Tag: Studio

JPMorganChase Delivers Major Boost to Ohio’s Workforce Through Formation of New Regional Workforce Collaborative

Posted on by NationSwell Team

The $2.1 million commitment will advance career pathways and deepens the firm’s 155-year investment in Columbus.

NationSwell is honored to partner with JPMorganChase, One Columbus Foundation, Columbus City Schools District, Ohio Excels and Zora’s House in support of the critical work of the newly formed Columbus Regional Workforce Collaborative. Together, the Collaborative will bring in local stakeholders, drive equity by addressing employment disparities, and strengthen the systems needed to support both employers and employees as the Columbus Region’s economy continues to grow and flourish. 

“We are committed to transforming how we prepare our employees and others to compete for well-paying jobs and successful careers,” said Corrine Burger, Columbus Location Leader for JPMorganChase. “We’re proud to deepen our investment in the region by joining forces with some of our city’s leading business and community organizations, including NationSwell, to create a more prosperous and inclusive workforce.”

Read below to learn more. 

September 12, 2024 (Columbus, Ohio) — Today, JPMorganChase announced its support of a newly-formed regional workforce collaborative that will strengthen the Columbus Region’s economy by breaking down obstacles to employment, advancing equity, and equipping job-seekers with the skills and experience needed to thrive. The collaborative, funded by a $2.1 million commitment from JPMorganChase, will enable five organizations to better align the Columbus Region’s workforce system to address employment disparities, enhance workforce development, and create an environment where diverse individuals and families can fully benefit from the region’s economic growth. The funds will be distributed amongst the organizations to support their involvement and initiatives within the collaborative.

Led by One Columbus, central Ohio’s leading economic development organization, the new workforce collaborative will convene business, education, community, and elected leaders for facilitated discussions to modernize the regional workforce system strategy. Its focus will be on emerging industries that demand highly technical skills. Specifically, the collaborative will develop:

  • A landscape assessment of regional attributes and case studies of successes and pitfalls
  • A regional workforce roadmap that articulates business needs and priorities
  • Data and research on the needs of diverse community members
  • A comprehensive workforce system plan, with robust community input, identifying strategic implementation steps, critical partners, and potential resource alignment

“Today’s announcement will help to ensure the Columbus workforce is equipped with the knowledge, skills and experience needed to compete for high-quality careers in emerging industries, ” said Tim Berry, Global Head of Corporate Responsibility and Chairman of the Mid-Atlantic Region for JPMorganChase. “Drawing on our experience, we know it’s critically important to bring the right local stakeholders together to ensure the workforce has the skills needed to meet the evolving needs of the region.”

The Columbus Region is one of the fastest-growing economies in the nation. However, like many urban areas, the available job opportunities have not been equitably shared among all workers and residents, leading to a racial wealth divide. The workforce collaborative announced today will help address this challenge by preparing individuals for jobs that can jump-start careers.

“As an employer with such a long-standing history in Columbus, we’re proud to deepen our investment in the region by joining forces with some of our city’s leading business and community organizations to create a more prosperous and inclusive workforce,” said Corrine Burger, Columbus Location Leader for JPMorganChase. “Together, we’re making a difference and ensuring that every resident can thrive.”

“When it comes to workforce training, the Columbus Region is program-rich, but by addressing skill gaps within our workforce, we can advance opportunity for all residents,” said Kenny McDonald, president and CEO of the Columbus Partnership. “This new commitment from JPMorganChase will go a long way toward helping us strengthen the systems and strategies that will improve our workforce for both employers and employees.”

Partners Include:

  • One Columbus Foundation: One Columbus will lead the integration of workforce efforts across the region, aligning regional initiatives to meet the needs of emerging industries. By facilitating collaboration among businesses, educational institutions, and workforce partners, One Columbus will develop a more cohesive system that supports sustainable economic growth, enhances skill development, and ensures equitable access to job opportunities for all residents.
  • Columbus City Schools District: Columbus City Schools will support this project by ensuring connectivity between their high school redesign work and the opportunities and skills articulated by the business community throughout the process.
  • NationSwell: NationSwell will support OneColumbus with the overall project design, conducting research on challenges and opportunities, facilitating convenings, and developing key assets, including a regional workforce system roadmap.
  • Ohio Excels: Ohio Excels will provide project management support to One Columbus, ensuring alignment, coordination, and communication among all grant partners throughout the process.
  • Zora’s House: Graduates of Zora’s House Women of Color Equity in Design Institute (WECDI) — a program that upskills participants in design thinking skills and then embeds them in critical community conversations and projects to ensure that the lived experiences of women of color are adequately engaged and informing the work — will develop processes to ensure that the voices and experiences of women of color—the fastest-growing population segment in our region—are adequately addressed in strategy planning and design.

