West Philadelphia<\/a> area. Participants should be registered in the neighborhood, have operations there, or its owner can live there.<\/p>\nBut the rules seem flexible: Because the program\u2019s priority and focus is to help Philadelphia-based businesses, including nonprofits, interested owners are encouraged to apply even if they do not live in Philadelphia. Even businesses with no revenues can apply, but priority will be given to those generating revenue. <\/p>\n
West Philadelphia has \u201cno shortage\u201d of entrepreneurial talent, said Franne McNeal, executive director of the academy, but what it lacks most is resources.<\/p>\n
\u201cBusiness owners here have less access to strategy, legal fluency, capital networks, and the kind of advice that turns a small business into a bigger one,\u201d McNeal said. \u201cThe biggest gap I see is the owner with four employees who cannot figure out how to get to 14.\u201d<\/p>\n
The academy\u2019s curriculum is divided into four stages: build the foundation, strengthen the structure, prepare for growth, and put the plan into action. <\/p>\n
Students will learn about creating a business strategy, the right structure for their company, branding, and protecting intellectual property. Instruction will also cover financial literacy, workforce management, marketing and sales, and how to present to a potential investor. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re going to cover the foundational elements of growing a business,\u201d faculty director Praveen Kosuri said. \u201cEverything from business planning and strategy to structuring and branding. <\/p>\n
Besides learning how to build a business, participants are expected to gain confidence in identifying business risks, asking the right questions, and knowing when to seek specialized advice. The program is also intended to foster meaningful relationships between founders, faculty, practitioners, and members of Philadelphia\u2019s entrepreneurial community. <\/p>\n
Each business owner will submit a business plan and pitch, along with a 90-day action plan, for faculty feedback. <\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019ll have a funder-ready plan, the financial fluency to defend it, and practitioners in the room helping who know the Philadelphia capital landscape,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
While the academy is tuition-free, McNeal and Kosuri noted that participants will have to put in significant time. <\/p>\n
The 10 weekly sessions in West Philadelphia will take place from 6-9 p.m. beginning in late October through January. <\/p>\n
\u201cParticipants need to show up each week to learn, to work on their businesses, and to support the others in the class,\u201d said Kosuri. \u201cWe hope it sets them on a path that continues to lead them to their goals.\u201d<\/p>\n
Although start-up businesses can apply, the program seems more geared toward already established companies, whose owners want to take their companies to the next level. <\/p>\n
Unlike other programs I\u2019ve seen, the academy is establishing a specific measurable goal that will hold both its leaders and students accountable: getting the businesses involved to achieve between $1 million to $10 million in revenues within three years.<\/p>\n
McNeal says the program is a pilot and its success will be measured by participants\u2019 success.<\/p>\n
\u201cAttendance and satisfaction scores are easy to report but revenue and employment are slower and harder, and they are the only numbers that mean anything, so those are the ones we are building the tracking for,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe will be judged on whether we come back,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Applicants can apply online<\/a>.<\/p>\nThe priority deadline is Oct. 1, but applications submitted later will be reviewed on a rolling basis if space remains. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Listen to article \u2022\u00a00:00 min A new, free educational program for West Philly small businesses is launching this…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":296139,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[69,71,70,122443],"class_list":["post-296138","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-philadelphia","tag-philadelphia","tag-philadelphia-headlines","tag-philadelphia-news","tag-west-philadelphia-business-growth-penn-ccp"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/296138","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=296138"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/296138\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/296139"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=296138"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=296138"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=296138"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}