In 19 days, Team Dayā will break ground on its forth school – this one in Nchetana, Malawi. Three of the ten of us traveling are former mastercard executives – Chevan Nanayakkara, Vib Prasad and me. Please consider supporting Chevan, Vib and Team Dayā in its fundraising efforts (100% of your donation goes to school construction).

Support Chevan Nanayakkara of Team Dayā

Support Vib Prasad of Team Dayā

One of the things I enjoyed most about working at mastercard – in fact what ultimately drove me to say yes to the opportunity – was its then CEO Ajay Banga who recently became President of the World Bank. Banga would speak powerfully about the decency quotient, what he calls DQ.

IQ (intelligence quotient) and EQ (emotional quotient) are important but Banga believes DQ is what makes the difference in leadership. It is about doing the right thing when no one is looking, about transparency and about giving others your hand on their back and not in their face. Banga talked about DQ – what it meant to him, the company and each of us – as much as anything else during my time at mastercard. Banga was also emphatic that mastercard was a global company and that much of its future success depended on advancing financial inclusion.

Team Dayā was born in the fall of 2018, before my departure from mastercard in 2019 and while mastercard was still under the leadership of Banga. Banga believes one person can make a difference and if you want it to never take no for an answer. So does each member of Team Dayā.

Because of this belief there will be a new school in Nchetana, Malawi. With your help. Zikomo (thank you).

-Jay Sears

PS: If you are interested in joining a future Team Dayā school build, please get in touch with our Head of Recruiting Jaryd Knutsen.