Program Details
Our Motto
COLLABORATE - INVEST - SHARE KNOWLEDGE
ReachBack helps to create a thriving entrepreneurial ecosystem for the local community.
HOW WE DO IT
Working with 4-Community Pillars
We Cultivate the Relationships through a synergistic approach
It's Possible Through the Implementation of Our
ECONOMIC MOBILITY - The ability to improve ones wealth and economic circumstance.
ReachBack 5-2-1 Initiative
We're boots on the ground, we go throughout the community to find projects that will help individuals increase their economic mobility.
The ReachBack 5-2-1 Community Impact Initiative builds community synergy.
It leads to new entrepreneurs, startups, and jobs, growth of future talent, and business retention.
The ReachBack program empowers individuals to become the architect of their own careers.
A ReachBack community constitutes 5-youth programs, 2-startups, and 1-community startup each year until 2025.
ReachBack is a comprehensive, wraparound and synergistic approach that get individuals working together and using the assets the community already has.
Synergistic Approach
Project Based
Local Startups
Financial Models
Career Development
Gain Experience
Community Assets
Utilizing the assets a community already has.
When the Synergistic Approach is successful
The Community will experience a thriving entrepreneurial mindset ecosystem.
The Community will see a flow of entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs coming through the program who are serious about execution and participation in economic development rather than having education as the goal.
The Entrepreneur will gain knowledge of developing a concept or idea that is within their means, both strategically and financially feasible.
The Intrapreneur will gain knowledge of self-architecting a career and will seek employment with an entrepreneurial and growth mindset.
When ReachBack is successful
ReachBack Measures of Success
As an intermediary, ReachBack acts as a coordinator and project manager, working with community leaders, entrepreneurs, and project partners to:
Teach & develop business and financial models and frameworks that are sustainable.
Drive project design, from identifying volunteers, and outcomes to defining implementation, training and evaluation plans.
Research and Benchmark best-in-class economic mobility and youth high quality educational programs, then integrate them and report to community partners to achieve better outcomes for the community needs.
Establish and implement strong governance and accountability systems and technologies, to support community partners with real-time data and decision making.
Raise necessary capital for the community entrepreneurship, workforce, and youth programs from a range of impact investors, including financial institutions, foundations, donor-advised funds, individuals, and fundraisers.
WHY OUR WORK IS IMPORTANT
Our country is recognizing that our small businesses and parents need more help.
Startup companies do not fit the traditional banking model for lending capital.
ENTREPRENEURSHIP
With 95% of minority businesses structured as solo-entrepreneurs with no employees, this places communities with a high population of minorities or those with a growing number of minorities at risk of decreasing economic mobility. The current small business funding programs work for the 5% who are ready for capital.
There are over 12.6M individuals unemployed as of September 2020 .
WORKFORCE
With 48% of college graduates under-employed prior to Covid-19, how will young adults in the local community avoid the catch-22? The catch-22 is you need the experience to get a job and a job to get experience.
Parents want their children to leave high school and college with 21st Century skills and real-world experiences so that they can be self sufficient.
CAREER DEVELOPMENT
Studies show many students are not motivated to learn. This can suggest that the school curriculum is not allowing enough creativity and/or real-world experience.
We're Looking for Individuals Who Can See the Future
Driven by New Opportunities in America
Entrepreneurship activity - 40-yr low
Employers need motivated talent
Availability of Data & Technology
Consumers Driving Markets
Aspired by the words: "Do common things in uncommon ways"
George Washington Carver
HOW TO GET STARTED
We Ask Local Governments & Agencies to Initiate 2-Steps
1. Support ReachBack 5-2-1 Initiative
ReachBack 5-2-1 Initiative
Learn More
Annually, until the year 2025, local leaders make economic mobility through entrepreneurship a top priority by executing the 5-2-1.
5 - Youth Entrepreneurship Programs that result in experiential and 21st century learning in business, finance, and career exploration as a tool for implementing community change .
2 - new local Startups projected to reach $5 million -$1B market size and pledge to keep headquarters or regional offices in the community. This requires them to change their business strategy so they can participate in economic development which ultimately prospers the entire communities.
1 - Community Startup, a group of individuals in the community that start an enterprise that aligns with the citizen's vision for economic development they want to see within their community and the talent the community possesses (i.e. a community rich in nature and has talented residence in agriculture might want to start a essential oil business).
