Exec will stand in for them. They’ll do whatever needs to be done — whether it be updating donor records, to helping to plan fundraising events, or mentoring kids.
For this campaign, Exec has picked three charities that users can contribute to: Mission Graduates, which aims to help local kids get into college; Appleseeds, a film that attempts to raise awareness of domestic violence; and Kids Enjoy Exercise Now, which sponsors sports for kids with disabilities.
When asked why Exec chose those particular charities, founder Justin Kan responded by email: “We researched and contacted a bunch of SF charities and found ones addressing a range of issues that felt that they could utilize Exec hours at the charities. We wanted to pick local SF charities because we’re still completely SF-centric and wanted to give back to the community the customers are in.”
San Francisco-based Exec was part of last year’s Y Combinator class — the third that Kan participated in. The startup recently raised a $3.3 million seed round of funding which included investors like Loopt co-founder Sam Altman, Stripe co-founder Patrick Collison, Parse co-founder Tikhon Bernstam, Gmail creator and Y Combinator partner Paul Buchheit, Google board member Ram Shriram, Matt Ocko, Delicious creator Josh Schachter, and others.