The California Association of Microenterprise Opportunity (CAMEO) received funding from Capital One to create the Carrot Fund, which offers loans to Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs). CAMEO hired me to…
Over the course of the year, I've worked with a nonprofit organization on financial management. The organization had experienced some losses, the board had not been exercising proper oversight and…
Small Business Valuation Lately I’ve been consulting with people on selling their businesses. The first challenge is facing the realities of business valuation. Entrepreneurs love their businesses and have invested…
Spark Lending Platform I’ve had several meetings with Nick Elders, Vice President of Technology Solutions and Services at Community Reinvestment Fund about their online small business lending platform, Spark. It…
Converts Social Capital into Currency Crowdfunding is an option for small business owners who have clients with a large, engaged online networks, but who can’t access bank loans to launch…
Local Investing Here is a great story from Mendocino County - social impact lending using a Direct Public Offering (DPO) in which an investment opportunity is offered and sold directly…
Opportunity Fund, a CDFI based in San Jose that I’ve had the pleasure of working with on several projects, is impressive. They closed 1,500 loans last year, adding up…
Using CDBG funds, the Portland Development Commission (PDC) runs a business development program for low and moderate incomes residents. To deliver services they contract with about a dozen organizations that…
As my blog posts and client lists attest to, most of my consulting practice revolves around small business and community development. I was at a board retreat last month and…
I participated in a Peter Block webinar based on his book, Flawless Consulting. As I’ve written in a previous post, his authentic-communication-with-compassion approach is refreshing. Here are some of the…