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    • Monday

      March 9, 2020

    • The SolveIt Room is where business owners will have the opportunity to participate in one-on-one coaching sessions, connect directly with resource partners, and access the Interise Concierge service, (Interise staff who will connect you directly with other attendees, based on your interests and needs.)
      Business Owner Track

    • An introduction to the key theme of Interise2020, Solve It: Inclusive Economy, from key stakeholder perspectives. Moderated by Manjari Raman, Director of the Managing the Future of Work Project at Harvard Business School, with panelists: Wendy Guillies, President and CEO of the Kauffman Foundation; Gary Cunningham, President and CEO of Prosperity Now; Dr. Nika White, President and CEO of Nika White Consulting; Bob Rivers, CEO of Eastern Bank; and Darrell Byers, CEO of Interise.
      Business Owner Track
      Practitioner Track

    • Interise and partners will share solutions that are working to level the playing field for small businesses across race and place, and will call Solvers to action by highlighting what systemic barriers to economic inclusion remain baked into our local economies.
      Business Owner Track
      Practitioner Track

    • Tuesday

      March 10, 2020

    • Addressing an individuals unconscious biases is a life long journey. This session will include provocative storytelling that takes each individual through an introspective journey through their own biases and how to consciously manage their biases.
      Business Owner Track
      Practitioner Track
      SolveIt Talks

    • The “Chief Technology Officer Training (CTO-IT) Program” (CTO-IT) is an accelerated program combining hands-on design and development workshops with Full-Stack instructors, and lectures from guest experts. This session aims to shrink the growing technology chasm (in knowledge and proficiency) among non-technical entrepreneurs seeking to launch new ideas for tech startups or grow their business through the strategic implementation of technology. The session will include a comprehensive survey of industry-leading technology services and their corresponding consumer or business applications including but not limited to: a) machine learning/data science, b) augmented /virtual reality, c) cloud services and d) developer frameworks for online and mobile technologies.
      Business Owner Track

    • Small businesses are extremely vulnerable to fraud. Many small businesses to do not have processes in place to effectively mitigate risks or the resources necessary to successfully recover from fraudulent attacks. Michael D. Thornton, Sr., Chief Operating Officer, and small business co-owner will offer a unique perspective on the dangers of cyber-attacks and corporate embezzlement, along with strategies for recovery and resilience.
      Business Owner Track

    • This panel will illuminate how organizations from across the country are coming together to tackle the challenges faced by makers and manufacturers of color as they try to access capital (both debt and equity). Maker and manufacturer businesses are expensive to start up and run because of high equipment and space costs. Moreover, financial institutions are more likely to see these firms as a risky bet from a lending perspective because they may not produce the high returns of tech or other industries. All of this is compounded by the fact that there are well-documented racial inequities in the way capital is deployed to entrepreneurs of color in an array of sectors. Yet we need a diverse base of makers and manufacturers because they provide good-paying jobs, drive local innovation, create career paths that give workers both technology and production skills, and promote generational wealth.
      Business Owner Track
      Practitioner Track

    • This facilitated session will explore the distinction between entrepreneur and venture development programs and how economic development leaders and practitioners can support women and entrepreneurs of color through programs designed to teach business model validation skills and the entrepreneurial mindset. Drawing on the work of Ken Harrington and the presenter’s work running a business model validation program for early stage IT, bioscience and consumer/manufactured product entrepreneurs, the session will look at how these programs differ from traditional incubators and accelerators, what outcomes (pivot, partner or perish) can be used to measure success, and how programs can foster diversity, equity and inclusion in regional entrepreneurship ecosystems through intentional outreach and program design that goes beyond traditional business training and technical assistance.
      Practitioner Track

    • This session will introduce Equity Competent Leadership and why it is essential for running a business, organization or an initiative in the current climate. Practicing Equity Competent Leadership means understanding the dynamics of power and privilege and proactively embodying attitudes and actions that produce equitable power, access, opportunities, treatment, impact and outcomes for all. While reinforcing and creating practices and policies that support that effort.
      Business Owner Track
      Practitioner Track

