Forbes 30 Under 30 Honoree & Project ECHO Board Member Maya Kuppermann on Entrepreneurship & Social Impact

We recently caught up with one of our Board Members, Maya Kuppermann, who was recognized on Forbes' 30 Under 30 list in the Social Impact category for her work with Temelio. We’re excited to celebrate her achievement and hear about her entrepreneurial journey—plus, she shared some valuable advice for our young Project ECHO changemakers!

Forbes 30 Under 30 Recognition & Work

Being named to Forbes 30 Under 30 means a ton to me. As a young entrepreneur working in an industry that’s been around for over a hundred years, being young—especially in the beginning—was a challenge. I actually mentioned this in my interview with Forbes, but I feel so lucky to have had incredible advisors who really opened doors for us in this space.

I’m also really happy that this recognition brought visibility to something I feel so passionately about. About two and a half years ago, I started a software company that develops software for charitable foundations—organizations that give out grants to nonprofits (Temelio). It’s funny, we were recognized in the social impact category, but I don’t think software is going to solve the world’s problems. I think the nonprofits we work with are the ones really doing the transformative work. I just feel really lucky to be a small part of that.

A lot of my inspiration for starting this company came from seeing how the nonprofit community has been left behind by the tech world. Even though software isn’t the solution to everything, it can make work and life easier. And I really believe that the organizations doing social impact work deserve better tools."

Entrepreneurial Advice

That’s such a good question—and such a hard one! I think the first thing is to really understand the problem you’re trying to solve. A lot of people have this desire to make an impact and pursue entrepreneurship, which is amazing, but it’s so important to define what impact you’re actually trying to have. And beyond that, it’s really about looping in the people you’re trying to serve.

For us, I had a background in nonprofits and philanthropy, but I’m not the end-all-be-all expert in what philanthropy needs. So when we built our product, we created a 50-person advisory board made up of our actual end users. That way, their voices were part of every decision we made—not just in our product, but in the company itself. So my biggest advice would be: deeply understand the problem, make sure it’s real, and involve the people who will be impacted by what you’re building.

Challenges & Growth

I think the biggest challenge for me has been more emotional than anything else. When you’re building something—whether it’s a product, service, or any other kind of business—you get so invested in it. I care so much about the work we’re doing, and that makes the ups and downs of entrepreneurship feel like a rollercoaster.

I remember the first time a client gave us negative feedback, I couldn’t sleep that night. It just completely overtook me. But now, almost three years in, I’ve learned to regulate that a little more and build up more resilience to the ups and downs. My co-founder, Ruthwick—who was also recognized on the Forbes list—has been amazing at keeping things in perspective. He has such a cool and collected mindset, which has been such a good balance as we grow to keep the long term vision in perspective.

Looking Ahead

Right now, we’re just focused on building. We just hired our 21st and 22nd employees, and we’re working with almost 100 foundations. For me, the most important thing is not losing sight of why we’re here—bringing better technology to the sector. Looking ahead, I really want us to triple down on what’s working, keep listening to our customers, and improve the product in ways that actually make their lives easier.

I also want to make sure we continue creating a strong culture for our employees. That’s something that’s really important to me. So nothing radically different in the future—just growing the business sustainably and staying true to our mission

Inspiration

So, this isn’t directly answering the question, because it’s not what inspired me to become an entrepreneur—but something I’ve learned along the way is that empathy and understanding people is at the core of everything we do. When you’re building a product, you have to understand your user’s perspective. When you’re leading a team, you have to have empathy for your team members and set up your business culture so they can thrive as well. 

One of my favorite books that really unlocked this for me is Atlas of the Heart by Brené Brown. It’s this deep dive into the full range of human emotions and how different lived experiences shape people’s perspectives. It’s not a business book, but I think understanding people is one of the most important skills for an entrepreneur. And this book really helped me build that awareness.

Project ECHO’s Role

This is actually why I wanted to get involved with Project ECHO in the first place. I didn’t see entrepreneurship as an option for me growing up. It just wasn’t something that was elevated as a viable path. It wasn’t until my early career that mentors started encouraging me and helping me see it as something I could actually do.

That’s what I love about Project ECHO—it introduces young people to that entrepreneurial spirit early on and shows them what’s possible. Whether or not every student who goes through the program becomes a business owner isn’t the point. It’s about showing them that this is an option for kids that come from all backgrounds that it is such a fulfilling career path. And beyond that, it’s about the confidence that comes from developing an idea and bringing it to life, whether that’s in real life or in a business plan competition. Those skills are so transferable, no matter what path they take.