Microfinance Week in Review: Week Ending October 30, 2009
Some of the week’s news in the microfinance and small business sectors:
- Economic summit calls for state fund to aid small businesses- Boston Globe
- SBA raises size limits for retailers and hotels- Washington Small Business Journal
- Credit Where Credit Is Due: How to Reach Hispanics- American Banker.com
- Obama has a plan to increase small-business lending- Huffington Post
Brilliant, Dedicated, Committed…
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world, indeed, it’s the only thing that has.” –Margaret Mead
I’ve always loved this quote as a reminder of staying focused on the small meaningful accomplishments that occur everyday. I taped it to my cubicle a few weeks ago in tribute to the dedicated group of volunteers at ACCION USA.
However, since our volunteer efforts have been growing, it’s time to reassess what Mrs. Meade meant by “small group of thoughtful, committed” … Among other characteristics, our group of volunteers are both thoughtful and committed, but small? We have a staff of 58 and a volunteer brigade that is exceeding 200!
Volunteers at ACCION USA participate in a range of projects and their work is making a huge impact. New projects are popping up all over the organization and there are bright and ambitious minds to join the cause. Just yesterday a new project was created that would allow volunteers to help restore a microentreprenuers storefront in New York City. Volunteers would have the opportunity to give back to the community by helping a struggling business beautify to increase sales. Other volunteer projects such as an internship in Financial Education and Social Media are helping to bring awareness of ACCION USA’s product to communities throughout the United States.
Each corner of this organization is being bestowed with the brilliance and dedication that volunteers have to offer. Most importantly, the commitment of these volunteers is making a real difference on behalf of the microentrepreneurs and communities that we serve. So if you ask me who is changing the world, I would have to agree with Mrs. Meade and say that groups like the volunteers at ACCION USA— they are dedicated to the cause of domestic microfinance and together create lasting impact.
Check back for Volunteer opportunities as they arise.
U.S. Microfinance Goes Green
On October 15, Blog Action Day, 13,254 bloggers in 156 countries joined keyboard forces to write about climate change. 18,080,637 people read these posts. Governments in the United States, United Kingdom and Spain wrote official posts on their blogs. What is moving so many people to action? Scientists have determined that 350 pp, (parts per million) of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is the safe limit for humans. Currently, there are an average of 387 ppm (parts per million) of carbon dioxide in the air. This is scary.
(Image from Target300.org)
ACCION USA is committed to the greening of American businesses.
Through creative partnerships we’re giving access to more people to change their business to make the world a place where we can all breathe better. Interested in partnering? Get in touch, we’d love to discuss!
We have a special project team developing a green loan product. We have researched Energy Star requirements. We have looked into LEED certification. And we need to hear from you: What is your business doing to become more energy efficient? Do you know a business that brings green products and services to their customers? How can we at ACCION USA use our services to be the change we want to see in the world?
Do you have a green business? Have you made changes in the way you do business to save energy? Tell us about it. If you’d be interested in a green loan product, leave a comment and we’ll be in touch with you!
Let’s show the world that microfinance and US small business is united to fight climate change. We know that from micro-actions we can make macro-change.
Student MFI Leaders Meet to Discuss the Future
Student led-discussions generated fresh microfinance ideas at “Scale and Sustainability: Increasing the Impact of Student-Led Microenterprise Organizations”
The Aspen Institute’s FIELD, the Intersect Fund and Elmseed Enterprise Fund co-hosted an event for emerging student-run MFI’s this past weekend at Rutgers University with the headline: “Scale and Sustainability: Increasing the Impact of Student-Led Microenterprise Organizations.” Nine of these organization (students from Brown, Bentley, Cornell, Rutgers, Yale, Lehigh, Duke and grads from UCLA and MIT) got together to exchange best practices, talk about ways to engage with the field, and figure out the best way to collaborate and leverage their diverse strengths.
As a microfinance practitioner, it was so refreshing to hear their new ideas and visions for their local organizations. I feel strongly that members of the seasoned microfinance field need to find ways to engage with these students, whether through internships, mentorships, or partnerships. I walked away so impressed and realized that this really is our future.
You can read more about the event on the Intersect Fund’s blog.
Are you involved in a student microfinace group? Leave a comment telling us about your organization and your experience working in the field.
