evaluation of the virginia ... - impaq international implementation study...virginia employment...

Evaluation of the Virginia Employment Through Entrepreneurship

Consortium (VETEC) Program

Implementation Study Report

May 2014

Authors: Russell Saltz

Sonam Gupta Brian Peters

David Thomas Alex Tenaglio

Submitted to:

David Hunn President

The SkillSource Group, Inc. 8300 Boone Boulevard, Suite 450

Vienna, VA 22182

Submitted by:

Russell Saltz Senior Research Associate IMPAQ International, LLC

10420 Little Patuxent Parkway #310 Columbia, MD 21044 www.impaqint.com

http://www.impaqint.com/

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

TABLE OF EXHIBITS ............................................................................................................... iv

Executive Summary ............................................................................................................... v

1. Introduction .................................................................................................................... 1

1.1 Report Purpose and Structure ........................................................................................ 2

2. VETEC Introduction .......................................................................................................... 3

2.1 VETEC Objectives and Service Strategy .......................................................................... 4

2.2 VETEC Enrollment To Date .............................................................................................. 5

2.3 VETEC Project Implementation and the Workforce Investment System ....................... 6

2.4 Virginia Labor Market Characteristics............................................................................. 7

3. THE VETEC Program model ............................................................................................... 9

3.1 Key Players ...................................................................................................................... 9

3.2 Communication Processes ............................................................................................ 10

3.3 VETEC Implementation Model ...................................................................................... 10

3.4 VETEC Performance ....................................................................................................... 19

4. ENOVATE ....................................................................................................................... 21

4.1 Local Labor Market Context .......................................................................................... 21

4.2 Key Players .................................................................................................................... 22


4.4 Implementation Activities ............................................................................................. 25

4.5 Summary ....................................................................................................................... 38

5. GR GATE ........................................................................................................................ 39


5.2 Key Players .................................................................................................................... 40



5.5 Summary ....................................................................................................................... 53

6. Launch Hampton Roads ................................................................................................. 54


6.2 Key Players .................................................................................................................... 55



6.5 Summary ....................................................................................................................... 66

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7. Findings across sites ....................................................................................................... 68

7.1 Key Players .................................................................................................................... 68

7.2 Program Activities ......................................................................................................... 70

8. Lessons Learned and Recommendations ........................................................................ 85

8.1 Introduction .................................................................................................................. 85

8.2 Lessons Learned ........................................................................................................... 85

8.3 Evaluation Next Steps ................................................................................................... 88

Appendices:

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TABLE OF EXHIBITS

Page

Exhibit 1: Location of VETEC Sites ................................................................................................... 4

Exhibit 2: Project VETEC by Site ...................................................................................................... 4

Exhibit 3: VETEC Enrollment Through April 2014 ........................................................................... 6

Exhibit 4: Local Labor Market Conditions for Virginia .................................................................... 8

Exhibit 5: Project VETEC Flow of Services ..................................................................................... 10

Exhibit 6: VETEC Application Submission and Random Assignment ............................................ 14

Exhibit 7: VETEC and WIA Exit Requirements ............................................................................... 18

Exhibit 8: Local Labor Market Conditions for Northern Virginia .................................................. 22

Exhibit 9: ENOVATE Organizational Chart..................................................................................... 24

Exhibit 10: ENOVATE Flow of Services .......................................................................................... 25

Exhibit 11: ENOVATE Application Submission Process and Random Assignment ....................... 28

Exhibit 12: Local Labor Market Conditions for Richmond Region ................................................ 40

Exhibit 13: GR GATE Organization Chart ....................................................................................... 41

Exhibit 14: GR GATE Flow of Services ........................................................................................... 42

Exhibit 15: GR GATE Application Submission Process and Random Assignment ......................... 45

Exhibit 16: Local Labor Market Conditions for Hampton Roads Region ...................................... 55

Exhibit 17: Launch Hampton Roads Organizational Chart ............................................................ 56

Exhibit 18: Launch Hampton Roads Flow of Services ................................................................... 57

Exhibit 19: Launch Hampton Roads Application Submission and Random Assignment .............. 60

Exhibit 20: Roles and Responsibilities of Key Staff ....................................................................... 69

Exhibit 21: Outreach and Recruitment Strategies ........................................................................ 71

Exhibit 22: Details of the Information Session.............................................................................. 72

Exhibit 23: VETEC Application Process by Site .............................................................................. 74

Exhibit 24: Details of the Orientation Session .............................................................................. 75

Exhibit 25: Key Program Services .................................................................................................. 76

Exhibit 26: Details of the Assessment Process ............................................................................. 77

Exhibit 27: Details of Business Counseling Provided Across Sites ................................................ 79

Exhibit 28: Details of the Entrepreneurship Training Services ..................................................... 81

Exhibit 29: Details of Case Management ...................................................................................... 83

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The Virginia Employment Through Entrepreneurship Consortium (VETEC) is a U.S. Department of Labor (USDOL) Workforce Innovation Fund (WIF) federally funded program designed to help eligible individuals attain long-term economic self-sufficiency through self-employment. VETEC integrates entrepreneurship services within the existing Virginia state public workforce system. The purpose of the program is to provide comprehensive entrepreneurship training and technical assistance to Workforce Investment Act (WIA)-eligible adults and dislocated workers over the age of 18, who are interested in starting their own business. The VETEC program expands on previous the USDOL’s Growing America Through Entrepreneurship (GATE) initiatives.

VETEC operates as a consortium of three Local Workforce Investment Areas (LWIAs) – ENOVATE in Northern Virginia (LWIA#11), Greater Richmond GATE (LWIA#9), and Launch Hampton Roads (LWIA#16). Each site manages its own VETEC program under a unique brand name; however, the VETEC program design calls for one singular program operating across three different areas. To achieve this, VETEC identifies a set of activities that sites should be using to implement their programs. The program implementation model outlines procedures to guide the implementation activities within each region. This model outlines the roles and responsibilities of sites’ VETEC staff, as well as the steps involved in program implementation. Procedures include outreach and recruitment; a program information session; program application and random assignment; an orientation session; receipt of program services; and program exit and follow-up.

This report examines how the three sites are implementing their VETEC programs and assesses their fidelity to the implementation model. Our main finding is that the VETEC program has similar objectives and program steps at each site. However, there are variations in the actual implementation of the program across sites at each step of program implementation. The findings presented in this report are based on information obtained via in-depth site visits and thorough reviews of site- and project-specific documents and materials. During each site visit, IMPAQ team members interviewed the VETEC Project Director, each site director, case managers, and other program staff actively involved in outreach, recruitment, and training activities.

Staffing Findings. The VETEC model specifies distinct roles for program staff members, including the site director, case managers, and training partners. Sites do not always adhere to these roles, sometimes involving other players not specified in the VETEC model. While site directors for ENOVATE and Greater Richmond GATE are largely serving as envisioned by the VETEC model, the Launch Hampton Roads site manager has taken on additional responsibilities. In addition, Launch Hampton Roads does not have case managers, but has hired an Entrepreneurship Grant Assistant to help with those program-related activities. This site also uses the services of a WIA eligibility expert to determine eligibility for the program, a responsibility the model states is to be performed by the case manager.

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The program model clearly defines the roles of the site directors and case managers; however, the roles of training partners are left up to the sites. As a result, the training partners have varying levels of involvement across sites. In GR GATE, the training provider, CCWA, conducts most of the outreach and recruitment activities for the program in addition to providing training services. In Launch Hampton Roads, the training provider, ODU, is also involved in case management and has access to the PTS.

Outreach and Recruitment Findings. The model defines specific outreach and recruitment methods sites should use to recruit prospective program applicants. These include targeting individuals already in sites’ VOS and WIA systems, as well reaching out to AJC customers looking for other employment services. The sites are largely using these and a variety of other methods. ENOVATE relies heavily on WIA/VOS-enrolled individuals and AJCs to recruit for its VETEC program. GR GATE also targets WIA enrolled individuals and uses AJCs to advertise the program. Both GR GATE and Launch Hampton Roads are not using VOS to target individuals. In addition, GR GATE and Launch Hampton Roads use social network sites to advertise and provide program information. Each site uses a different combination of strategies to conduct outreach and recruit participants. Sites do not share any advertising materials and there is no communication among the sites regarding recruitment strategies.

Information Session, Application Submission Process, and Orientation Session Findings. Once an individual has expressed interest in the program, they attend an information session. The VETEC model states that information sessions should be devoted to providing an overview of the program model, including discussing the purpose of VETEC, the services it provides, and what will be required of participants. The end of the information session is for filing forms and making copies of eligibility documents. The model leaves it to the sites to conduct the eligibility screening at the information session or later. Both ENOVATE and GR GATE are closely following this model in terms of the duration and content presented during the information session. However, the Launch Hampton Roads information session is longer in duration and includes information not covered in the program model, including topics such as services available to the control group and the follow-up survey.

After an individual attends an information session and is determined eligible to participate, they must apply to the program. The model specifies the proper application procedures site should be using. It explicitly states that individuals should not receive WIA application or assessment materials prior to applying to the program and random assignment. Only individuals enrolled in VETEC are required to be dual-enrolled in WIA, so only participants assigned to the treatment group should be administered WIA assessments. ENOVATE and GR GATE are following these processes closely, as case managers update applicant information into VOS only after the applicant is assigned to the treatment group. However, Launch Hampton Roads deviates from the project model slightly, creating a VOS account for all applicants regardless of the outcome of random assignment.

Following the application appointment and random assignment, participants assigned to the treatment group attend an orientation session that outlines the program. While the program

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model leaves the duration and format of the orientation session to the individual sites, it does specify the topics covered in the session. All sites are adhering to these topics, though the formatting and timing of sessions vary by region. ENOVATE and GR GATE have group components for the orientation sessions, while Launch HR schedules individual sessions. Additionally, ENOVATE and Launch Hampton Roads use an individual meeting format to cover the assessment component of the program.

Service Provision Findings. Following the orientation session, VETEC participants are enrolled in an intensive core entrepreneurship training program and begin receiving program services. While the VETEC model gives a large amount of flexibility to sites when implementing their service delivery models, it does specify the core service curriculum sites should be providing. These core curricula include steps for starting a business; business planning, accounting, and finance; sales and marketing; website development and social media; networking and special events; specialized training; and entrepreneurship mentoring. Sites are free to provide additional services that supplement these core services.

Additionally, the model states that business counselors that have partnered with the sites should be providing an initial business consultation to participants. This consultation is to help guide participants in developing their business goals and strategy. Throughout the program, sites should be providing in-depth case management to program participants and communicating with them about their training needs and schedule.

