Violetta Nafpaktiti
Managing Director of DotCoop
“Fostering & Developing Global Co-operative Movement”
Violetta Nafpaktiti, Managing Director of DotCoop, serves as a role model for all women entrepreneurs because she has garnered great height, and through her achievements, they see what is possible for them. Being part of a support network for other women leaders, Violetta ensures that she can contribute towards enhancing others with the best of her capabilities. “I tend to find things to admire and be inspired by, with pretty much all the people surrounding me. But, equally, I also see examples to avoid in my dealings with people,” she explains. “I have been fortunate to be in a role that has allowed me to interact with people from diverse cultures, backgrounds, industries, levels of competency and expertise. The cooperative values and principles have provided me with a compass to navigate life, both professionally and personally.”
“A .coop domain says that you are a Cooperative, and not just another dotcom. That you put people first. That you are ethical and fair. That you’re great to do business with. That you’re part of a global movement of more than 1 billion members, representing 12% of the world’s employed population.”
Being an excellent listener, Violetta can hear details and intentions of others, provide a quick, in-depth analysis in a matter of minutes and offer great “concise” advice in support of their endeavors. The discussions with others of their endeavors always ends up in a better place after listening and contributing, whether that occurs over a brief interaction or a long-term interaction. She helps others be their best and offers support without hesitation while keeping the efforts focused on the vital details and the greater good. Armed with the same leadership principles, Violetta is leading DotCoop toward greater heights.
DotCoop was created in 2001 to establish an internet namespace for the global cooperative movement. At that time, the Internet Corporation of Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) was opening up the industry of Top Level Domains (TLDs), and so the stakeholders of DotCoop found an opportunity to bid for a domain exclusive for cooperatives -i.e., member-owned and democratically-controlled businesses. According to its brand narrative, “[DotCoop] unites the cooperative movement online with a shared identity. It transforms an organization’s value from a lone contributor to an active participant of a global online network of cooperatives.”
“The Cooperative movement consists of at least 12% 34 and cooperatives provide jobs or work opportunities to 10% of the employed population”, according to Violetta, demonstrating that Cooperative organizations and businesses reach deep into the fabric of our society and economy.
The National Cooperative Business Association (NCBA) and the International Co-operative Alliance (ICA) each own 50% of DotCooperation LLC, headquartered in Washington DC. In 2017, DotCoop LLC became the owner of Domains.coop Ltd., an ICANN-accredited domain name registrar that, alongside other registrar businesses, retails the .coop domain. Domains.coop records and maintains the contact and technical information that makes up the domain registration and passes on the technical information to the central directory or ‘registry.’
DotCoop is working hard to help build the global cooperative awareness under the tagline “elevate your cooperative identity,” alongside building a community of .coop domain resellers in partnership with regional organizations. This will ensure that -as we go into the new decade- it will be easier than ever to register a .coop name. DotCoop takes part in many international events throughout the year, and the team is always ready and willing to talk about the .coop domain, the cooperative Identity, and the best ways the cooperative community can make itself visible on the world stage. Their identity tools include .coop domain names and the Cooperative Marque -the logo for cooperatives worldwide- and the .creditunion sector domain names. Resources include the .coop Global Directory, where the public can look up and find cooperative organizations on a map. The Digital Empowerment Learning Hub is a resource to get learning assistance for cooperatives taking on new digital initiatives.
They cover numerous questions and issues of cooperatives through their digital transformation content in the Digital Empowerment Learning Hub. Whether it be basics of the cooperative model, building a cooperative brand online, or best practices in managing digital/domain services. For the days to come, the company is rolling out the Digital Empowerment Learning Hub and developing partnerships with virtual event managers to bolster their events and deliver this information through regional Apex Organizations. They are also looking towards collaborating with national apex cooperative federations to bring .coop to more cooperatives in each country with an active cooperative movement. Finally, they are excited to roll out the domain .creditunion, serving such an important cooperative sector: the Credit Unions. IE
Company
Management
Violetta Nafpaktiti
Managing Director of DotCoop
Description
Unite and empower cooperatives online – our mission, our singular goal that drives everything we do. Since 2001, DotCooperation has united the cooperative community through a shared online identity and platform where cooperative organizations can participate, inform, educate, and pioneer a path for others to join and support the cooperative movement.