Bryant Johnson knows how to clean. Years of working for a nursing home taught him how to clean a tile floor, how to strip it, how to wax it, and how to buff it. The result was a beautiful, clean, glossy surface. He learned how to clean carpets and marble floors. He knew what type of cleaner What Johnson didn’t know about was business: revenue, profits, losses, and capital budgets. So Johnson enrolled in the Workshops in Business Opportunities (WIBO) program at Alliance for Children and Families member FSW, Bridgeport, Conn. The 16-week program teaches aspiring entrepreneurs from underserved communities how to successfully start and manage a small business. Today, Johnson has launched his own cleaning business. |
early 500 people have gone through FSW’s program since it launched in 1999. Most of them have both passion for, and specialized knowledge about, a niche area. In Johnson’s case it was cleaning. For other people it has been photography or computer repair, and in one person’s case, it was pumpkin seeds.
Despite the varied backgrounds of participants, they share something remarkable: success.
“Most people think money is the only measure of success, but the stories are just amazing,” says Brian Langdon, former president and CEO of FSW. “We have stories about how this program helped someone buy a house. Or how it helped a kid go to college.”
The proven success of the program is one reason the Alliance is committing to leveraging its national network of member organizations to replicate the WIBO program across the country in 2010. Langdon will draw on his experience with the program and serve as manager of the replication program.
One of the reasons the program has proven so successful at FSW is that its formula has been refined through decades of use. FSW’s program is modeled after the original WIBO program, which launched in New York’s Harlem neighborhood in 1966.
Dartmouth College recently conducted a study of FSW’s program that documents a variety of positive outcomes. According to the study, 30 percent of students were not in business when they started the program, but have since launched their own business. What’s more, 76 percent of graduates said their income went up since they graduated from the program, and 65 percent said they considered their businesses successful.
Still, success isn’t the only reason the Alliance is looking to grow the program. Another reason is the growing recognition that WIBO represents an important trend: the blending of human services with efforts to promote economic self-sufficiency.
“WIBO is not just a business endeavor. It’s a whole way of working in a community and strengthening a community,” Langdon says. “There is much more discussion about economic development of families now.”
Calling the program a “workshop” may make it seem relatively easy. In reality, the program requires a serious commitment from students, Langdon says. Each of the 16-week sessions entails a three-hour discussion. Students are expected to spend from six to 20 hours doing homework outside the discussion.
There is no fee for individuals to participate in the program, which allows greater access to potential students. Those who enroll are expected to pay a small fee for the curriculum materials. It’s a token amount intended to demonstrate their dedication to finishing the program. Remaining program costs are subsidized by donations and volunteer time. “It’s like boot camp. That way they have some skin in the game,” Langdon says. “The students can’t miss more than four sessions or they won’t graduate.”
Although the demographics of participants vary, the average graduate of FSW’s program is an African American woman with children, says Rev. Kevin D. Ginyard Sr., director of WIBO at FSW. Typically the graduate is single—either never married or divorced—has a household income above $30,000, is a renter, and has completed at least one year of college. The average age is 37.
In addition to providing opportunities for people like Johnson to open their own full-time businesses, many graduates use WIBO as a way to launch a part-time career. They are able to supplement their income by offering their skills or knowledge as a side job.
Sustainable Program Model
While the program is a serious commitment for students, it need not be a major undertaking for Alliance members to launch their own WIBO programs. That’s because, with the success at FSW for more than 10 years, WIBO has proven to be sustainable beyond its original location in Harlem.
“WIBO really has been successful. It’s a model that doesn’t need any more development,” says Drummond Bell, a former member of the WIBO board in New York. Bell helped FSW become the first WIBO site outside Harlem, and he serves as chair of the Alliance’s WIBO Replication Council, which is overseeing the Alliance’s replication project.
Starting the program requires a one-time franchise fee. After that, curriculum updates are free. While some members may find it hard to budget for a new program in the current economic climate, Langdon says the FSW program has found support from local businesses that want to be associated with the success stories WIBO creates.
Beyond the licensing fee, the weekly sessions require a volunteer from the community to serve as a discussion leader. Often a new person is recruited each week.
“The first year is a bit of a learning process,” Bell says. “But, all of a sudden after that, the volunteers are people who went through the program.”
Bell’s experience is backed up by the Dartmouth study, which found that 75 percent of graduates maintained a connection to the program, often through volunteering. More than 50 percent said they had done business with at least one other WIBO graduate.
“WIBO is a great way to get people together,” Bell says. “It creates a real social network.”
Future of WIBO at FSW
FSW, now under the leadership of William Hass, president and CEO, plans to further build upon these WIBO connections. Hass’ vision for the future includes solidifying WIBO’s relationship with FSW’s Micro-Credit Business (MCB) program.
“WIBO provides basic business skills, and MCB helps students achieve their goals by providing micro-lending capital with small business loans,” Hass explains. MCB also provides education and networking opportunities for small business owners.
“When we first started doing things like budget counseling, people thought I was crazy,” Langdon says. “But the value of our work is terribly compromised unless we deal with the bigger picture.”
That bigger picture includes linking self-sufficiency to human services.
“Now we have this ladder. At the bottom rungs are people in a very fragile state,” Langdon says. “But at the top of our ladder are individuals who have a fundamental sense of hope. They have hope that they can do something and make a difference for themselves.”
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