Given the flexibility provided to the sites in delivering the core program services, there are significant differences in sites’ service delivery models. All sites are providing initial business consultations to their participants. In ENOVATE and GR GATE, dedicated business counselors provide initial and ongoing business counseling. However, in Launch Hampton Roads the training program coordinator acts as the business counselor. The specific courses involved and the duration of the trainings vary greatly. Total participant contact hours range from 40 hours in Launch Hampton Roads to 80 hours in ENOVATE. All the sites have similar attendance and make-up policies, and all sites provide certificate of completion. Additionally, all sites are utilizing a cohort model that groups participants throughout the program.

In terms of entrepreneurship mentoring, the program model states that workforce regions are to coordinate an entrepreneurship mentoring program comprised of VETEC graduates and successful small business owners to serve as mentors and facilitate peer support groups. Both ENOVATE and Launch Hampton Roads match program participants with mentors, with Hampton Roads utilizing a pool of approved small business owners, business coaches, subject matter experts, and those with previous small business mentoring experience in the Norfolk area. The GR GATE program uses business consultants and course instructors as mentors.

Exit and Follow-Up Findings. Program participants proceed to a formal exit and follow-up process once they have finished receiving program services. As of yet, no uniform procedures has been disseminated to sites that outline the exiting process, though the VETEC model outlines exit requirements as: completion of core training; developing a business plan; and obtaining a business name, business license, Dun and Bradstreet number, and Federal Employer

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Identification Number. However, given that no standard exit procedures have been provided to the sites, there is still ambiguity regarding the operating procedures used to govern the actual program exit process.

Lessons Learned. Based on these findings, we identify a series of lessons learned to highlight the successes achieved and challenges faced during program implementation. The sites have been successful in dual enrolling program participants, establishing performance measures, obtaining UI waivers, implementing a peer-learning based cohort model, utilizing workshops and labs to leverage peer-learning effects, designing a rigorous curriculum, adhering to random assignment procedures, and adapting to meet emerging program needs. The program has faced challenges in recruiting from the target population, developing recognizable marketing materials, keeping the information sessions consistent with the model, finalizing case management details, implementing a standard training model at all three sites, developing a standard form for business plans; defining exit and follow-up procedures, and ensuring communication across sites.

The lessons learned pertain to implementation processes for the recruitment, outreach, and intake of potential program participants, as well as the delivery of services to enrolled VETEC participants. These lessons serve as both a guide for the three VETEC sites to continue improving program implementation, as well as a roadmap for additional sites who may implement VETEC or similar entrepreneurship training programs in the future.

Now that the Implementation Study is completed, in 2015 IMPAQ will conduct the Process Study of the VETEC program. An Impact Study will follow this in 2016. The qualitative process evaluation will complement the impact evaluation by examining why and how certain outcomes occurred through a study of the factors that affect program impacts. Both the Implementation and Process Studies will be used to provide context and understanding for interpreting the impact study findings.

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1. INTRODUCTION

In 2012, the U.S. Department of Labor (USDOL) Employment and Training Administration (ETA) awarded a Workforce Innovation Fund (WIF) grant to the Commonwealth of Virginia. The grant, which was awarded to the SkillSource Group Inc., the Northern Virginia Workforce Investment Board’s non-profit fiscal agent, provided funding for the Virginia Employment Through Entrepreneurship Consortium (VETEC) project. VETEC’s purpose is to provide comprehensive entrepreneurship training and technical assistance to Workforce Investment Act (WIA)-eligible adult and dislocated workers.

This grant builds on the state’s entrepreneurial and small-business environment. The project expands on previous USDOL entrepreneurship training efforts in two Virginia workforce investment areas, Northern Virginia and Richmond, and replicates the program in a third, Hampton Roads.

As part of the WIF funding requirements, grantees are required to engage a third party independent evaluator to evaluate the grant initiative. In fall 2012, the SkillSource Group Inc., the lead grantee, contracted with IMPAQ International (IMPAQ) to conduct the VETEC Evaluation—which includes two parts. The first is an implementation and process study. This report completes the implementation study. IMPAQ will conduct the process study in 2015. The second is an impact study to evaluate the impacts of the program on workforce outcomes. The process study will include site visits to each of the three regions running the program. These site visits will include focus groups with VETEC participants, and review of relevant documents on program implementation. A qualitative process evaluation will complement the impact evaluation by examining why and how certain outcomes occurred through a study of the factors that affect program impacts. Both the implementation and process studies will be used to provide context and understanding for interpreting the impact evaluation findings.

This Implementation Study Report assesses how the three workforce areas are implementing and running the VETEC program, based on a series of in-depth site visits the IMPAQ team conducted in the first quarter of 2014. These visits collected information from all VETEC personnel and site staff responsible for implementing and running the program. The program model outlines intended strategies for use at each of the three VETEC sites. This report describes this model and compares it to the implementation strategies actually used at each site. In doing so, the report details the challenges faced during implementation, as well as identifies best practices, successes, and lessons learned from VETEC implementation.

As part of the WIF funding requirements, all grantees are required to engage a third party independent evaluator to examine the impact of the grant on workforce outcomes. The design of VETEC called for eligible applicants to be assigned randomly to either the treatment group (offered VETEC services) or control group (not offered VETEC services)—except for veterans, who are given preference, as described below. As the external evaluator, IMPAQ is responsible for all components of the evaluation process. This includes conducting random assignment, managing the Participant Tracking System (PTS) that captures program participant data,


providing technical assistance on the PTS and random assignment in all three VETEC sites, and conducting interim and final analyses of the program.

1.1 Report Purpose and Structure

This report, as noted, assesses how VETEC is being implemented across the three workforce regions. The focus includes comparing actual program operations at each site during program implementation with the operations specified in the VETEC implementation model. The report describes the VETEC model and then details the specific implementation activities at each of the three participating sites. The findings presented here are based on a combination of information obtained via in-depth site visits – which included semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions with VETEC participants – and thorough reviews of site- and project-specific documents and materials. During each site visit, IMPAQ team members interviewed the VETEC Project Director, each site director, case managers, and other program staff actively involved in outreach and recruitment.1

In addition to helping VETEC sites improve their existing implementation practices, these interviews and the findings from them should serve as a valuable resource to institutions and workforce investment areas interested in adopting similar entrepreneurship programs. In this way, the report will help inform the implementation activities of future efforts to combine entrepreneurship and public workforce system services.

This report is designed with multiple audiences in mind. In chapters 2 and 3, the program model is outlined as envisioned by the VETEC program and is descriptive in nature. Site-specific chapters (chapters 4-6) present details on the programs implemented by each of the three sites. These chapters do not present any subjective information and make no comparison to the program paradigm and/or across sites. The cross-site chapter (chapter 7) summarizes site-specific information and compares each site to the program paradigm. This chapter also includes limited subjective analysis. Chapter 8 concludes the report by focusing on the challenges sites encountered and the solutions they found during program implementation, as well as a series of lessons learned and recommendations. Appendices detail the report methodology and provide a set of program documents collected from each site’s implementation activities.

1 Appendix A reports detailed methodology for the site visits.


2. VETEC INTRODUCTION

VETEC is a WIF federally funded 52-month grant program designed to assist eligible individuals in attaining long-term economic self-sufficiency through self-employment.2 The VETEC program seeks to provide services to roughly 1,000 individuals throughout the life of the program.

Current public workforce system outcomes are more suited to wage and salary employment, so WIA-eligible jobseekers interested in self-employment may not receive the same level or intensity of workforce services as those seeking traditional employment. VETEC seeks to address this service gap by integrating entrepreneurship services within the workforce system and making self-employment a viable alternative to traditional jobs. Using previous USDOL-funded Growing America Through Entrepreneurship (GATE) initiatives as a model, VETEC provides eligible jobseekers with entrepreneurship training and technical assistance to start their own business.

Currently, VETEC services are offered in three Virginia Local Workforce Investment Areas (LWIAs) (Exhibit 1)3:

Northern Virginia (Northern Virginia Workforce Investment Board, LWIA#11) – the Employing Northern Virginia Through Entrepreneurship (ENOVATE) program

Richmond (Capital Region Workforce Partnership, LWIA#9) – the Greater Richmond (GR) GATE program

Hampton Roads (Opportunity, Inc., LWIA#16) – the Launch Hampton Roads program

Although each of these programs has its own unique brand and project name, as shown in Exhibit 2, VETEC is designed to operate as a single program carried out in three different regions. Thus, each region’s program should provide the same set of entrepreneurial and training services, so participating individuals have the same experience regardless of the region in which they live.

In this chapter, we describe the VETEC grant program and its components and provide an overview of the labor market characteristics of the Commonwealth of Virginia.

2 http://www.myskillsource.org/home/aboutus_programs_vetec.shtml

3 LWIAs, workforce areas, sites, and regions are used interchangeably throughout this report.


Exhibit 1: Location of VETEC Sites

Exhibit 2: Project VETEC by Site

2.1 VETEC Objectives and Service Strategy

Each site’s program pursues objectives consistent with the primary goals of VETEC. These include:

Improve the prosperity of workers, businesses, and communities.

Provide short-term, focused entrepreneurial training and support services to veterans.

Promote policy change within Virginia and its local workforce systems by supporting self-employment as a viable career choice for jobseekers.

Virginia Employment Through Entrepreneurship Consortium (VETEC) Program

LWIA # 11Northern Virginia Workforce

Investment Board

LWIA #16Capital Region Workforce

Partnership

LWIA #9Opportunity, Inc.

Virginia Employment Through Entrepreneurship Consortium (VETEC) Program


The steps and sequencing that each of the sites should use to meet these objectives are laid out by the VETEC implementation model. This model, described in detail in Chapter 3, guides the implementation of each sites VETEC program and consists of six basic steps:

Community Recruitment and Outreach

VETEC Intake and Information Session

Application and Random Assignment

Orientation

VETEC Services

Program Exit and Follow-Up.

2.2 VETEC Enrollment To Date

To participate in VETEC, individuals must be WIA-eligible adults and dislocated workers over age 18, with priority given to veterans (who are automatically enrolled in the program and do not, therefore, go through the random assignment process).4 Individuals randomly assigned to the treatment group will be dual-enrolled in both WIA and VETEC and will receive VETEC services and training on essential entrepreneurship core curricula. These services and training include courses on starting and planning a business; business accounting and financing; marketing and networking; and an entrepreneurial mentorship component.5

VETEC’s goal is to serve 1,000 WIA-eligible jobseekers over the 52-month grant period. Six hundred of these participants will be randomly assigned into the treatment group to receive VETEC services, while 150 will be automatically enrolled in the program through veteran preference. VETEC estimates the remaining 250 participants will be those individuals who join the program after the random assignment period ends. Since this will mark the period outside of the WIF study window, these 250 individuals will not be part of the study and will be placed directly into the program.