JPMorganChase in Ohio

JPMorganChase has a 155-year long history serving Columbus and has committed $11 million over the last five years to strengthening career pathways for Central Ohio residents. As one of the state’s largest private employers, JPMorganChase is proud to serve more than 18,000 employees, 725,000 consumer customers, and 59,000 business customers. As leaders in business, the firm works in partnership with local government officials, businesses, and nonprofits to advance inclusive economic growth and drive a stronger, more inclusive economy.

About JPMorganChase

JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) is a leading financial services firm based in the United States of America (“U.S.”), with operations worldwide. JPMorgan Chase had $4.1 trillion in assets and $341 billion in stockholders’ equity as of June 30, 2024. The Firm is a leader in investment banking, financial services for consumers and small businesses, commercial banking, financial transaction processing and asset management. Under the J.P. Morgan and Chase brands, the Firm serves millions of customers in the U.S., and many of the world’s most prominent corporate, institutional and government clients globally. Information about JPMorgan Chase & Co. is available at www.jpmorganchase.com

Say ‘Hello Alice’ to the innovator at the heart of the small business economy

Posted on by Amy Lee

In May 2024, a platform for entrepreneurs called Hello Alice hit the headlines when a federal judge threw out the case against them that tried to claim its grant program for Black business owners was discriminatory.  The judgment was a win for diversity, equity and inclusion and the sanctity of the American Dream,  but the bigger story behind it is the scale of impact that Hello Alice has managed to achieve for small business owners since its inception in 2016.

We recently had the pleasure of speaking to Natalie Diamond, Vice President Of Business Development at Hello Alice, to give us a deeper insight into their unique for-profit impact model that empowers the largest community of small business owners in the country, and the ways in which they partner with enterprise leaders to drive a trust-based ecosystem that benefits everyone. 

NationSwell: Welcome Natalie. To kick us off, why don’t you tell us a little about Hello Alice’s mission in your own words.

Natalie Diamond: Hello Alice is a one-of-a-kind platform serving more than 1.5 million small business owners across all fifty states. We are committed to equitable access to capital and to supporting any entrepreneur with a good idea. As a women and minority owned and run business ourselves, we are passionate about supporting all small business owners — especially those in the New Majority, aka women, people of color and young people. Socially disadvantaged small business owners face persistent and glaring disparities when securing capital, which prevents them from growing their companies, reaching their full business potential, and supporting their communities. Our mission is to help increase access for the entire small business community. 

We have a unique model: by servicing our enterprise partners with valuable targeted marketing and impact opportunities, we are able to provide our growing community of small business owners with everything they need to scale their businesses, free of charge. Specifically, we help all small business owners with business and financial education as well as funding by offering a variety of services and programs including a loan center, grant programs, educational courses and boost camps, financial health tools, and curated opportunities. 

NS: You mentioned your unique model, aligning small business growth and equity goals. Tell us a little more about Hello Alice’s approach and how you engage businesses to drive impact.

ND: We recognized early on when we first began Hello Alice that financial institutions and enterprises wanted to help small business owners, but there wasn’t an efficient and trusted community platform to reach them. Enterprises also didn’t understand the needs of small businesses to adapt and improve their support initiatives, services, products, and programs for this demographic. Data and measurement of these impact initiatives and programs were missing.

We saw a great opportunity to connect small businesses and enterprises and empower them to help each other, which starts by building trust across the small business ecosystem. We now have seven years worth of data and expertise and a trusted community of over 1.5 million diverse entrepreneurs, each with a robust data profile that powers smart recommendations and relevant resources, from capital opportunities to products and solutions that will help take their business to the next level. The result is healthier small businesses with more money and opportunity to invest in services from the companies they transact with.  

Our team partners with marketing and impact leaders at a wide array of financial institutions and enterprises, to offer different types of programs and products for small business owners. We have a very tailored approach — understanding what kinds of small businesses our enterprise partners want to engage with and drive impact for, what they want to offer, and what data they are looking for in return, so we can create unique opportunities for them. Some examples of these programs and tools include the Business Health Score™ by the Global Entrepreneurship Network, the Hello Alice Small Business Mastercard, and various boot camps offering skills to small business owners hosted in partnership with FedEx, Antares Capital, and others. 

NS: Hello Alice recently secured a win in the case brought by America First Legal, relating to your grant program for Black small business owners, funded by Progressive insurance. What was the significance of this win and the team’s reactions? 