    • As the CEO of a national emergency management and business continuity planning firm in a field that is deeply committed to process improvement after disaster, we know the value of failing and then evaluating that failure to be prepared for the next disaster. We teach our clients that they need to "fail spectacularly" during the disaster drill so that they don't fail when the disaster strikes. In our business, we have taken that approach to trying to fail fast so we can get to a process, a system, etc. to better serve our clients across the country. This session will share our "fail fast" approach and how we have successfully pivoted to grow our consulting company. Those pivot action steps are the thing that will allow you to learn how to make your process, business, etc. better. In addition, we will share case studies of other companies who failed fast and won big time.
      Business Owner Track

    • Hear from trailblazers and innovators who are connecting capital solutions to the small business owners who need it most: Malia Lazu, Berkshire Bank; Gerardo Espinoza, LEAF; Runway Project; Joseph Kriesberg, MACDC.
      Business Owner Track

    • Are your organization’s marketing efforts helping to create an inclusive economy that supports all groups? Or… are they doing the opposite? In this talk, you’ll learn 5 common marketing “blind spots” for EDOs, and how to instead create more inclusivity, equity, and diversity through your communications: 1) Why taking a sharp look at your current marketing materials is essential to discovering your own “blind spots”; 2) Specific ways to create more diversity and inclusivity in your marketing -- and local businesses -- through storytelling; 3) Key practices to make it easier for marginalized groups to find you so you can give them the support they need; 4) How to get the perspective of minorities and underserved groups (especially if you’re a one-person office with limited resources) so you can better serve them; 5) How collaborations and partnerships with other regions can be used to create more diversity -- and how this supports all parties involved.
      Practitioner Track

    • This may come as a surprise: being incredibly busy and overcommitted isn’t sexy. In fact, it isn’t attractive in the least. People think if they are rushing from appointment to appointment, showing up “on time,” making excuses for their tardiness, that they look “important.” This is the great illusion of modern professional times. Not only is this kind of overbooking unsexy, it can (and likely will) compromise your best efforts to promote your business, win over new clients, and establish the reputation you need for enduring sales.
      Business Owner Track

    • I believe every business should have a business to business or business-to-government strategy. With organizations decreased capacity, increasingly they are outsourcing functions and need small businesses more than ever. For small businesses, this creates an opportunity get large, institutional customers to efficiently grow and scale. This can be a scary proposition, but with the right help and the right programs, it could make all the difference in the world to growing a successful and sustainable business.
      Business Owner Track

    • Hear from CEO's from across the country who partner with state, city, and nonprofit workforce development programs to hire people in recovery, returning citizens, and at-risk youth. They are impacting their community while fulfilling their hiring needs and maintaining successful growth and profit margins.
      Business Owner Track

    • In this breakout session, we will share replicable models designed to increase participation with Latinx populations and an incubator series developed to reach undocumented entrepreneurs. We also will explore the online resource platform Venturize.org, which connects entrepreneurs nationwide with technical assistance providers and responsible lenders. These programs have emerged from our work to reduce barriers to entrepreneurship and ensure that all entrepreneurs have equitable access to the resources they need. We will use this discussion of current programs and lessons learned to spark conversation around strategies to further strengthen and increase support services for local small businesses, as well as strategies to increase awareness of available services and resources. Attendees will learn about the importance of connecting the local “ecosystem” of small business support organizations and will brainstorm new approaches that could work in their own communities.
      Practitioner Track

    • This session will include a presentation and conversation about the benefits of strategic partnerships with a focus on building the capacity of small businesses.
      Business Owner Track

