Program for small businesses assisted 255 entrepreneurs in its 1st year in New Hampshire

The New Hampshire Community Navigators Program was designed to reduce the barriers that underrepresented and underserved entrepreneurs often face in accessing the tools and resources they need to start or expand their own businesses. Launched by the Community Development Finance Authority (CFDA) in partnership with the US Small Business Administration in December 2021, and funded by the American Rescue Plan, this pilot program aims to reduce economic exclusion and empower historically vulnerable community members.

99 percent of the businesses located in New Hampshire are small businesses

“The CNPP program emerged from the increased awareness in the last couple of years that there are many immigrant-owned, BIPOC-owned, women-owned businesses that have been historically and structurally excluded from small business development resources and access to capital opportunities. That exclusion and deeper structural inequities result in those same communities being further excluded from other programs, like the PPP  for example, and in turn, the racial wealth gap and inequality in our country continues to deepen.” - Jennifer Near, Program Manager, SBA Community Navigator Pilot Program.

Backed by a network of experienced small business and microenterprise technical assistance providers, the Community Navigators Program has supported 255 small business owners in New Hampshire since it launched a year ago. These partners help entrepreneurs with practical aspects of owning a business, such as record-keeping, book-keeping, budgeting, business planning, marketing, financial management, specific legal advice, or raising capital to achieve business goals. During the program’s first year of activity, some participants were able to obtain a total of $2,456,000 in approved loans.

Providing small businesses the building blocks they need

According to the US Small Business Administration, 99 percent of the businesses located in New Hampshire are small businesses, defined as having less than 500 employees, and 49.8 percent of New Hampshire’s private workforce is employed by a small business. Several studies have also linked poverty reduction and increases in family wealth through micro-entrepreneurship, and examples of this are visible in systemically vulnerable communities, such as Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC); immigrants and refugees; veterans; women; disabled, formerly incarcerated, and LGBTQ and gender non-conforming people.

With the mission of creating lasting change in New Hampshire’s small business ecosystem, CDFA’s Community Navigators Program leverages an existing network of partners and connections to grow support for this critical segment of the Granite State’s economy. With a combination of activities such as outreach, technical assistance, multicultural, customized support, the program and its partners are improving access to resources in underserved communities. Laurel Adams, President of the Regional Economic Development Center (REDC), shares the same view: 

“Connecting with a network of professionals in our industry who are all focusing on the same goal of reaching underserved communities in New Hampshire was a value-add. The sharing of information between spokes, access to translation services, and other resources shared helped with growing our programs and services for clients.” - Laurel Adams, President, Regional Economic Development Center (REDC)

The first months of the pilot program were focused on building long-term capacity, which included efforts to collaborate with the network of technical assistance providers, reach more communities across New Hampshire, and onboard additional community partners. Michelle Beaudin, Grants and Operations Manager at the Grafton Regional Development Council (GRDC), one of the Community Navigators’ partners, considers the program to have had an important impact:

“The Community Navigator Program has allowed GRDC and CEDC to spend more time on direct outreach which made several important impacts on our work. First, we were able to reach businesses that would never hear about our services through social media. Second, we were able to develop a more meaningful relationship with the client because of our direct approach.” - Michelle Beaudin, Grants and Operations Manager, Grafton Regional Development Council

Data collected during the first year of Community Navigators shows increasing support

One of the responsibilities of the Community Navigators Program is to collect information about the communities and small businesses served so that: I) progress can be tracked, II) trends, opportunities and challenges can be spotted, and III) a roadmap for improvement can be created.

Since it was launched in December 2021, the program has served 255 clients, with a total of 1,332 hours of assistance. Almost 41 percent (105 clients) of those clients identify as non-white, and 55 percent (141 clients) identify as female. One of the trends observed over the course of the year was that client numbers kept increasing each quarter, as well as the total hours of services provided. Moreover, the percentage of female clients has also increased each quarter, while the percentage of clients from various racial and ethnic backgrounds remained relatively the same. Amanda Dudek, Marketing and Program Director at the Belknap Economic Development Council noticed the diversity of participants:

“Through the program, we have been able to create community partnerships that have allowed us to help veteran-owned businesses, women-owned businesses, and several other underserved businesses. We look forward to continuing this work into the new year” - Amanda Dudek, Marketing and Program Coordinator, Belknap Economic Development Council

Language access matters when creating programs to lift up underserved communities

One of the biggest insights revealed during the pilot program’s first year was that language access is important to reach and be trusted by BIPOC and immigrant communities. Interpretation support and translation of Community Navigators Program information and brochures into various languages were very well received by the participating entrepreneurs. Sara Powell, Program Director at Hannah Grimes Center for Entrepreneurship, experienced the importance of cultural competency: 

"We were very excited to be able to use live interpretation for small business owners whose first language is not English. We saw how it helped us develop a deeper and better relationship with the business owner and give them better coaching, which in turn, equipped them better to start or grow their businesses." Sara Powell, Program Director, Hannah Grimes Center for Entrepreneurship

The success of the program and the increasing number of clients throughout the year also show that building relationships and partnerships with organizations that are led by and for underserved communities is key to reaching the businesses within those communities. During the first year of activity, the Community Navigators Program welcomed the New Hampshire Business Alliance for People of Color as a partner focusing on outreach, referrals, and peer support:

“We know that networking groups and mentor relationships can be key in overcoming the challenge of social capital. Working together with a strong network of peers going through similar struggles in their businesses can lead to win-win opportunities that help BAPOC business owners thrive.” - Will Arvelo, NH Business Alliance for People of Color

Getting ready for the second year of the Community Navigators Program

In retrospect, the pilot year of the Community Navigators Program highlighted the gaps that needed to be filled in terms of support provided and resources available to historically vulnerable and underserved communities. The teams and partners involved in the program took significant strides toward filling those gaps, and the empowerment of small business owners is to continue through 2023. 

Goals for the next year include expanding language access, to enable even more clients to benefit from technical assistance and program services, both for initial client intake and long-term client support and engagement. Another important project underway is the assessment of the small business technical-assistance ecosystem, with a particular focus on identifying barriers that underserved businesses experience learning about and accessing services. This study will inform the second year of program implementation and the constant improvement and learning culture that brings the Community Navigators Program to life.

Community Navigators Program has supported 255 small business owners in New Hampshire since it launched