ND: We were thrilled when this case was dismissed, as it marked a huge win for the broader small business community. The case had the potential to pull even more funding opportunities from small business owners and impact how private businesses decide to distribute funds and contracts. With all of the challenges small business owners are facing these days, from labor shortages to heightened interest rates to inflation, litigation like this only adds to the pile of obstacles they encounter in trying to scale and survive. Small businesses are the engine of our entire economy and the dismissal allows the engine to keep running smoothly for now. 

NS: Are there any partners of Hello Alice that have been particularly supportive throughout this fight?

ND: We had some amazing partners and friends who were extremely supportive throughout this process. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed an amicus brief for us, which they rarely do for lawsuit cases. In the midst of this lawsuit, we were still able to raise our series C round. We’re incredibly grateful to all of these investors and friends for continuing to believe in Hello Alice’s mission and standing with us. Many of our financial and enterprise partners joined us for thought leadership roundtables in cities like Chicago, LA and NYC to ensure we continue to identify new solutions that we can collectively put into action for greater impact.

NS: As you say, the win was so important since small businesses face huge challenges despite their vital role in our economy. What are the largest struggles small businesses are facing today that Hello Alice is helping with? 

ND: Inflation and heightened interest rates continue to be two of the largest economic challenges small business owners face across the country. This, combined with difficulty in accessing capital and credit, greatly hinders any entrepreneur’s ability to accelerate their business growth.

Certain small business owners also face a lack of representation and support in business networks, leading to challenges in finding mentorship, investors, and other key industry players. 

The growing hill of litigation threatening programs and funding for small business owners is another challenge that has become increasingly concerning. Programs that small business owners have relied on for years are paused or going away completely, leaving gaps in financing that aren’t being filled. 

NS: What has been the impact of Hello Alice’s grant programs that are funded by your enterprise partners?

ND: We’ve seen an amazing impact from our grant programs, with over $45 million in capital distributed, and we hear equally wonderful feedback from our small business community. Oftentimes, small business owners aren’t able to access traditional loans or are only offered predatory loans. Other times, they are not able to access credit due to past circumstances that led to poor credit scores or they are denied for other reasons. Grants are an ideal source of funding for these business owners and are often a lifeline for businesses that need a jumpstart to scale. Many of our small business owners who receive grants have expressed the same sentiment, that if not for the grant, they would have had to close down their businesses. But with them, they were able to overcome their obstacles at the time and continue supporting their own communities and families.  

With the launch of our Business Health Score™, our grant programs have an even greater impact across the small business ecosystem. All small business grant applicants are now able to track, measure and receive tailored recommendations for how best to improve the health of their business. While only a small percent of applicants will receive the grant capital, our tools and technical assistance are now able to get more businesses healthy and eligible for capital products. This has also been especially critical for our enterprise partners looking to measure the success of these programs. Our Business Health Score™ collects comprehensive data to measure the impact of social initiatives, providing clear evidence of success for their investment in impact.

NS: Thank you for your time Natalie. Let’s end with a call to action: What ways can other companies advocate for and support small businesses?

ND: Enterprises and any type of corporation can support small businesses in a number of ways. Capital access is consistently the number one challenge for most underrepresented businesses, so starting a grants program is a direct path for support. Enterprises can host small business events and look internally across their subject matter experts to create mentorship programs and encourage their own executives to provide valuable lessons and advice to entrepreneurs. Companies can also begin supplier diversity contracting, ensuring diverse-owned small businesses, suppliers, and vendors are incorporated into their supply chain and business practices. 

Hello Alice are currently working with the NationSwell Studio. Our award-winning Studio develops clear strategies, compelling stories, and illuminating Collaboratives that move influential audiences to action while driving impact. Learn more.

What I Mean When I Say I’m an Impact Strategist

Posted on by Amy Lee

Ever since I left the law firm where I started my career, many of my friends and family have struggled to understand exactly what I do for a living. My kids are convinced “talking to people and writing emails” is the sum of my job. In reality, post law, I spent ten years at a global branding agency, and I now proudly hold the lengthy title of Chief Strategy Officer & Managing Director of Studio at NationSwell. The through line to my winding path has been my ability to give people useful advice to help them achieve their goals.

And that in essence is what I mean when I say I’m a strategist — specifically, an impact strategist, since I now have the honor of working with leaders on the cutting edge of driving social and environmental impact, through my role at NationSwell.

For those that don’t know, NationSwell is an executive membership community and consultancy serving change-makers who are advancing solutions to meet the world’s most urgent challenges and opportunities — including addressing economic inequality, racial and social justice, climate resilience, workforce development innovation, health equity, and much more. In short, we serve the people in every sector who are trying to make the world better for all of us.