Exhibit 3 provides a summary of VETEC enrollment through April 2014, across all regions. Since May 2013, when program services began, 1,183 individuals have attended a VETEC information session at any of the three sites. Of these 1,183 individuals, 460 have applied, and 371 have gone through the random assignment process with 190 assigned to receive program services. The remaining 89 applicants were eligible for veteran’s preference and automatically enrolled in the program. With a goal to enroll 420 individuals into the treatment group by April 2014, VETEC is currently at 45 percent of its projected enrollment at the time of this report.

4 http://www.myskillsource.org/home/aboutus_programs_vetec.shtml

5 Individuals assigned to the control group do not receive VETEC program services.


Exhibit 3: VETEC Enrollment Through April 2014

Performance Outcomes VETEC Total

Attended Information Session 1,183

Total Applicants 460

Assigned to Treatment Group 190

Assigned to Control Group 181

Veterans Enrolled 89

Source: Participant Tracking System Note: Total Applicants is the sum of: Assigned to Treatment Group, Assigned to Control Group, and Veterans

Enrolled. Veterans are not subject to random assignment.

2.3 VETEC Project Implementation and the Workforce Investment System

The VETEC project is largely the result of Virginia’s previous experience with the Growing America Through Entrepreneurship (GATE) II program. Like VETEC, GATE II had been a USDOL-funded demonstration program designed to provide entrepreneurship-training services through the public workforce system between 2009 and 2011. Modeled after USDOL’s first round of GATE programs, GATE II sought to assess the efficacy of offering self-employment training to rural dislocated and older workers (i.e. workers who were at least 45 years old) who were eligible for WIA services. The program, which also included an impact and evaluation component, demonstrated that entrepreneurial programs could be effective in helping Virginia workers start their own businesses.

Observing the success of GATE II, SkillSource, the lead VETEC grantee, wanted to work towards expanding the role that entrepreneurship training plays in the public workforce system. Using WIF funds to implement a new round of entrepreneurship programs would allow SkillSource the opportunity to provide entrepreneurship and self-employment trainings as part of Virginia’s workforce system.

SkillSource and the Northern Virginia Workforce Investment Board are working with Capital Region Workforce Partnership (CRWP) and Hampton Roads, the two other sites participating in VETEC. These sites were chosen based on the quality of their working relationships with the Northern Virginia Workforce Investment Board. CRWP in particular had developed a rapport with SkillSource and had experience with entrepreneurship training, as it had participated with the Northern Virginia Workforce Investment Board in the GATE program.

Together, the three sites worked to incorporate VETEC into the public workforce investment system, by requiring all participants to be dual-enrolled in both WIA and VETEC. Dual-enrolling participants helped the VETEC program go beyond the role that entrepreneurship training would provide alone, by allowing the workforce system to provide entrepreneurship services in addition to its range of other workforce services. To do this, however, VETEC needed to be in accordance with regulations set forth by WIA and the Virginia Workforce Council (VWC). As stated, WIA laws and performance measures do not translate directly to entrepreneurship and self-employment services. They are more suited to wage and salary employment. The program,


thus, needed to develop a standard set of regulations and performance measures to document entrepreneurship outcomes, which traditional WIA performance measures may not capture.

SkillSource addressed this issue by working with the Virginia Workforce Network (VWN) system) to develop a new state policy that would allow local workforce areas to count entrepreneurship outcomes in their case management systems. This policy, promulgated through an official Virginia Workforce Letter (VWL) #12-04 from the Virginia Community College System (VCCS), specifies a set of outcomes associated with starting and owning a business that would be accepted in lieu of traditional workforce investment performance criteria (called the WIA Common Measures). 6 Specifically, the VWL provides performance measures acceptable in the VETEC program for the following four WIA Common Measures: 1) entry to employment, 2) average earnings, 3) retained earnings, and 4) credential attainment.

In addition to developing this guidance, SkillSource needed to obtain an Unemployment Insurance (UI) work search waiver that exempted VETEC participants receiving UI benefits from the UI program’s work search requirement. This waiver allowed program participants to focus solely on the VETEC program and their self-employment, without having to engage in a job search to receive UI benefits. Obtaining this waiver was a high priority since SkillSource anticipated the VETEC program would serve a large number of WIA dislocated workers who were receiving UI benefits.7

Setting in place these WIA performance measures and waivers not only made it easier for sites to dual-enroll VETEC participants in WIA, but also helped integrate entrepreneurship services into Virginia’s workforce system. The conviction was that this would ultimately benefit the state, should it decide to move from the pilot and demonstration entrepreneurship programs of the past to offering full-scale self-employment services within the public workforce system.

2.4 Virginia Labor Market Characteristics

Small businesses and entrepreneurs play a significant role in Virginia’s economy. Exhibit 4, which shows statewide employment and small business statistics, documents that small businesses make up close to 98 percent of all employers in the state, account for almost half (47%) of Virginia’s private sector labor force, and have an annual payroll of about $61 million. Notably, small business startup performance has fared particularly well recently. According to the Small Business Association (SBA)’s small business profile of Virginia, 2011 saw a net increase in both the number of small businesses and the number employed by small businesses, which has likely been aided by an improvement in self-employment options generally over the last

6 Virginia Workforce Letter (VWL) #12-04, Supporting Entrepreneurial and Self-Employment Training Through the

Virginia Workforce Network (http://vwn.vccs.edu/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/Entry-into-Entrepreneurship-VWL-rvsd-6-10-13.pdf). The VCCS serves as Virginia’s WIA Administrative Agency. 7 Chapter 3 discusses VETEC WIA performance measures, UI waiver, and their role in the implementation of the

project.

http://vwn.vccs.edu/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/Entry-into-Entrepreneurship-VWL-rvsd-6-10-13.pdf

http://vwn.vccs.edu/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/Entry-into-Entrepreneurship-VWL-rvsd-6-10-13.pdf


decade. Self-employment and entrepreneurships have increased by 16 percent since 2000, largely driven by men, who make up close to 61 percent of total self-employment.8

The strength of the Virginia’s small business environment is reflected in the performance of the state’s labor market. In 2013, while the national unemployment rate stood at 7.4 percent, Virginia as a whole averaged 5.6 percent, while veterans experienced an unemployment rate of less than 4 percent. This was bolstered in part by a notable contingent of self-employed workers, who make up close to 9 percent of the state’s total employed population, and over 10 percent of veteran workers.

However, the state’s strong labor market performance does not imply a lack of need for workforce services. In fact, Virginia served more than 127,000 adult and dislocated workers across its 32 American Job Centers (AJCs) in 2012.9 This, in addition to the state’s pro–small business environment, suggests a real need for providing entrepreneurial workforce services to tens of thousands of job seekers.

Exhibit 4: Local Labor Market Conditions for Virginia

Statewide Veterans Civilian Non-Institutional Population

6,384,000 782,000

Unemployment Rate (2013) 5.6% 3.6%

Labor Force Participation Rate (2013)

66.3% 61.9%

Self-employed (as % of civilian employed population)

8.7% 10.6%

# of Small Businesses (<500 Employees) (% of all firms)

143,612 (97.8%)

# Employed by Small Businesses (% of all employed)

1,431,801 (47.3%)

Total Annual Payroll of Small Businesses

$60,700,612

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics; Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2013 Veterans Supplement; American Community Survey, 2012; U.S. Census Bureau, Statistics of U.S. Businesses

8 Small Business Profile-Virginia, SBA, Office of Advocacy, 2012: http://www.sba.gov/sites/default/files/va12.pdf.

9 PY 2012 WIA Annual Report:

http://www.doleta.gov/performance/results/AnnualReports/PY2012/VAWIAAnnualReport2012.pdf

http://www.sba.gov/sites/default/files/va12.pdf

http://www.doleta.gov/performance/results/AnnualReports/PY2012/VAWIAAnnualReport2012.pdf


3. THE VETEC PROGRAM MODEL

VETEC’s program implementation model sets out the design, management, and organization of VETEC. This model covers all aspects of the project, and details the processes sites should be using to guide participants through the program. While this model allows for modification to accommodate each site’s local conditions, it includes standard operating procedures sites should be following to graduate participants from the program. These procedures specify the methodology to use during program implementation and define the specific steps involved in carrying out the program. These steps include engaging potential participants through community outreach and recruitment, program intake and application, program orientation, receipt of services, and program exit. These procedures involve common methods intended for use across all sites.

This chapter provides an overview of the implementation model. Sections 3.1 and 3.2 briefly introduce the key players and partners responsible for program implementation, and how they should communicate with one another. Section 3.3 details the specific processes and steps to follow during the VETEC program implementation and section 3.4 presents program performance measures.

3.1 Key Players

The VETEC model specifies several key players who pursue an organized, concerted effort:

VETEC Project Director – The VETEC Project Director is responsible for overall program oversight and monitoring, coordination within and between sites, reporting, fiscal oversight, and assuring performance outcomes.

Site Director – The site director is responsible for program oversight at the site level; for monitoring, coordination between partners, reporting, and fiscal oversight; and for assuring performance outcomes.

Case Managers – VETEC case managers are the primary points of contact for individuals interested in the program. Their responsibilities include communicating with prospective program applicants prior to the application process; confirming VETEC eligibility; reviewing, accepting, and submitting VETEC applications; and entering applicant data into the PTS. Case managers are also responsible for conducting the primary outreach and recruitment activities for prospective applicants, though there is nothing in the model that restricts site partners from participating in this process.

Site Partners – Site partners are responsible for conducting all the training-related activities of the VETEC program, including business consulting, mentoring, and providing the core curricula. The model does not prevent partners and training providers from engaging in intake processes not related to service delivery. Sites are also free to seek partners’ assistance in identifying and recruiting prospective applicants.


While each of the key players has a specific role within the project model, successful implementation of the program requires all parties to: 1) be aware of not only their own roles and responsibilities, but also those of the other key players; and 2) work interdependently across many components of program. Coordinating in this way involves a communication plan that not only specifies the frequency and modes by which staff and partners will communicate, but also provides flexibility for the players to open their own communication channels.

3.2 Communication Processes

The implementation model specifies that the VETEC Project Director should implement an effective and flexible communication plan by engaging in planned meetings and discussions with each participating VETEC site. The Project Director engages in frequent phone calls and monthly in-person meetings to discuss any site and project related issues. These meetings allow sites to communicate project status updates, programmatic issues and challenges, and performance measures and outcomes (number of individuals receiving services, number of individuals exiting program, etc.) Additionally, in order to ensure program uniformity across all sites, the Project Director is expected to attend information sessions, networking events, and orientations at each site.