Live, Love, Lend
This guest post comes from Boston staff member Melissa Roberts…
Thursday night, Kiva held its very first lenders party in Boston with the spectacular tag-line “Live. Love. Lend.” ACCION USA, is one of only two Kiva partner 
organizations in the United States, and we dared not miss the event. Our Boston-based team bundled up and trekked through the unusually bitter weather to support micro-entrepreneurs.
Lenders, supporters, and curious minds gathered at the Mexican-Irish fusion pub Jose McIntyre’s. While the DJ spun hot beats, the true star of the night was ACCION USA borrower Doracy, owner of Dore’s Boutique in Fall River, MA, who had received her loan through our Kiva loan program. Before coming to ACCION USA, Doracy had tried to find a small loan through traditional venues, but was unable to get the small boost of capital she needed to stock her store’s shelves for the holiday season.
A splendid time was had, and much to our delight Jose McIntyre’s was not only serving Sam Adams Boston Brick Red, sales of which benefit ACCION USA’s Sam Adams Brewing the American Dream Loan Fund, but promoting it with coasters strewn all over the bar!
The simplicity of the event got me thinking: a group of people, all passionate about a cause can get together and support microfinance by doing something commonplace. We all gather with friends at bars and purchase beer to enjoy. Now, organizations like Kiva and Sam Adams are putting a socially conscious spin on these activities by linking them to microfinance!
I know that I, for one, will be more conscious about supporting small businesses as I go about my daily life, because being part of something bigger is thrilling.
I’ll sign out with a word to the wise: Live. Love. LEND! (And drink Sam Adams responsibly!)
Tags: jose mcintyres, kiva, live love lend, Sam Adams
Microfinance Week in Review: Week Ending October 23, 2009
Some of the week’s news in the microfinance and small business sectors:
- Tougher Access to Credit Cards Benefits Entrepreneurs- Business Week.com
- Before You Use Retirement Funds for Your Startup- Business Week.com
- Obama to Increase Credit to Small Businesses- Reuters.com
- The Rise of Microfranchising- Business Week.com
- Drink Sam Adams, Save Small Business – SocialEarth.org
Redefining Financial Inclusion
Last week, ACCION USA Georgia had the opportunity to present at the 2009 Reaching Out MBA Conference held in Atlanta. ROMBA is the annual conference of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) graduate business school students. ACCION USA Georgia Program Director Wole Ralph was one of three representatives on the Microfinance and International Development career panel.
Around 30-40 students attended this panel; the impressive turnout confirmed what I already knew— social responsibility is no longer just a warm and fuzzy concept that sounds “nice” among this generation of future business leaders. Instead, it is a valued necessity, and I am hopeful that more and more business professionals are seriously considering microfinance and development work as real career options for their future.
The LGBT focus of ROMBA also encouraged me to contemplate the diversity of our client base. Our invitation to participate in this conference is a signal that there is strong interest in microfinance within the LGBT community, and I believe our client base should reflect the LGBT community’s support and interest in micro-lending. As a leader in domestic microfinance, ACCION USA must set an example by serving a diverse group of clients, not just in terms of gender or ethnicity, but also in terms of sexual-orientation. ROMBA reminded me that we should continually strive to provide our services to diverse communities around us; after all, microfinance’s most important mission is to promote financial inclusion for all and provide financial access to all people.
Tags: financial inclusion, LGBT, ROMBA
Buy Beer to Support ACCION USA. Intrigued?
The partnership between Sam Adams and ACCION USA just keeps getting better. Through Brewing the American Dream, we’ve advised over 150 food, beverage and hospitality entrepreneurs at our speed coaching events. We’ve provided loans to dozens of business owners so they can grow and expand their reach into our New England communities. These businesses have in turn created 240 jobs.
So you ask: How can my beer drinking help small business owners? Great question, better answer: Through October The Boston Beer Company will donate $0.25 for every case of Boston Lager you buy in Massachusetts and Rhode Island. On top of that 6 distributors will match the donation with an additional $0.25.
The winning equation goes: YOU buy a case of craft brewed beer = Our favorite bewer donates $$ + Awesome distributors donate $$ = Hard working small business owners in YOUR community thrive.
Does 25 cents sound too micro? Earlier this year Sam Adams gave a micro-donation for every keg of Boston Brick Red sold in Boston. That initiative has so far netted ACCION USA $10,000. Doesn’t sound so micro anymore, does it?
