CEI

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted small businesses. Many businesses have had to close or limit operations, lost revenue, and terminate or furlough employees. While these are challenging times, small businesses have an opportunity to deliberately pivot their business to meet the needs of a changing world. What You Will Learn: • How to finalize your new opportunity including the business model and revenue streams • How to explore changes to your financial, operational, marketing, and staffing • Best practices in brainstorming goals, priorities, and actions to be taken Once participants have identified and assessed the feasibility of their new opportunity, it is imperative that a strategy is developed to reposition the business by building a new and improved foundation including confirming the new financial, operational, marketing, and staffing models. This also includes new processes and revenue streams for the business. This session will include best practices for recalibrating their business strategy by aligning goals, priorities, and actions. The facilitator for this series will be Malaika Moran, Owner and Lead Strategist of SocialStep Marketing and Consulting. There is no cost to attend this informational webinar; however, you must be registered on GoToWebinar to participate. Please secure your […]

During this special online series, Black-owned small businesses will gain insights and learn concrete steps that can be taken to reach the full financial potential of their businesses.The Urban League of Louisiana's Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation understands that one of the keys to closing the racial wealth gap in the Black community is through entrepreneurship and other pathways that yield economic independence and prosperity. The COVID-19 pandemic, social injustice, and the economic downturn have presented challenges that have stunted the growth of many Black-owned small businesses, and some have even closed their doors. This means: rethinking your business model towards scalability, agility and resilience; examining your revenue model and growth metrics to ensure profitability; optimizing your pricing strategy for profit and cash flow; and leveraging the right financial resources to meet your growth needs. Thank you to our community supporters - Liberty Bank, Greater New Orleans, Inc., and the New Orleans Regional Black Chamber of Commerce! Session 1: Building Scalable, Agile, and Resilient Small Businesses Tuesday, August 10 | 1:00pm-3:00pmFacilitator: Desiree YoungSession 2: Revenue Models and Metrics Thursday, August 12 | 1:00pm-3:00pmFacilitator: Lori JacksonSession 3: Pricing for Profit Tuesday, August 24 | 1:00pm-3:00pmFacilitator: Desiree Young Session 4: Leveraging the […]

Scale Up! Louisiana is a statewide, community-based, entrepreneurial education intensive hosted by Urban League of Louisiana’s Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation. This program provides early stage, women- and minority-owned firms with the education and resources needed for scalability and profitability. In order to participate, entrepreneurs must commit to a business education program that is delivered via 11, 2.5 hour web class sessions. Participants must also commit to utilizing additional resources and services to support their business outside of the curriculum, including: individual and group counseling sessions, technical assistance, pre-recorded videos, business plan assignments, and engagement with an assigned business advisor. The Urban League of Louisiana is working to increase access to entrepreneurship training in the communities that it serves – based on the challenges, opportunities, and small business development needs that are unique to selected communities across the state of Louisiana. The Urban League of Louisiana, in collaboration with Mastercard, will host its fourth Scale Up! Louisiana series, online, beginning in August 2021 for eligible small businesses in the Greater New Orleans area. The series will take place via 11, 2.5 hour web sessions. Other sponsors include AARP and Louisiana Economic Development. This series is also funded through a Cooperative […]