The implementation model also requires each site to have a monthly meeting with its partners to discuss outreach activities, challenges, and any other program issues; and to include the VETEC Project Director in all monthly meetings with site partners. All communications across sites – which can occur in any number of ways, including email, phone, or during the in-person monthly meetings – are facilitated through the VETEC Project Director. The next section discusses the program model’s intake process and the specific activities staff members conduct.

3.3 VETEC Implementation Model

The VETEC implementation model illustrated in Exhibit 5 outlines the processes that sites employ to implement their programs. These processes cover all activities associated with program participation – from recruiting participants to exiting them from the program.

Exhibit 5: Project VETEC Flow of Services

VETEC Application Submission and

Random Assignment

Outreach and Recruitment

ActivitiesInformation Session

VETEC Program Orientation

Receipt of VETEC Services

Step 1 Step 2 Step 3 Step 4 Step 5

Program Exit and Follow-Up

Step 6

A brief overview of these six program steps follows.


1) Outreach and Recruitment: Sites work with local institutions to identify and target WIA-eligible job seekers, age 18 years and over, using a variety of print and non-print materials.

2) Information Session: The information sessions apprise all prospective applicants of the VETEC program, including the eligibility requirements, level of effort required from participants, and random assignment.

3) VETEC Application and Random Assignment: Once an applicant has been determined eligible for the program, s/he schedules an appointment with a case manager to apply for the program. Project staff enters individuals into the PTS for random assignment or enrolls them into the program, automatically through Veterans preference.

4) VETEC Program Orientation: Individuals assigned to the treatment group work with program staff to attend a scheduled VETEC program orientation. Orientations introduce participants to program partners and training providers; discuss program requirements and milestones; and provide an overview of expectations from program participants.

5) Receipt of VETEC Services: VETEC participants receive training on essential skills for entrepreneurship and self-employment. Training includes simple steps for starting a business; business planning; accounting; financing and credit; sales and marketing; website development social media; mentoring; and, where appropriate, specialized training not provided in the classroom.

6) Program Exit and Follow-Up: Participants exit the program upon completion of all program requirements. To capture important outcomes necessary to the evaluation of the project, each participant engages in a 12-month follow-up with IMPAQ.

3.3.1 Outreach and Recruitment

Each site engages in a planned, strategic effort to target and recruit prospective program applicants. In most cases, site’s Program Manager directs this effort and site’s AJCs carry it out. However, sites are free to coordinate with partner organizations that provide similar and ancillary employment services.

Each outreach and recruitment strategy includes the following activities:

Communicate with VEC. All sites communicate with the Virginia Employment Commission (VEC) to identify and recruit prospective participants. The VEC is a principal contact point for both unemployed jobseekers and veterans – a key VETEC target population.

Coordinate with VOS and WIA. In addition to identifying prospective applicants through the VEC, sites target individuals already in their Virtual One-Stop (VOS) and WIA data management systems. The reason is that individuals already attached to the WIA/VOS system are more likely to be VETEC-eligible.


Follow Up with AJC. For similar reasons, sites reach out to customers who come into the AJC of their own accord to use employment services.10

Target Veterans. Sites specifically target veterans as they are a program priority and work with local organizations serving veterans.

To reach those individuals not already served by the VEC or captured in VOS, sites have an option to use print and non-print outreach materials that include but are not limited to:

Email blasts

Letters

Advertisements in local magazines, newspapers, and newsletters

Online advertisements

Attending community events, and local employment and entrepreneurial events (e.g., job fairs).

These materials include a basic overview of the program, as well as registration information and a contact phone number, email, and program website link.

3.3.2 Information Session

Individuals interested in applying register for an information session either online or by telephone. Sites maintain a list of such individuals in case contact is required before the session. Sites are free to reach out to registrants to confirm registration and the session’s time and place. However, contact with these individuals prior to the session is not required, and individuals who attend an information session without registering are not turned away; walk-ins are welcome. Case managers and program staff at each site’s AJC location(s) conduct information sessions at least monthly.

The goal of the information session is to provide enough information to: 1) allow prospective applicants to make an informed decision on whether or not to apply, and 2) encourage them to spread awareness about the program among friends and family. Hence, most of the information session is devoted to provide a program overview – including a discussion of the purpose of VETEC, the services it provides, and what is required of participants. Detailed discussions outside this scope are not included, because they may confuse participants in a way that will negatively affect their decision to apply.

Each information session should last no more than one hour and cover the following:

10

Virtual One-Stop is a for-purchase workforce development software that captures information on employers, clients, and others in a region. It can be used as a management information system for a local region.


VETEC informational video containing program overview that clearly identifies the three sites

Details about the local VETEC program (name, purpose, contacts, training partners, timeline)

Review of program eligibility criteria, application process, program services, and level of effort required of participants

Brief overview of the evaluation component, including random assignment and veterans’ priority of service. It should be clearly note that veterans are not part of random selection and can enroll in the program as long as they meet all other criteria.

Following the information session, attendees get the opportunity to ask clarifying questions and meet individually with case managers. If an attendee decides to apply, s/he schedules a separate appointment with a case manager. If the individual has his/her eligibility documents, case managers conduct the eligibility screening immediately after the information session. However, because the information session is open to anyone, eligibility determination is not required at that time, and can be conducted during the separate application appointment.

3.3.3 VETEC Application and Random Assignment

Exhibit 6 illustrates the activities sites follow during step 3 of the VETEC program process (as shown in Exhibit 5 above). After the information session, interested applicants schedule an application appointment with a case manager. If the applicant’s eligibility is not determined during the information session, case managers notify them, at the time, they make their appointment, of the documents required to verify eligibility. Sites are free to provide information to the potential participants about eligibility documents prior to attending the information session based. The case manager reviews these documents at the application appointment and, if the applicant is determined eligible, s/he continues with the VETEC application process.

After an individual completes and submits the VETEC application, a caseworker enters the applicant’s information into the PTS. Once the information is uploaded, IMPAQ receives notification that s/he is ready to be randomly assigned. IMPAQ conducts the random assignment the same day and assigns the individual to either the treatment or the control group. As noted, only those individuals assigned to the treatment group receive VETEC program services. The project staff notifies the individual of the random assignment outcome within 10 days from the date they submitted their application.


Exhibit 6: VETEC Application Submission and Random Assignment

VETEC Application Submission and Random Assignment

VETEC Intake Process: Step 3

Case manager enters the individual’s

information into the Participant Tracking

System (PTS)

Sub-Step 4

Individual completes VETEC application

Sub-Step 3

Case manager reviews documents

to determine eligibility

Sub-Step 2

Applicant schedules application

appointment

Sub-Step 1

Individual is randomly assigned

to either the treatment or control

group

Sub-Step 5

Once an individual is assigned to the treatment group, s/he schedules an appointment with a case manager to complete the WIA enrollment process including any necessary WIA assessments, at which point case manager enters their application into VOS. This process varies depending on the individual’s WIA history. Participants already enrolled in WIA prior to VETEC do not need to re-submit WIA eligibility documents and complete assessments as long as they are still open in the WIA VOS system. However, their WIA VOS activities are updated and their WIA program duration extended.

It is important to stress here that only individuals enrolled in the VETEC program (i.e., the treatment group) are dual-enrolled in both WIA and VETEC. This means that 1) the VETEC intake process as modeled does not include submission of a separate WIA application and 2) individuals are entered into VOS only after random assignment. In an effort to avoid additional paperwork, information needed for an individual’s WIA application submission in VOS is included within VETEC application form.

3.3.4 VETEC Program Orientation

After individuals are assigned to the treatment group, they work with program staff to schedule a VETEC program orientation session. Program staff organizes and leads orientations with active participation from site partners and training providers. These sessions introduce program participants to the program and provide an overview of key program details and expectations – including a discussion of VETEC requirements and milestones, an introduction to site partners and their roles and responsibilities, and a description of expectations from participants..

While the VETEC model defines what an orientation is, it does not specify the timing, frequency, or length of program orientation sessions. These details are left up to the discretion of the sites.

3.3.5 Receipt of Services

The program model specifies that the all sites should adhere to cohort model for providing training services. Cohort refers to the group of individuals that go through the training together.


The cohort system provides a supportive peer-learning environment where participants can act as resources for one another during and after the program.

All VETEC participants, regardless of the workforce area in which they are located, receive a set of core trainings on essential core entrepreneurship curricula. Site and training partners provide trainings and training services. The model does not specify the frequency or intensity with which sites should provide trainings. However, all VETEC participants complete the program with same core skills. Core training topics include:

1. SCORE Simple Steps for Starting a Business – This curriculum uses a nationally recognized curriculum developed and provided through SCORE, a nonprofit association dedicated to helping small businesses launch, grow, and achieve their goals through education and mentorship. SCORE operates through the direct mentor service of volunteers, who bring business expertise from over 60 industries. SCORE steps are designed to help clients through the basic initial process of starting a business – providing them with the tools and templates to turn their business idea into reality. Areas of focus include: Creating a Business Concept Outline; How to Write an Effective Business Plan; Creating a Successful Marketing and Sales Strategy, including Website Design and Market Research; and Financial Projections and Funding Sources, including Business Loans.

2. Business Planning – This curriculum provides in-depth training through a combination of classroom training and individual consultation – helping participants create an operational business plan, including selecting a legal structure, tax obligations, cash flow planning, and operational planning.

3. Accounting – This curriculum cover basics accounting and finance principles for responsible money management. Skills learnt include record keeping, tax issues, financial statement analysis, cash budgeting, investments and financial management tools such as QuickBooks.

4. Finance and Credit – This curriculum covers financing options available to entrepreneurs. It is designed to help them understand how a positive credit score and building credit can impact the financing needed to start a business.

5. Sales and Marketing – Through a combination of classroom training and monthly group workshops, sales and marketing trainings provide participants with the skills needed to creatively sell their goods or services and effectively market their business – including development and revision of an effective marketing plan. The curriculum includes interactive group workshops to help participants master their marketing message and create a brief ‘elevator speech’ that captures the essence and purpose of their business.

6. Website Development/Social Media – This curriculum helps participants learn how to build a website, how to communicate effectively through it, and how to create and


market through social media via classroom training and individual consultation. All successful participants have a published website for their business upon completion.

7. Networking/Special Events – The networking curriculum provides tips and techniques participants can use to build quality business relationships – thus helping participants learn how to effectively network their business. Each region coordinates monthly peer networking and support groups that provide an opportunity for program participants to use their networking skills, interact with one another, and speak about any difficulties or challenges. Sites are free to invite speakers to provide guidance and talk about their own experiences in starting a business. Each workforce area works closely with its local Chambers of Commerce and other local business organizations to send participants notices of networking events and workshops. Each site hosts an annual event for participants to display information about their business, speak about what they do, and interact with other entrepreneurs and community business and government leaders.