2. Invest in Community Innovators
A Community Innovator is an individual with natural leadership abilities who fervidly thinks and creates things people want, but lack the opportunity to scale their idea or reach his/her potential due to discrimination related to his/her zip code, racial disparities, and/or gender. Community Innovators come from all walks of life. By investing in ReachBack's programs 5-2-1 Initiative, local leaders will be the catalyst to empowering individuals who deserve to be entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs. You would make it possible for young adults who are underemployed and unemployed to find high-quality, living wage jobs with career advancement. You would make it possible for community innovators to reach their full potential.
In our definition, George Washington Carver would have been considered a community innovator. Just think, how many individuals in local communities don't get the opportunity to reach their full potential. If George Washington Carver was unable to learn to his full potential, what would it be like in this world today not having his genius discoveries in advanced agriculture and biochemistry? The local communities are full of geniuses. What did America lose when it failed to provide the proper education to underestimated youth? For example, consider the little boy, at age 14 who built microphones from baby doll speakers, or the shy prodigy singer and musician who sang on-stage in the high school talent shows who would have thrived in Corporate America behind the scenes at Disney. Instead their lives went astray because he/she resided in the wrong zip code. ReachBack believes Community Innovators are part of the solution to bringing America out of it's 40-year downward trend in entrepreneurship activity and local governments reducing economic mobility concerns.
Through the AmeriCorps Program, the Local Government would help support Outreach Coordinators in their community and minimal programming cost.
Each community is different, just as communities offer different tax incentives to lure enterprise businesses to their community, the community leader would want to be flexible in offering incentives to the business incubator, the successful entrepreneur and motivated youth.
We work with the local government agencies to help build the right financial model and incentives that's right for their community.
Who Will Benefit
The Expected Outcomes
How We Include the Entire Community
We partner with local businesses, chambers, colleges, associations, and workforces to find talent in the local community to run startups and connect young adults with the workforce.
Our process is not about who the candidates know or what school they attended. It's about the passion the individual has for making a difference in the lives of others and desiring to be a change agent in their community. ReachBack will source for the talent in your community and find those with the knowledge, experience and desire to share.
Source for Talent
Source for Community Innovators
Connect Entrepreneurs
Drive Entrepreneurship and Local Startup Eco-systems
Manage Results
Inform the Local Governments and the Community of Progress
How it works
- Perform a community assessment to identify the community assets.
2. Build Partnerships with Locals
ReachBack consults with small businesses, community builders and the local government agencies in the community to develop promising startups and projects that improve social outcomes. A financial due diligence is performed to ensure the scope of work is aligned with the guidelines and policies of bankers, investors and corporations to raise capital and the municipal economic mobility goals. ReachBack tracks and reports the startups and projects to ensure the community needs are met.
3. Source for Local Talent
We recruit individuals with entrepreneurial mindsets to lead startups and community projects. These projects are intended to up-skill and re-skill individuals who reside in the local communities. Participants take a career assessment to work in their passion and participate in a 6-week to 3-month startup or project.
4. SME Partnership
We partner with Subject Matter Experts (SME), community volunteers, and corporations to facilitate classes and provide hands-on experiences.
5. Curriculum:
The participants will engage in ReachBack's Reverse Private Equity pre-accelerator which is a 6-week to 3-month entrepreneurship challenge to prove a product and/or service is viable.
What happens when we collaborate
One Objective
To build community wealth through entrepreneurship and career development.
ReachBack brings all of the programs together and interweave them seamlessly, by doing so, we create a unified vision for community collaboration.
- ReachBack Workforce Readiness Program
Participants are assigned mentors, coaches and subject matter experts who work intensively with them for up to 3-months. Candidates select entrepreneurship and sector-base career pathways. The ReachBack Workforce Readiness program is based on the evidence based model, WorkAdvance. WorkAdvance is different than traditional workforce programs in that it performs intense screenings to improve employer and employee satisfaction. It requires instructors to deliver upfront planning for advancement. ReachBack enhances the concept further by adding business case studies, industry knowledge, financial literacy and experiential learning.
The ReachBack Workforce Readiness program is based on the evidence-based model, WorkAdvance and our enhancements.