The consultancy offer at NationSwell runs through our Studio — an award-winning team of analysts, advisors, designers, event planners and program managers working in partnership with organizations to help them achieve their specific goals: from defining the impact strategy that guides their non profit partnerships, grant-making and employee engagement, to running Collaboratives of diverse partners to take collective action for change, to engaging audiences and driving support for solutions through creative storytelling.

Perhaps it’s helpful to break down what that work looks like in practice.

Rather than run through all the things we can do, it’s more interesting to focus on what makes us distinctive. At NationSwell Studio we go beyond standard consulting to be our partners’ hands-on champion for impact: blending strategic rigor and creative ambition with unabashed humanity and thoughtful understanding of the issues we’re tackling. We inspire our partners to explore new perspectives on the work and make it possible for them to reach new goals. And we measure our impact not just through effective outcomes, but also through the innovative, equitable processes we use to get those results.

Let me give you a few examples:

  • The NationSwell Studio sits at the heart of an impact ecosystem of members working on intersecting issues, including leaders from and working directly with impacted communities. It can seem easier to come up with solutions that work for institutions first, and assume individual needs. In contrast, we ensure community expertise and original insights inform our strategic work, and we use connections, facilitated events and — where possible — co-working with those communities, to make sure that beneficiaries have a seat at the table to shape how businesses and philanthropies direct funding and support.

    For example, we worked with American Family Insurance to create a blueprint for how they and other companies could act as authentic partners in progress to young climate advocates. As well as conducting an extensive ‘empathy tour’ of interviews, we included several young advocates on our team, planning and facilitating a series of workshops with other climate activists. This collaboration was essential to ensure that those sessions felt sensitive to the participants’ wellbeing and state of mind, were trusted and generative forums for discussion, and that the recommendations on investments, partnerships and capacity-building that followed were co-created by the very people they were intended to serve.

  • While we see common patterns in what our partners need, and constantly leverage the bank of proprietary insights created by our in-house Insights Team, we also like to be in a state of constant listening at NationSwell: absorbing what our community of members are raising in 1:1 meetings and discussions at our 150+ annual events. This allows us to keep our partners on the cutting edge of change by proactively innovating to meet community needs.

    For example, as social, environmental and health multi-crises hit a peak in 2020, it was clear that these challenges could not be solved in silos. So, we drew on our combination of skills across the organization to launch NationSwell Collaboratives — a platform that brings diverse leaders together to drive action together around shared goals. Collaboration isn’t easy, and many feel they lack the capacity to make it work. Our award-winning approach allows partners to bridge gaps and work with ease together, share inspiration and research, and co-create industry-building content and experiences. This year, our Case for Childcare Collaborative launched a microsite that makes the business case to accelerate caregiving support within companies.

  • Dipping in and out of industries is standard for communications agencies; but in the impact space you cannot afford to skim over the surface of an issue. Our Studio holds a unique position, sitting within a wider membership community of experts from all sectors, and acting as an engine of deep issue area expertise that we are constantly building alongside our community partners.

    For example, NationSwell is working with American Pride Rises — an organization dedicated to upholding Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) and to fighting back against the anti-American attacks on DEI. We have been collaborating their team to create events and materials that reach key audiences across many different platforms. This work is informed by our ongoing NationSwell events and research dedicated to DEI, including NationSwell’s recent report focused on ‘Making Corporate DEI More Durable’.

  • Lastly, the impact sector can get very jargony, very quickly. There is an abundance of annual reports and white papers offering windows into smart initiatives that others have undertaken. However, impact professionals can fall into the trap of talking only to themselves, and losing out on the opportunity to inspire wider circles — like their employees and consumers — to get behind a cause or solution. At NationSwell Studio, we push ourselves to find inventive ways to engage audiences with complex issues, through smart, emotionally resonant storytelling — starting always by establishing a clear understanding of our audience and what we want them to think, feel and do.

    For example, we helped the The Greater Good Science Center bring to life their playbook on bridging differences, creating a series of social videos that explain different techniques in unexpected ways, that were picked up by national media given their relevance to current divides in America. In collaboration with Johnson & Johnson, we created a personal video series shining a light on stories of the community health workers who are often overlooked by traditional health narratives — including Native American communities, rural communities, and formerly incarcerated people. Plus, in the spirit of turning the white paper on its head, we create interactive, multi-format digital experiences to move the sector forward: like the Place-Based Impact in Practice Collaborative digital resource for funders that recently launched, offering one-of-a-kind peer guidance and case studies to drive more equitable philanthropic approaches.

I hope this has given you (and my kids) a useful insight into the work we do at NationSwell Studio. If you are a leader with a mission and a problem to solve, get in touch — we’d love to be your champion.

Our award-winning Studio develops clear strategies, compelling stories, and illuminating Collaboratives that move influential audiences to action while driving impact. Learn more.