8. Specialized Training – Where appropriate, each region conducts specialized training for individuals who need specific training not provided in the classroom. Specialized training can be provided through individualized consultants or special workshops and cover topics such as federal procurement, government contracts/subcontracts, exporting, and specialized trade businesses. Additionally, as veterans are a key VETEC target population, program staff conducts workshops on business opportunities for veterans, as well as help veterans get certified by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs as a “veteran owned” business, which allows access to the Patriot Loan Program.

9. Entrepreneurship Mentoring – In addition to the above services, each workforce region coordinates an entrepreneurship-mentoring program comprising VETEC graduates and successful small business owners, to serve as mentors and facilitate peer support groups. LWIAs #9 (Northern Virginia) and #11 (Capital Region Workforce Partnership) draw from graduates of former USDOL-funded GATE program initiatives; LWIA #16 (Hampton Roads) adopts the same model, using participants who successfully start businesses during the first years of the program.

Once individuals are selected to participate in the program and attend an orientation session, they begin the enrollment process to receive program services. Participants must complete a Self-Assessment and Initial Business Consultation appointment before beginning to receive either core or supplemental services. The self-assessment is administered in the form of a PTS Assessment Quiz. The quiz is designed to help determine participants’ business and financial readiness, including their training and technical needs, and strengths and weaknesses.

After completing the Self-Assessment Quiz, participants attend an initial business consultation conducted by each site’s partnered business counselor. VETEC staff should schedule this appointment on behalf of the participant. The initial consultation helps guide participants in developing their individual business development goals and strategy, and to outline the VETEC business training curricula and class schedule. Based on the results of their self-assessment and this consultation, those participants in need of additional training prior to starting VETEC


services enroll in basic skills courses (e.g., computer trainings) at the site’s local community college or educational/training provider.

After attending their initial consultation, VETEC participants are ready to begin receiving VETEC services. While the VETEC implementation model clearly states core trainings provided in each region, it does not specify the details of specific training classes. Sites are given discretion in stipulating the schedule and intensity of training, and are allowed to decide whether to use existing service delivery models (if available) or create an entirely new strategy.

Throughout delivery of these services, program staff engages in ongoing data collection, tracking, and reporting of each participant’s progress and outcomes. This intensive case management is conducted using the PTS and, when applicable, the site’s local case management system. Participants receive case management services from the first day of enrollment through the launch of a participant’s business. In addition to helping provide participants with ongoing support and one-on-one technical assistance, VETEC case management helps sites capture and report key participant performance measures (as discussed below).

3.3.6 Participant Exit, Performance Measures, and Follow-Up

Exhibit 7 summarizes the exit requirements. Since participants are dual-enrolled, they have to exit from both WIA and VETEC. After exit, participants are followed-up to assess them on a series of performance measures. This section describes exiting, individual performance measures, and follow-up for both WIA and VETEC.

Participant Exit. Participants exit from both VETEC and WIA. There is no order in which program participants must exit. The criteria for exit are:

VETEC Exit. Participants exit the VETEC program when they: (1) complete all VETEC training requirements; (2) submit a preliminary business plan; and (3) obtain: a business name, a federal Employer Identification Number (EIN), business license, and a Dun and Bradstreet (DUNS) number.

WIA Exit. Participants exit the WIA program when they: (1) obtain certification of LWIA-approved entrepreneurial training; and (2) either: complete a preliminary business plan, obtain a Federal EIN, a business license, or a DUNS number.


Exhibit 7: VETEC and WIA Exit Requirements

Completion Requirements VETEC WIA VETEC Training

LWIA-approved entrepreneurial training certificate

Additional VETEC training requirements

Business Plan

Obtain all Obtain at least one

Business Name

Business License

Federal EIN

DUNS Number

Participant Performance Measures. Once an individual exits from WIA, the following WIA common measures are observed each quarter over a one-year period.11

Entry to employment: This measure assesses a participants’ ability to obtain employment. VETEC participants satisfy the entry to employment performance measure when they have obtained any of the following: a federal EIN, a DUNS number, a business license, or a preliminary business plan.

Employment retention: This measure approximates a participants’ ability to retain employment in the year following their entry to employment. VETEC participants may use any internal business documentation as proof of employment retention, including, but not limited to, quarterly tax returns, sales receipts, or contracts for service.12

Average earnings: This measure assesses traditional wage/salary earnings in the three quarters following program exit. VETEC participants are excluded from this measure because their earnings are obtained from non-wage/salary supplemental sources.

Credential attainment:13 This measure assesses participants’ ability to obtain a skill or occupational credential from a workforce-training program. VETEC participants satisfy the credential attainment measure when they: 1) obtain certification of LWIA-approved entrepreneurial training; and (2) obtain any of the following supplemental data sources: a preliminary business plan; a federal Employer Identification Number (EIN); business license; or a Dun and Bradstreet (DUNS) number.

11

These common measures were modified from traditional WIA common measures and are outlined in VWL #12-04. Traditional common measures do not translate to self-employment and entrepreneurship outcomes, making it difficult to count VETEC participant outcomes within a local workforce area’s case management system.

12 In cases where a participant’s employment is verified by wage records in the first quarter, but they start a

business in the second quarter, employment retention can be satisfied using any of the data sources used to verify the entry to employment measure.

13Credential Attainment is not a WIA Common Measure under ETA. It is a VWC performance requirement.


Participant Follow-Up. After exit, all participants go through VETEC and WIA follow-up. Follow-up can occur in any order. VETEC and WIA follow-up procedures are:

VETEC Follow-Up. Participants engage in an evaluation follow-up with IMPAQ, the third-party evaluator. This follow-up occurs once at 18 months from the date of random assignment and captures important employment and earnings outcomes for VETEC project evaluation.14

WIA Follow-Up. Participants are subject to a follow-up using the previously mentioned WIA performance measures. Follow-up occurs quarterly for a period of 12 months, beginning at program exit. The WIA follow-up assesses participants’ employment retention and is verified by internal business documentation or supplemental data sources.

To fully integrate the VETEC program within the existing Virginia workforce system, these exit and follow-up procedures need to be implemented consistently across all sites. The next section describes the performance measures used to monitor overall VETEC program performance.

3.4 VETEC Performance

In order to determine if the program is being implemented as planned, it is important to monitor the progress of VETEC participants. Sites report their program performance to SkillSource, providing updates on the following performance measures:

Enrollment levels, number of eligible participants submitted for the program

Number of veterans enrolled in the program

Number of participants engaged in the program, including number receiving services

Retention rates of participants, including number referred back to traditional employment

Completion rates, including number starting a new business.

Reviewing monthly and quarterly reports by site is important for monitoring the pace of recruitment and intake against overall participation targets established in the grant application. Monthly reports, in addition to the above measures, provide a comparison across sites on participant demographics (e.g., gender, age, education level, business idea by industry). Quarterly reports also provide site updates on progress and accomplishments by partner, grant

14

VETEC follow-up occurs for both treatment and control group members. All individuals who are randomly assigned will be administered a survey 18 months after they are randomly assigned. The third party independent evaluator, IMPAQ, will conduct VETEC follow up.


challenges, technical assistance needs, recent success stories, and marketing implementation plan progress.

In the next three chapters, we take a detailed look at each site’s current implementation strategies. The findings are based on information obtained via in-depth site visits and thorough reviews of site- and project-specific documents and materials. During each site visit, IMPAQ team members interviewed the VETEC Project Director, each site director, case managers, and other program staff actively involved in outreach, recruitment, and training activities.


4. ENOVATE

The VETEC program operates as ENOVATE in the Fairfax region of Virginia. ENOVATE serves LWIA#11, which includes:

Fairfax County

Loudoun County

Prince William County

City of Fairfax

City of Falls Church

City of Manassas

City of Manassas Park

This chapter documents the ENOVATE implementation activities. Section 4.1 describes the local labor market context of this region. Sections 4.2 and 4.3 present the key players and site partners, their respective roles and responsibilities, and communication among them. Section 4.4 describes the specific steps ENOVATE is taking to implement the program. Section 4.5 summarizes the chapter findings.

4.1 Local Labor Market Context

Northern Virginia is recognized as one of the strongest local economies and labor markets in the nation.15 As shown in Exhibit 8, in December 2013, while the national unemployment rate averaged 6.7 percent and Virginia was at 5.2 percent, Northern Virginia enjoyed the relatively low rate of 3.8 percent. Veterans, a key ENOVATE target population, performed even better, with an unemployment rate of just over 3 percent.

As with the rest of the state, Northern Virginia is characterized by the vitality of its small business and entrepreneurs. Employment in small businesses makes up close to half of all employment in the region, and just fewer than 9 percent of all workers are in some fashion self-employed. Even so, for the fiscal year that ended in June 2012, five Northern Virginia SkillSource Centers had nearly 90,000 adult job seeker visits, an increase of 170 percent since 2007 – clear evidence that effort to expand workforce services to tens of thousands of job seekers remain critically important.16 In the sections below, we describe how the ENOVATE program works to help meet this need.

15

Susan Burnell, 2009, “Northern Virginia Innovating Technology’s Future”, ForbesCustom.Com 16

SkillSource Group, 2012, Annual Report.


Exhibit 8: Local Labor Market Conditions for Northern Virginia

LWIA#11 Total LWIA#11 Veterans

Civilian Non-Institutional Population 1,505,878 154,167

Unemployment Rate (December 2013) 3.8% 3.2%

Labor Force Participation Rate 74.8% 72.6%

Self-employed (as % of all employed) 8.7% 8.6%

# of Small Businesses (<500 Employees) 38,606

# Employed by Small Businesses (as % of all employed)

46.3%

Total Earnings by Small Business Employees $21,039,842

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics; 2012 American Community Survey 5-year estimates; 2012 ACS PUMS; U.S. Census 2011 County Business Patterns

4.2 Key Players

Implementation of the ENOVATE project is an orchestrated effort by dedicated staff members and site partners. These players and partners work interdependently across all facets of the program, from outreach and recruitment to the exit of participants. The organization of ENOVATE program staff is shown in Exhibit 9, and their roles and responsibilities are as follows:

VETEC Project Director. The VETEC Project Director is responsible for overall program oversight and monitoring, coordination within and between sites, reporting, fiscal oversight, and assuring performance outcomes.

ENOVATE Project Manager. The ENOVATE project manager (referred to as Site Director in the VETEC model) is responsible for managing and providing overall guidance to the case managers and overseeing all aspects of project implementation and operations. The project manager is also responsible for managing and communicating with ENOVATE partners and training providers, and is engaged with every facet of program implementation.