Youth are one of our 3-pillars to building community wealth. ReachBack addresses community wealth disparities through early learning. Studies show that greater than half the college graduates don't get jobs in their majors. This places these students at a disadvantage in getting a head start in their careers and finances. It also, poses a risk that American corporations will have employee retention issues. Our Youth Career Explorer program gives youth K-12 and Opportunity Youth, ages 14-24 an early start in learning about hot careers, and careers in their community and surrounding areas. Youth take a career assessment and are able to work on real business issues working in their passion.
2. Youth Career Explorer Program
The ReachBack Framework: Youth explore their career interest, business and financial literacy through real community projects.
We don't limit the age for learning, ReachBack has the knowledge and experience to keep your child excited about learning. Our selection of programs and projects challenge bright students and help them build their skills and explore their interests under the guidance of our experts in the community and corporate volunteers.
ReachBack Day @ JA Georgia
Junior Achievement gives children opportunity to explorer careers and gain 21st Century skills.
We don't re-invent the wheel, ReachBack research for evidence-based programs like JA and integrate them into the ReachBack Framework.
3. Business Connect & Community Startup
The Small Business mStreet-E3 Pre-Accelerator Program
Small Business Collaboration
ReachBack educates startups that empower the Self Employed and under-resourced Stage 1-2 businesses
- Self Employed - owner contributor focuses on survival
- Stage 1 business called Life-Style, aka "mom and pop" focus on building market share and customer base
- Stage 2 businesses are Gazelles, grow very fast first and second year and focuses on expansion
Minority Businesses Struggle to Grow
A Kauffman study found, "while all businesses start small, minority businesses tend to stay small.
ReachBack wants to change what the Kauffman study found.
A Synergistic Approach can help small businesses overcome challenges while at the same time grow the community, increase economic mobility and upskill.
Business Connect
Although it is easier than ever to start a business, the ecosystem for running a business is unevenly distributed. The majority of capital flows to entrepreneurs in high growth businesses and communities that prosper. With most Venture Capital (VC) funding going to three states, our entrepreneurs with great ideas lack the information to successfully grow their businesses let alone position for VC funding, get expert mentor advice and/or learn best practices for building a company. The ReachBack Business Connect program seeks to transition entrepreneurs leaving the workplace and connect them with entrepreneurs with like missions.
ReachBack Business Programs
Community Startup
Community leaders in prospering towns learn about business enterprises and how they play a critical role in building their community’s wealth. Studies show that towns have used community wealth-building strategies such as Cooperatives, Community Land Trusts, Community Development Corporations and Public-Private relationships to create quality jobs. Our Community Startup program encourages micro-enterprises, community leaders, city officials and entrepreneurs to create economic stability using the public-private relationship models.
Our Approach is Unique
Reverse Private Equity Model
a collective equity and revenue sharing model design for MAINSTREAM entrepreneurs.
Value of Access to Capital
The ReachBack Private Equity model was developed out of the epiphany that venture capital funding is non-existence for Main Street self-employed/Stage 1 small business owners.
Top Accelerators like YCombinator, Techstarts, StartX know the value of funding startups. A Kauffman study found small businesses that receive funding were 20 to 25 percent more likely to survive after four years and 16 to 19 percent more likely to have grown to 75 employees.
Georgia is in the top 5 for businesses starting, but at the bottom 5 for businesses survival after 1 year.
Nearly 30% of Georgian's jobs are low wages.
There is a need for intervention.
THE GAP
Compare the Business Models - ReachBack focuses on the Stage 1 and Stage 2 business gap that can't be filled by the top accelerator and general small business educator programs.
BUSINESS MODELS
How We Find for Community Innovators
Entrepreneurs and Youth Apply for the ReachBack's Pre-Accelerator Program
The ReachBack Reverse Private Equity Model provides youth with valuable work experience and entrepreneurs with a startup and access to capital.
Results We Aim to Solve
Program Cost
Entrepreneurs Who Are a Best Fit for the ReachBack Pre- Accelerator
Have the capacity to participate full-time in a fast pace environment
Enjoy and have the bandwidth to participate in a fast pace environment
Commitment to building wealth within a local community versus within a high traffic downtown community.
Coachable and willing to mentor young entrepreneurs
Value teamwork and solving problems
Program Cost
$2500 - $10,000 per Small Business Ideation
$1000 per team registration
$100 per student registration
2-AmeriCorps with minimal programming cost
Benefits
Up-skilling and Re-skilling
Collective Equity Model
Entrepreneurs Grow at an Higher Economic Growth Rate
Business Retention
Student 21st Century Collaboration