    • Starting a business is easy. But realizing a profit is hard. Profiting in business is hard because every business offers two of the most perplexing questions known to man: how do you hire passionate people who want to do their job (and how do you keep them)? And how do you keep a positive business cash flow? The answer to those two questions holds the key to maximizing profit. In “Keys to Maximizing Profit,” Carlo White reveals his tried and true formula for turning your business into a profit-making machine that empowers the business owner to build wealth. Carlo’s philosophy revolves around the importance of building a culture that embraces solving people problems and cash problems. Carlo offers a formula and specific strategies that turns a non-thriving business into a business that strives for continuous improvement with waste reduction, employee culture and overall business culture.
      Business Owner Track

    • Financial wellness is the hot new topic in many circles but what does it actually mean and how can a small business employer design a benefit strategy to build it. Ms. Gopnik will discuss new research about the financial challenges faced by lower wage employees and their impact in the workplace. She will use real world case studies to illustrate how building employee financial wellness can be simple, inexpensive and impactful.
      Business Owner Track

    • In this discussion-based session, we will share best practices of our program and inspire others to implement a coaching aspect to their small business development programs. Participants will come away with the answers to the following questions: 1) Why utilize coaches; 2) Who to recruit as a coach; 3) What to expect of a coach; 4) How to pair coaches and program participants.
      Practitioner Track

    • Wednesday

      March 11, 2020

    • Women business leaders face unique barriers to saving for retirement. It’s not only the gender pay gap, and the compounding effect from years of lower income either. Our retirement gap study found that women business leaders start saving later than their male counterparts, and 20% of those who support dependents are not saving at all! When it comes to male business leaders, none of them mentioned difficulties saving for retirement while supporting dependents. Our session will explore these trends and more, along with providing suggestions for what business owners and leaders can do to bridge the retirement savings gap.
      Business Owner Track

    • This presentation will introduce a disciplined approach that can be applied by small business owners to establish a suitable organizational climate within their workspace. Once created it will help facilitate the change management process that will occur during the scaling effort and assist small business owners in meeting their business growth goals.
      Business Owner Track

    • A Conversation on Innovation: Not every community has the same access to resources, nor the same social or economic history. In Portland, the current climate and political history have created some very specific opportunities and challenges to supporting local businesses and historically under-served entrepreneurs. We have made a number of adjustments and augments to the standard Interise program in order to best meet the needs of the business owners in our area. We invite other Instructors, Directors, and Program Managers to join us to share experiences, learn about the different community needs, explore the programmatic adaptations that have been implemented throughout the network, and create a space to brainstorm new ideas around how we can continue to customize the program to better support our local communities.
      Practitioner Track

    • Grow My People is Interise's new curriculum, designed to support small business owners in building intentional culture.
      Business Owner Track

    • Why do some people stabilize and succeed while others get overwhelmed or simply give up? As a researcher, I have seen it hundreds of times. Two entrepreneurs launch their businesses with great products or market innovations, ready to take on the world. They both work long hours, focus on their customers and dream of business success. But fast-forward three to five years later and they have very different results. Based on research and years of working with companies across the spectrum, this session will share strategic ways of thinking about work, business relationships and intentional success. Participants emerge better equipped to stop struggling and instead focus on strategically managing their personal and company brands.
      Business Owner Track

    • This would be a fireside chat with all the Interise program administrators and instructors. I will discuss how the Greenville Chamber has creater a year-long experience for disadvantage businesses using the Interise curriculum and incorporating other strategies and program value-added components. The objective of this talk is to challenge program partners to think of how they can create a stronger and more impactful experience for those who go through their local program to create greater sustainability.
      Practitioner Track

    • Interise invites you to take the lead in building a vibrant, engaging, and valuable alumni network among the thousands of business owners across the country who have completed the Interise curriculum. All business owners are invited to participate in this session where we will learn from you where the greatest value lies - and how to unlock the potential - of this robust community. We will also equip you with strategies and tools to lead on engaging your local alumni network, creating business opportunities within a trusted network and a support system to ensure you meet your business growth goals.
      Business Owner Track