Contest Alert!
Want a chance to win free Sam Adams apparel and Boston Lager pint glasses?
1) Become a fan of ACCION USA’s Facebook page
2) Comment on our wall why you support small business
Each week we will randomly draw 2 names from the comments on our fan page and these people will win a prize from Sam Adams Brewing Company!
Could it be easier?
This contest will run through October 31.
Spread the word on Twitter: Fan @ACCION_USA on Facbook & comment why you love small business. Each week 2 commenters will win free stuff from Sam Adams! Thru Oct 31. Pls RT
A parting word from Jim Koch, founder of The Boston Beer Company
“I started Samuel Adams almost 25 years ago, on a shoestring. I brewed the first batch of Samuel Adams Boston Lager in my kitchen. I applied to several banks for a loan to start my business, but every bank turned me down. Despite the hurdles, I believed in Boston Lager and wanted to share it with beer lovers looking for a fresh and flavorful local bee. Today, I want to bring things full circle and give back to other passionate entrepreneurs who need a leg up. Through sales of that first beer that I brewed in my kitchen, Samuel Adams Boston Lager, we are donating 25 cents for every case sold in Massachusetts and Rhode Island to Samuel Adams Brewing the American Dream.”
(Thanks to the Boston Beer Company for the quote)
Microfinance Week in Review: Week Ending October 16, 2009
Some of the week’s news in the microfinance and small business sectors:
- Transcript: Lending a Hand- Forbes.com
- U.S. Senate Approves Bill to Honour Muhammad Yunus- Microfinance Focus.com
- Microloans, Training Boost Entrepreneurs- San Francisco Chronicle
- Effort Underway to Speed Aid to Small Businesses- Washington Post
- Big Returns Come in Micro-Sized Packages- The Street.com
- Senator Warner Urges U.S. Treasury to Expand Small-Business Loans- Bloomberg.com
ACCION USA in Action: Meet Maika, Loan Consultant
This is the first in a series of posts that examines “a day in the life” of an ACCION USA employee from each department. In this post, we meet Maika Hemphill, a Loan Consultant based in New York, NY.
Elise Tosun: Maika, how did you find out about ACCION USA, and when did you first get involved?
Maika Hemphill: When I decided to leave my investment banking job, I was considering microfinance as a serious career option, so I researched the field and found out about ACCION International. I had a contact in my network who had worked at ACCION USA, which is how I ended up getting an internship here, and eventually a job.
ET: What is a typical day like for you?
MH: The first thing I do each morning is read the financial news, a habit from my banking days. I spend most of my morning on the phone with partners, updating them on clients they’ve referred, and with new and existing clients. In the afternoon, I might do a site visit, which involves going to the client’s business and doing some “detective” work to make sure their business functions the way they’ve described it. Later, I turn off my phone for a few hours to work on financial analysis of client loan applications – which can take until about 9pm.
ET: What do you love about working at ACCION USA?
MH: Because it’s a non-profit, everyone really loves being here and has a sense of humor when things go wrong, so it’s a very supportive environment. I think the best part about working here is the clients. It’s really important to me to learn how microfinance is meeting the needs of its clientele, and to see it “in the trenches.” As a loan consultant, I am constantly seeing their real needs being met, which is so fulfilling.
ET: Even though the clients are the best part of the job, is there anything you find challenging about working with clients?
MH: Sometimes, I can tell that people would be great clients, but they may have made some uninformed decisions in the past that end up adversely affecting their credit, or they don’t keep records of their business that are comprehensive enough to justify the loan size they are requesting. It’s frustrating when I want to help them, but am unable to because they’re not familiar with the long-lasting consequences of their financial decisions. I always try to refer them to a financial counselor if I can’t help them myself.
ET: One last question: How do you make your job fun?
MH: I get to know the clients really well, because my job requires that I become familiar with everything they spend money on, which keeps my day interesting. I also love that I get to apply my background in banking, where I was analyzing huge corporations, to the financial analysis of small businesses. I think my financial analysis background is a huge asset, and I’m glad I get to use it to help our clients’ businesses grow!
Watch a video of Maika in action, constructing a cash flow statement from a non-traditional client’s receipts, here: