Goldman Sachs Analysts Win $125K for Lifelites

A team of talented young analysts from Goldman Sachs has secured $125,000 for Lifelites through the prestigious Analyst Impact Fund. This incredible achievement will help Lifelites expand its life-changing assistive technology for children and young people with life-limiting conditions across the UK and beyond.

The Analyst Impact Fund is Goldman Sach’s global competition where teams of analysts pitch to senior leaders, including Chairman and CEO David Solomon, in a bid to win transformational funding for the charity of their choice.

How Team Lifelites Made It Happen

Fared Hassani, Georgina Knapman, Jane Neave, Ayo Odunaiya and Malika Zohidova, representing Goldman Sachs in London, chose Lifelites after seeing our social media posts and website during their initial research, being particularly drawn to the life-changing work we carry out across the UK and Ireland.

Over the following months, ‘Team Lifelites’ met with Rob Lightfoot, CEO, and Simon Pitts, Head of Fundraising and Communications to learn more about the charity and our ambitions, as well as talking with Habibah and her mum, Salma, about the impact our technology has had on their lives. They also visited one of our long-standing partners, Noah’s Ark Children’s Hospice in North London, to find out more about our collaboration with the children’s palliative care sector.

Despite the commitments and pressures of their day jobs, the team devoted huge amounts of time developing and refining both their written proposals and spoken presentation.

A Remarkable Final at Goldman Sachs Headquarters

And the hard work paid off, as they progressed through to the grand final, held at Goldman Sachs’ head office in central London on 8th October.

In addition to David Solomon and Asahi Pompey, President of Goldman Sachs Gives, the panel judging the four finalists consisted of 42 senior Goldman Sachs leaders and former Prime minister Rishi Sunak – quite an extraordinary group of judges!

And the team were absolutely amazing, securing second place and the fan favourite vote, resulting in $125,000 (approximately £93,000) being awarded to Lifelites.

Transforming Lives Through Technology

This investment will help accelerate a number of our exciting initiatives designed to reach more children and families, and to take our expertise to an international audience.

Rob Lightfoot, who was in the audience for the contest, said, “Ayo, Fared, Georgia, Jane and Malika were truly phenomenal, not just at the final but during the whole process. They really got to know Lifelites, genuinely understanding our mission, vision and values. They wholeheartedly shared our passion for a world of inclusion, fun and accessibility for children and young people with life-limiting conditions. The time and effort they put into this whole event was extraordinary, and to pitch so confidently and eloquently in front of such a distinguished panel was truly inspiring. We cannot thank them enough and are so very proud of what they have achieved, not just for Lifelites but also for themselves.”

On behalf of Team Lifelites, Fared Hassani said, “It was an immense privilege and a truly rewarding experience to collaborate closely with Lifelites in developing a proposal for a grant from Goldman Sachs Gives. We are deeply honoured to have contributed to their noble mission of empowering every child to play, create, and have a childhood filled with possibility.”

Lifelites would like to thank Goldman Sachs for supporting charities across the world and helping the not-for-profit sector innovate and grow. We would also like to thank the judging panel for believing in both our current work and our ambitions to reach more children and families not just in the UK but around the globe.