Chris Crane
From for-profit to non-profit, Chris Crane (Vienna 1971-73), owned and transformed COMPS InfoSystems, Inc. from a small, print-based publisher to an electronic real estate database publisher, until he sold it in 2000. Chris was then recruited by Opportunity International, the world’s largest faith-based global microfinance organization and served as President and CEO for the next seven years, where he grew revenue through private donations from $8 million to $53 million. In 2009, he founded Edify, a faith-based humanitarian organization that makes small business loans to enable financial sustainability among Christian schools in Africa and Latin America. Read on to see how Chris’s experience studying abroad in Vienna gave him the adventurous spirit necessary to change the trajectory of his own life and thereby, the lives of hundreds of thousands of children in developing nations around the world.
IES Abroad: As an undergraduate studying finance, why did you decide to study abroad, and why did you choose Vienna?
Chris Crane: My good friend, Jack Trifero and I actually applied to the IES Abroad Durham program, but the spots were limited and they turned us down. However, we were accepted for the Vienna program. Because we didn't have to speak German that worked for us. Further, my friend Jack told me he was reading up on IES Abroad Vienna and we could study in a palace which really impressed us at the time. When I went home and told my father he said Vienna was in the heart of Eastern and Western Europe and that it if were in our shoes, he'd much rather go to Vienna than to Durham. So the decision was made!
IES Abroad: What happened to you in Vienna encouraged you to move from the for-profit to the non-profit sector?
CC: Before Vienna, I was totally focused on business, accounting and finance classes. Vienna and all of Europe expanded my horizons and introduced me to art, music, literature, philosophy, and architecture I had never before known. I visited 23 countries and almost exclusively studied the liberal arts. Seeing, experiencing, and studying it all at the same time had a tremendous impact on me. I made lifelong European and American friends.
IES Abroad: Who had the most impact on you during your time in Vienna?
CC: Center Director Clarence Giese told us from the first day and throughout the year to “be open to the new. Embrace the culture and the people. You can do things in a totally different way than how they’ve been done before.” He gave permission – as well as provided the social, emotional, and psychological platform – to embrace the unknown and move from one adventure to the next. Clarence chose me to be a student assistant and remain in Vienna for a second year. That extra year solidified my German language skills and allowed me to make more friends and travel extensively throughout Europe.
IES Abroad: After graduating from Boston College, you went on to earn your MBA from Harvard and began your career in the for-profit business sector. Were there lessons learned in Vienna that were particularly useful early on in your career?
CC: Learning to look at the world and various issues from very disparate points of view was really helpful to me. Also, I had not been interested in art and music before going to Vienna, and I learned a lot taking classes there and visiting museums. Early in my career, I found that topics about art, and music and European history came up in conversation. My background gave me the wherewithal to contribute to those conversations in a meaningful way. It made me a well-rounded person and I'm grateful for that. I worked for a consulting firm early on and they had an office in Germany. When I applied, I wrote on my application that I spoke German. They didn't have a post open in the U.S. at that time, but I did get an interview in German with their German national who hiring. I didn't get the job, but I was in the running.
IES Abroad: Transforming COMPS InfoSystems, Inc. from a small company into a national player and eventually listing it as an IPO is a great business success story. Why did you decide to sell and transition into the non-profit sector and establish Edify.org?
CC: When you take your company public, you lose the right to turn down a buyer who makes an offer. You lose some control in the board room. After the decision was made to sell the company, I stepped back and took a few years off. It was during that time that I got a call from Opportunity International to move into the non-profit sector. I deflected the offer at first, but in the end realized that it was a calling and I couldn't turn it down.
IES Abroad: What have been some of Edify’s greatest accomplishments to date?
CC: At the time we started Edify, there was nobody doing what we were doing. It was great to jump into this new arena. A friend of mine and I created the first Edify school in Africa together. We have 60 employees now and 42 are foreign nationals. And there are three other organizations doing what we do now. The cumulative impact today of Edify is 1,902 schools, 468,570 students, 6,472 teachers trained. I'm very proud of the outcomes Edify has had across Burkina Faso, the Dominican Republic, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guatemala, Liberia, Peru, and Rwanda.
IES Abroad: You have mentioned that Vienna provided you with the opportunity to study and appreciate art and music. Why is this important for a businessman, change agent, and leader?
CC: First and foremost, it gives me a lot of enjoyment. I'm an Opera devotee and try to attend as many performances as I can in San Diego. But really, the opening up of my worldview is what impacted me the most. I always listen carefully to others' points of view and take them under careful consideration. That came out of my experience in Vienna. Having spent two years in Vienna was a real differentiator for me and I attribute it to getting accepted into Harvard Business School at the time I applied.