And while Soto does not fault the ICIC for the demise of his business, he does feel that, as originally conceived, the initiative needs to better help entrepreneurs put ideas into practice.
"What they were telling us we already knew," Soto says. "We just couldn't do it."
Soto says that while the HBS students could get to the root of problems with lightning speed, they often had difficulty communicating with those who spend their lives in the inner city.
"Most of the students have no idea what the inner city means," Soto says.
Many residents who have spent all their lives in blighted urban areas have expressed resentment at ICIC initiatives, which they say descend from Harvard with a golden egg.
Urban residents have said Porter's initiative does not give adequate attention to government-sponsored programs such as Community Development Corporations (CDCs) that for years have been waging the war against poverty on the front lines.
Although Soto does not believe CDCs can be the sole cure for inner-city problems, he feels that they cannot be ignored.
"They are a tool, but they are not the only tool for getting into the inner city today."
Making Improvements
With a new office in downtown Boston and a staff that has jumped from two to 12 over the past year, the ICIC seems to be addressing many of those cultural tensions.
Monica Dean, director of the program's national business school network, says the organization is trying to avoid what she says may be perceived as "an issue of ego" with business school students.
"I think that our more recent study teams have been better selected for both aptitude and attitude," Dean says.
Most ICIC staff members believe cultural foibles are not surprising for a pioneering effort to address the needs of the inner city.
"This is a completely new model and it should be expected that there should be some difficult moments," Habiby says.