Case Managers. Case managers are heavily involved in the early stages of program implementation. They are responsible for conducting most outreach and recruitment activities and responding to all email and phone inquiries from potential applicants. They also conduct the information sessions and post-information session meetings, and communicate with training providers regarding ENOVATE participants’ progress through the program. They also serve as the participants’ main point of contact and are responsible for the each client’s WIA case file and updates in the VOS system.

WIA Experts. Although not a formal member of the ENOVATE implementation team, the WIA expert is regularly consulted by the project manager and case managers for assistance on issues related to program eligibility. WIA supervisors help case managers ensure WIA eligibility and program compliance.

Site Partners: ENOVATE site partners include the Business Development Assistance Group (BDAG) and the Northern Virginia Community College (NOVA), which are


responsible for providing training for the program. BDAG helps participants with the steps involved in starting a business, including conducting business research and obtaining business certification. NOVA partners are in charge of providing introductory training to program participants, including an intensive two-week entrepreneurship ”boot camp.”

BDAG President. Employed by BDAG, an ENOVATE training partner, the BDAG president helps serve as the lead business counselor for all program participants. The president interacts with participants to help them conduct business-related research and draft a business plan and makes referrals to outside contacts and organizations.

BDAG Marketing Manager. Also employed by BDAG, the BDAG marketing manager works with the BDAG case manager and business counselor to support program participants with business strategies, marketing, and entrepreneurial development. The marketing manager also provides general administrative and program support (scheduling, etc.).

BDAG Case Manager. The BDAG case manager serves as the primary training point of contact for all ENOVATE participants. One of their main tasks is to manage the internal database containing participant information and business training and startup progress. They are also responsible for helping the participant with the initial setup of the business, including setting up the legal structure (DUN & Bradstreet number, employer ID, etc.) and obtaining a business certificate.

BDAG Business Counselor. The BDAG business counselor is responsible for providing business consultation to ENOVATE participants. This includes attending and conducting participants’ initial business consultation, as well as assisting participants with development of their business plans.

NOVA Program Coordinator. Employed by NOVA, the second ENOVATE training partner, the NOVA program coordinator oversees the NOVA training portion of the ENOVATE program. The program coordinator interacts with ENOVATE staff to develop the program cohorts. These staff members are responsible for managing all logistics of the NOVA training program, from program orientation to NOVA training completion.


Exhibit 9: ENOVATE Organizational Chart17

ENOVATE Project Manager

WIA Experts

Weyni Ghebremedin

Tao Do – President (BDAG)Lauryn Hann – Marketing Manager (BDAG)Cathy Samper – Business Counselor (BDAG)

Milagros Luna-Victoria – Case Manager (BDAG)Lisa Karim – Program Coordinator (NOVA)

Case Managers

Jessica CadimaJennifer Wayne

VETEC Project Director

Rebecca Bennett

Site Partners: BDAG and NOVA

Ms. TrangKim Car

In order for staff and partners to work effectively together to implement the program, there must be planned, frequent lines of communication across all levels. The next section describes the extent to which this is occurring.


Communication channels across ENOVATE implementation players are open and smooth. There is frequent communication between the VETEC Project Director and the project manager regarding outreach activities. The project manager communicates with case managers daily through meetings, phone calls, and emails regarding program activities. Monthly staff meetings include all ENOVATE key players, including the VETEC Project Director, and discuss the current program situation and future steps for program activities. There is no regular communication between ENOVATE and the other two VETEC sites, except for the quarterly VETEC-wide meeting.

The key partners are physically co-located – facilitating routine, effective, face-to-face interaction, particularly between case managers and BDAG, who operate on the same floor. Face-to-face interaction between case managers and NOVA, which operates from a building immediately across the street, occurs but does so less frequently. Case managers are routinely in touch with partners via telephone and email, principally as mechanisms for monitoring attendance, participation, and completion of the key program requirements. During NOVA boot camp sessions, case managers, communicate with NOVA instructors on a daily basis via email or phone conversations, to ensure participants are attending training and are in compliance with

17

Exhibit 9 reflects ENOVATE organizational hierarchy as of March 2014.


basic requirements – enabling case managers to fulfill their responsibilities for tracking and monitoring. Case managers also communicate directly with SCORE counselors.

In the remaining sections, we describe the specific activities ENOVATE staff and partners are engaging in to implement the program.

4.4 Implementation Activities

The ENOVATE program consists of a sequence of activities designed to guide a program participant from program application to exit and completion. The steps include outreach and recruitment; information session, program application and random assignment, program orientation, receipt of services, and program exit and follow-up. Exhibit 10 highlights the flow of these services, each step of which is described in detail below.

Exhibit 10: ENOVATE Flow of Services

ENOVATE Application

Submission and Random Assignment



ENOVATE Program Orientation

Receipt of ENOVATE Services



Step 6


ENOVATE outreach activities are primarily undertaken by case managers with the direction from the Program Manager. Activities consist of distributing print materials such as brochures and information session flyers, on-line information dissemination, and coordination with other programs that serve WIA adults and dislocated workers. Specific outreach activities include:

Marketing Materials. ENOVATE staff disseminates program brochures and flyers that provide a program overview, detailed eligibility requirements, and descriptions of services. Brochures are printed in five languages (English, Farsi, Korean, Vietnamese, and Spanish) and contain VETEC contact information, an email and phone number for case managers, and the program website.

Outreach via VEC. When individuals file for their initial or weekly/continued UI claims, VEC staff informs claimants about ENOVATE and provides them with program brochures and the information session schedule. On occasion, ENOVATE staff also attended VEC weekly staff meetings to give overview of the program.

Outreach via AJCs. AJCs are important outreach portals for ENOVATE. Project staff makes every effort to ensure all programs serving WIA adults and dislocated job seekers are notified of ENOVATE, and all WIA case managers are informed about the VETEC.


Outreach via Emails. With help from WIA experts, the ENOVATE project manager sends outreach emails to new VOS registrants and UI claimants. These emails contain information on the ENOVATE website and case managers’ names and contact information.

Outreach via Local Events. Case managers market the program by attending events such as career fairs, entrepreneurship networking events, and events at faith based organizations.

Outreach for Veterans. Case managers work with other WIA veteran program representatives to distribute ENOVATE marketing material at veteran job fairs and events.

Outreach to Libraries. Case managers have connected with community libraries to market the program via printed marketing material.

Outreach via Employment Guide. To recruit potential applicants and jobseekers online, ENOVATE program information is listed on EmploymentGuide.com (also a printed publication distributed weekly) A link is provided on the website for individuals to provide their contact information directly to an ENOVATE case manager.

In addition to these recruitment strategies, potential ENOVATE participants are often referred by partner organizations. BDAG displays ENOVATE materials in its offices, for example, and directs any interested individuals to the program. NOVA’s workforce building also displays the ENOVATE poster. Potential applicants are also discussed during monthly meetings between BDAG and ENOVATE.


Once an individual expresses interest in the program, s/he is required to attend an information session before applying. Anyone may attend an information session, and interested applicants do not have to register in advance. Information sessions are held monthly in six locations across the Northern Virginia region, including five AJCs and the VEC location in Alexandria. Timing of the sessions varies across locations to accommodate job seekers’ schedules and transportation needs.

Prior to the session, all attendees provide their name, contact information, veteran status, and the means through which they learned about ENOVATE. They then receive a folder containing ENOVATE program materials – including entrepreneurship material from the SBA website, PowerPoint slides of the information session presentation (see further below), a program eligibility checklist, and a business resource guide.18

18

Documents in the information session folder are included in Appendix B.


Once attendees are settled, they are shown a VETEC information video and given a PowerPoint presentation. The presentation is conducted by the ENOVATE case managers, and covers the following topics:

ENOVATE program overview

Characteristics of a successful entrepreneur

Review of program eligibility requirements in general, and for adults and dislocated workers specifically

List of required eligibility documents

Application process

Random assignment process and IMPAQ evaluation study

Program process and services delivered through ENOVATE including effort required by participant for program completion

Contact information for ENOVATE case managers

Immediately after the presentation, case managers meet with attendees one-on-one to provide further program information, conduct initial program eligibility screening, and, if the attendee is eligible, make an appointment to complete the application submission process. To determine WIA/ENOVATE eligibility, case managers ensure that potential participants will be able to provide the following documents: general eligibility documents, dislocated worker qualifying documents, or eligible adults qualifying documents, and a resume.19 The VETEC survey is also handed out to all attendees at the end of the session.

Notably, since veterans are not subject to random assignment, they can enroll in VETEC as long as they meet WIA eligibility requirements. This is not announced during the PowerPoint presentation and is communicated individually with veteran job seekers during the one-on-one part of the information session.

4.4.3 ENOVATE Application and Random Assignment

The application process is shown in Exhibit 11. After scheduling an application appointment meeting during the information session, case managers follow up by calling or emailing potential participants to remind them of the appointment. During the application meeting, the applicant’s eligibility is verified with the collection of all eligibility documents and the ENOVATE application form is completed and signed with the help of the case manager. Case managers then enter the application of the potential participants into the PTS. Once participants are entered into the PTS, IMPAQ randomly assigns them to either the treatment group, to receive

19

ENOVATE program eligibility checklist with details of required documents is included in Appendix B.


ENOVATE services, or the control group. Project Staff inform applicants, the results of their random assignment within 10 business days. As with all the other VETEC programs, all WIA-eligible veterans are automatically enrolled into the program.

Exhibit 11: ENOVATE Application Submission Process and Random Assignment

ENOVATE Application Submission and Random Assignment

ENOVATE Intake Process: Step 3



System (PTS)

Sub-Step 4

Individual completes ENOVATE

application

Sub-Step 3

Case manager reviews documents

to determine eligibility

Sub-Step 2

Applicant schedules application

appointment

Sub-Step 1



group

Sub-Step 5

Importantly, there is no significant difference in the ENOVATE application process based on an individual’s WIA history. Participants who are not WIA-enrolled prior to VETEC participation must complete the WIA enrollment process including any necessary WIA assessments before being entered into VOS. After the start receiving services, a WIA application is then entered for them into VOS. If they are already WIA-enrolled, individuals assigned to the treatment group do not need to have a WIA application submitted in VOS nor complete WIA assessments. However, their VOS activities are updated and their WIA duration dates are extended.

4.4.4 Program Orientation

Following the application submission and random assignment, all participants assigned to the treatment group attend an orientation to ENOVATE. SkillSource organizes and leads this information session, with active participation from both NOVA and BDAG. Each orientation lasts about one hour. The first 25 minutes are used by partners to introduce participants to the program, present program requirements, and milestones; describe each partner’s respective role and responsibilities; and discuss expectations against which participants will be monitored. Rather than a pre-determined schedule, orientations are slotted as participants are enrolled into a group of sufficient size, which typically ranges from as few as 6-7 participants to as many as 15.

It is during orientation that the group begins to form into a cohort, remaining together as a distinct unit, with some exceptions, through the duration of the program. Each orientation consists of a group presentation, followed by brief individualized sessions.

Group Presentation. SkillSource and partners begin the orientation with a brief group PowerPoint presentation. Each of the partners participates actively, as follows:


SkillSource/WIA describes the process flow for ENOVATE services and the major steps participants will take toward successful program completion, including an overview of core training services as well as supplemental services available.

Northern Virginia Community College describes the Entrepreneurship Boot Camp, providing participants with the critical logistics of the course, including the schedule, location, what the participant needs, and how to find additional information.

BDAG describes core training services within its purview, including the initial consultation, Simple Steps training provided through SCORE, monthly focus groups, and business counseling, as well as the required commitment and expected outcomes of each activity.

SkillSource concludes the group presentation with a discussion of ENOVATE’s specific requirements – summarizing each in the general sequence in which they will occur, as well as informing participants about the waiver for work search. SkillSource, NOVA, and BDAG are available to answer questions as they relate to their respective roles. BDAG staff uses the individualized sessions to set-up initial business consultation appointment. A key objective at this stage is to build interest and excitement, motivating participants to engage and to sustain energy throughout the program as well as to build networks with each other.

Assessment (Individual Session). Following the presentation portion of orientation, the case manager meets with each participant individually for a period of 5-10 minutes. ENOVATE requires that all participants complete their WIA assessment by taking the CareerScope, which is a standardized, self-administered online tool. It measures an individual’s interest in careers as they relate to USDOL’s Interest Areas, and measures aptitudes most critical for today’s high growth and high replacement occupations through 2016.20

At orientation, some participants will have already completed CareerScope. Case managers review the results with each participant and briefly discuss careers with which the participant’s interests and aptitudes are aligned. If participants have not already completed CareerScope, case managers provide access to a computer station to enable completion. Orientation does not conclude until this assessment is complete and the results discussed.

During the individual session, case managers work with each participant to review the Individual Employment Plan (IEP), which documents current receipt of public assistance, employment history and barriers, professional references, assessment results, and career goal (entrepreneurship training and technical assistance), with a statement of key milestones to be accomplished through the course of training. Both participant and case manager sin the IEP. Case managers also review the training calendar with each participant, enrolling them in the

20

Vocational Research Institute. Product description available online at: http://www.vri.org/products/careerscope-v10/benefits. CareerScope is used by professionals in education, workforce development, corrections, vocational rehabilitation, and other fields to enhance career and educational planning, including career development portfolios, transition plans, Individualized Educational Plans, and employee training and retention plans.


main training activities to follow, as described in the following section. ENOVATE also administers PTS Assessment Quiz to all the participants.

After orientation, case managers email the expected participant list to NOVA; NOVA then emails each participant to confirm their enrollment, officially registering them into the system. Case managers then enter participants into VOS, for which they have a 20-day window.


ENOVATE engages participants in a regimen of intensive services provided through the program’s partnerships with NOVA and BDAG. The core services that collectively constitute the ENOVATE service delivery model include:

Initial consultation with BDAG

Core Entrepreneurship Training Boot Camp through NOVA

SCORE’s Simple Steps for Starting a Business

Monthly focus group meetings

Ongoing business counseling.

Supplemental services provided to participants to supplement the core services include:

Computer lab and meeting room

Legal business services

Marketing tools

Business mentoring

Networking events

Specialized business services.

Core services are discussed in detail below.

Initial Consultation with BDAG. At the close of each orientation session, case managers and BDAG staff present at the orientation meet individually with participants to schedule an initial consultation with the lead business counselor representing BDAG.21 The timing of the initial

21 BDAG operates as a general walk-in facility co-located with the Fairfax County Department of Family Services

(DFS) in a county building in Annandale, Virginia. As a walk-in facility, BDAG provides one-on-one counseling, business planning, workshops, and other services to individuals, businesses, community organizations, and


consultation is a function of the time available between orientation and the next scheduled Entrepreneurship Boot Camp, as well as the lead business counselor’s availability.

Participants may arrive to the initial consultation at different stages of launch. Some may have well-developed concepts and perhaps have completed some of the basic steps. Others are articulating an entirely new idea for the very first time. Participants may also be considering more than one business idea, struggling to evaluate the relative merits and potential of each.

As the first of perhaps multiple individualized consultations, the lead business counselor is initially in listening mode, allowing each participant to describe his/her business and its objectives and acting as a professional sounding board and reality check for the participant’s underlying approach and basic strategy. The counselor encourages the participant to speak freely and passionately about his/her ideas – not only as a way of establishing a productive, trusting working relationship, but also to gauge the participant’s energy, motivation, drive, and determination.

The business counselor conducts a personal inventory, during which he discusses the participant’s prior knowledge and experience with the service or product, anticipated capital requirements of the business, any special licensure or certificate that may be required, and the participant’s family support system. BDAG recognizes that sufficient family support is one of several crucial predictors of future outcomes and likelihood of success.

Ranging from 60-90 minutes each, the business counselor’s objective in the initial consultation is to lay the groundwork for an individualized business strategy, setting each participant on an immediate path to accomplishing the basic logistical requirements of establishing a new business entity, including:

Establishing and registering a business name

Requesting a business license number

Applying for a Dun & Bradstreet number

Obtaining a federal EIN.

The lead business counselor concludes the initial consultation by providing each participant with an individualized to-do list, which includes the basic new business establishment steps, while also coaching the participant to initiate the basic research steps of a feasibility plan. The objective is not to validate the participant’s business idea or strategy, or make decisions for him, but rather to provide objective professional counsel. At this stage, the business counselor

government agencies. Most services are provided free of charge. Business training workshops are coordinated through a network of local economic service providers.


is beginning to shepherd each participant toward a viable business plan and timeline, and ultimately, a successful launch.

Core Entrepreneurship Training Boot Camp through NOVA. Following orientation, participants are immediately enrolled in a two-week intensive Entrepreneurship Boot Camp provided through the Workforce Development Division of NOVA. All classes meet at NOVA’s Center for Employee Development in Annandale, Virginia, operating out of a fully functioning classroom equipped with 17 computer stations. A boot camp session is generally offered each month, with participants experiencing a wait time of as little as one day to as much as two weeks, depending on their enrollment timing. Each day begins at 9am and ends between 4pm and 5pm.

NOVA developed the Entrepreneurship Boot Camp curriculum following a request from SkillSource during the grant’s planning phase, prior to program implementation. NOVA developed the condensed course for ENOVATE, by drawing on an existing full-semester entrepreneurship NOVA course and referring to the earlier Project GATE II model for content. This 64 hour course consists of the following five principal components:

Entrepreneurship: The Basics (8 hours). Focuses on the fundamentals of conducting market research as the driver of a business plan, including legal, finance, and accounting issues associated with business ownership.

Mastering Sales Magnetism for Small Business Owners (12 hours). Focuses on what it means to be an effective sales person in a hands-on, interactive format, including motivation, identifying the market, creating a message, identifying marketing methods, and building long-term relationships.

Marketing for Small Businesses (12 hours). Focuses on the needs of young start-up companies for targeted marketing strategies and strategies to generate immediate, near-term sales, culminating in an initial marketing plan.

Accounting for Small Business Owners (16 hours). Focuses on providing a foundation in basic accounting and finance principles and terminology, including cash and accrual methods and accounts payable and receivable.

Understanding QuickBooks Premier (16 hours). Focuses on QuickBooks Premier as an online tool for tracking and managing a business efficiently and effectively, with hands-on navigating and testing to generate profit and loss statements, balance sheets, various forms of financial statements, and utilizing cloud technology for data storage.

All instructional materials are provided by NOVA. Participants are encouraged to avail themselves of various supplemental materials, such as specific books, magazines, websites, and television shows, which are identified in the course syllabus.


The boot camp is taught by two experienced instructors, one of whom instructs the first week of boot camp, while the other instructs the second week. Instructors are themselves entrepreneurs, bringing real-world experience to the classroom, while also having extensive experience providing instruction. This essential skill set aligns effectively with the needs of ENOVATE participants. Rather than a long-term agreement, instructors sign a letter of agreement to instruct on a session-by-session basis. Each instructor is officially scheduled on a rolling basis with some flexibility as a full or near-full cohort develops, contingent on each instructor’s availability. Staff reports that the quality and reliability of instructors has been a critical factor in successful program implementation and operations.

Attendance at boot camp is carefully monitored by NOVA and case managers. Participants are required to maintain a record of 90 percent attendance or better to complete the course, which culminates in awarding of a certificate, carrying 6.4 Continuing Education Units (CEUs). Graduation is commemorated with an official ceremony attended by ENOVATE staff.

Participants who are unable to comply with attendance requirements are offered the opportunity to make up missed days during a subsequent boot camp, enabling them to obtain the certificate of completion and graduate with a future cohort. These participants receive a formal letter from NOVA identifying specifically what they need to accomplish.

SCORE’s Simple Steps for Starting a Business. Upon completion of Entrepreneurship Boot Camp, participants are immediately enrolled in Simple Steps for Starting a Business, a nationally recognized curriculum developed and provided through SCORE. SCORE mentors utilize evaluation forms to obtain feedback from participants on the quality, content, format, and duration of the core workshops.

BDAG collaborates with volunteer mentors representing the Washington, DC chapter of SCORE to deliver the Simple Steps program from classroom space available at the Fairfax County Department of Family Services. Case managers handle the registration process, sending email reminders to participants in the week prior to the first workshop and alerting BDAG with a list of expected participants. Participants generally, though not always, begin the first of five Simple Steps workshops on the first Wednesday following completion of Entrepreneurship Boot Camp; case managers try to maintain a gap of not more than two weeks between the conclusion of boot camp and beginning of Simple Steps. Participants complete the entire sequence of workshops on five successive Wednesdays, each conducted from 9:30am to 12:30pm. The sequence of Simple Steps workshops includes:

Workshop 1: Start-up Basics. SCORE breaks down what could be an overwhelming task into manageable pieces, focuses on the essentials and provides specific action steps to get you started.

Workshop 2: Business Concept. Gives step-by-step guidance on identifying your target markets, describing your products and services and researching your competition to determine your concept's feasibility.


Workshop 3: Marketing Plan. This introduction to marketing communications teaches how to maximize customer reach, outline and execute a marketing strategy, test marketing message, and choose the right sales channels. It discusses different marketing and pricing strategies, positioning, and the difference between features and benefits.

Workshop 4: Financial Projections. Through hands-on instruction, teaches how to forecast sales revenue and build solid, pro-forma financial forecasts. It discusses sales and prices, financial risks and rewards, true start-up costs, ongoing operating expenses, setting benchmarks for tracking progress and organizing all of your financial information.

Workshop 5: Funding Sources. How will you finance your business? Teaches about sources of funds, accounting the six C’s of credit (character, capacity, capital, collateral, conditions, and confidence), banking relations, ratio analysis, and monthly preparation and review of financial statements. It lets you hear directly from a bank loan officer how banks assess the merits of business plans and loan applications.22

Monthly Focus Group Meetings. Post orientation, participants begin to engage in monthly focus groups that are planned, coordinated, and managed by BDAG. BDAG invites guest speakers to drill down into specific, relevant topics, including current business trends, developing an “elevator speech” and marketing approaches, or accessing capital through loans and other sources.

Built on a peer learning model, participants are encouraged to attend a minimum of three focus groups within the first six months following enrollment. BDAG carefully monitors participant attendance with sign-in sheets, later recording information in its Excel-based case management system for each attendee. Focus groups are open to all participants, regardless of the cohort with which they entered and proceeded through training. Focus groups not only provide opportunities to impart specific knowledge to participants in the start-up process, but also create networking opportunities while continuing to reinforce and deepen relationships among participants, both within each cohort as well as across cohorts.

Ongoing Business Counseling with BDAG. During and following the once-weekly sequence of the five Simple Steps workshops, participants receive ongoing business counseling at BDAG. BDAG counselors continue to be available to participants for the duration of the program, with the intent, ultimately, of sustaining them through launch.

Following the initial consultation, business counselors at BDAG spend considerable energy and effort assisting participants with crafting a preliminary business plan. Counselors provide thought leadership to help participants in shaping key components of the plan, as well as assisting participants in conducting in-depth foundational research around specific issues. Throughout this critical development phase, BDAG focuses participants on the plan’s feasibility.

22

Description of Simple Steps Workshops available at: http://www.score.org/Simple_Steps_for_Starting.


The objective initially is for participants to submit a draft plan that BDAG can review, not a final plan necessarily fully ready for implementation. BDAG then uses the post-core consultative period to collaborate with each participant to further develop and refine the plan prior to business launch and program exit.

Rather than following a specific protocol that is mandatory for all participants, BDAG, for the most part, responds to queues for support initiated by participants themselves. BDAG is utilizing its own database, apart from VOS, to document delivery of services to each participant and manage progress against key milestones, recording individualized case notes. Recognizing the difficulties associated with developing the business plan, which may result in loss of momentum and stalling out as a natural part of the process, BDAG monitors individual participants and in some cases contacts them proactively, scheduling appointments and offering support to reinvigorate effort.

Once the business plan is developed and refined, BDAG’s marketing manager turns to providing assistance in developing a tailored marketing plan. On a case-by-case basis, BDAG enables participants who are at an appropriate point in launch to access a marketing fund established through VETEC, which provides up to $500 per participant to support specific marketing needs. Approved purposes include such things as business cards, marketing materials, or even basic website design and construction.

Case Management. Case managers at VETEC have overall responsibility for interacting with both BDAG and NOVA to ensure the integrity and flow of program services and to monitor participant compliance with requirements. Case managers maintain physical case files on each participant, which they update routinely as well as a master electronic spreadsheet maintaining every client’s information, services, WIA activities, and reporting status. Case management processes are governed by WIA guidelines, so file management and content parallels the overall WIA caseload, which includes VOS.

BDAG maintains its own electronic spreadsheet for monitoring ongoing contact with participants once Entrepreneurial Boot Camp and Simple Steps are completed, a point at which participants transition to BDAG and are essentially in their hands. The BDAG Excel-based document is a shared file used by case managers to routinely track contacts with participants and each participant’s progress. Counselors use the BDAG spreadsheet as a re-engagement mechanism in instances where a participant has been out of touch for a month or more. NOVA does not have specific case management responsibilities, though routine input from instructors is essential for the ongoing function.

BDAG has developed its own Excel database for ongoing case management, apart from VOS, to specifically track each participant’s business status. The database, which is maintained by the BDAG case manager, includes contact information, case notes, and accomplishment of key milestones – including attendance at training and focus groups and key start-up activities.

Performance Measures. VETEC reports on participant level program performance with the following measures. First, the number of participants engaged in the program. Second, the


retention rates of participants. Third, participant completion rates from the VETEC and WIA programs. Fourth, review of weekly and monthly reports to monitor pace of recruitment and intake against overall participation targets established in the grant application.

Supplemental Services. As an open walk-in facility, BDAG offers a range of services that are available to ENOVATE participants, but also to eligible members of the public. Participants are able to avail themselves of additional services through BDAG, including use of the computer lab and participation in scheduled partner conferences and networking events. BDAG also provides assistance with:

Export-import matters, enabling businesses to establish a presence in international markets, including analysis of foreign market opportunities and understanding cultural practices essential to operating effectively in a target market in the global economy.

Special certifications for which new business owners may qualify that enable them to compete for contract set-asides targeted for Small, Women-owned, and Minority-owned (SWM certified) businesses, veteran and Service-Disabled Veteran (SDV)-owned businesses, SBA 8(a)-certified companies, and Historically Underutilized Business (HUB) Zone.

Loan applications, including for example, Guarantee Loan available through the SBA, as well as Micro and KIVA loans.

Other specific services are available to ENOVATE participants and the public contingent on progress against their launch timeline. Rather than as a direct provider of these services, BDAG acts as an intermediary, facilitating access to third-party providers or sources. For example, through BDAG’s partnership with a local law firm, participants are able to obtain free legal services on such matters as contract and lease reviews, corporate structure, government contracting, and intellectual property. Participants at or near launch may also be partnered with a business mentor holding specific expertise that is relevant to their business or industry.

New businesses can receive additional services offered by government agencies or private institutions. Participants may enroll in the Procurement Technical Assistance Program (PTAP) available through the Enterprise Center at George Mason University in nearby Fairfax, Virginia. The specific mission of this program is to increase contracting activity between small businesses, prime government contractors, and the federal government. PTAP provides one-on-one counseling, assistance with marketing, educational seminars, and use of a resource/reference library, providing direct access to vital resources such as agency acquisition forecasts and Commerce Business Daily.23

23

Additional information on the PTAP, including services and calendar of events, can be found online at: http://www.vaptap.org.


4.4.6 Program Exit and Follow-Up

As of March 2014, no participants have successfully exited the ENOVATE program as entrepreneurs and no set of uniform procedures has been officially established to govern the process for exiting beyond the basic parameter of 12 months following enrollment. At present, there is some commonly recognized definition around a set of “hard” exit requirements, which include completion of the following core services and milestones:

Initial one-on-one consultation

Core Entrepreneurship Training Boot Camp

Simple Steps workshops

Focus groups (three within first six months following enrollment)

Business plan, developed in consultation with BDAG in ongoing business training

Basic business establishment requirements, including business name, business license number, Dun & Bradstreet number, and federal EIN.

At the most technical or definitional level, establishment of a business name and the essential business identifiers marks an official business launch. BDAG also recognizes that securing first sales is the more meaningful actual measure and, consequently, expects to continue providing support up to that critical milestone. ENOVATE does not report a business launch in the monthly report until all ENOVATE program requirements are complete.

That said, the program’s decision to prepare for an exit remains entirely individualized. At this stage, BDAG is following cues from each participant – as some are advancing more quickly while others may be encountering obstacles or stalling. BDAG uses its case management system as a critical tool during this last phase of the program. Participants who are proactively engaging BDAG for continued assistance are fully accommodated. In cases where participants have lost contact, BDAG will follow up by phone or email to assess current status, identify obstacles, determine current needs, and attempt to refocus and re-engage the participants in available services.

While there is agreement about the completion requirements, case managers are unsure how an exit will happen procedurally and how this process will ultimately be fulfilled (i.e., by whom and how it will be documented). As the program considers codifying official exit procedures to be followed going forward, program staff are mindful of establishing procedures that: 1) function in complete compliance within the regulatory framework of WIA, and 2) do not adversely jeopardize any participant’s status with respect to UI.

Program Follow-Up. As of March 2014, no official program exits have occurred and no set of uniform procedures has been officially established to govern the process for post-exit WIA follow up. With regards to WIA exit follow-up, WIA and ENOVATE staff anticipate that the


program will conform to the follow-up protocol prevailing for WIA clients generally, which currently happens once quarterly for a period of one year. It remains to be determined whether WIA staff responsible for conducting follow up for general WIA clients will also follow up with ENOVATE participants, or whether ENOVATE will assume responsibility for this function.

4.5 Summary

ENOVATE project staff and partners understand their roles and responsibilities. SkillSource has successfully capitalized on established institutional partnerships with BDAG and NOVA that predate the ENOVATE program itself, enabling the partners to implement ENOVATE on an already-established platform of familiarity, good will, and trust.

ENOVATE recruits potential participants by disseminating information via multilingual brochures and flyers, through VEC (as individuals are in the process of applying for UI), through AJCs, and by emails to VOS registrants and UI claimants. Potential participants are required to attend an information session, during which they view an informational video and a live PowerPoint presentation that describes characteristics of a successful entrepreneur, program eligibility requirements, and the application process. Once selected, participants attend an orientation by SkillSource, with active participation from both NOVA and BDAG. The orientation introduces participants to the program, presents program requirements and milestones, describes each partner’s respective role and responsibilities, and discusses expectations against which participants will be monitored.

ENOVATE engages participants in a regimen of intensive services that include an initial business consultation with BDAG, Entrepreneurship Training Boot Camp through NOVA, SCORE’s Simple Steps for Starting a Business, monthly focus group meetings, and ongoing business counseling. ENOVATE also provides additional support services that include use of the computer lab, legal business services, marketing tools, business mentoring, networking events, and specialized business services. Overall, case management functions primarily reside with SkillSource/WIA case managers, with BDAG monitoring participant contacts and progress using its own records and spreadsheets.

Exit requirements include completion of the initial one-on-one consultation, Entrepreneurship Training Boot Camp, Simple Steps workshops, and focus groups, as well as submission of a draft business plan. Participants are also required to obtain a business name, business license number, Dun & Bradstreet number, and federal EIN. Though requirements themselves are clear, SkillSource will be promulgating official guidance on procedures to follow when participants exit, as well procedures for following up on their status after exiting.


5. GR GATE

In the Greater Richmond region of Virginia, the VETEC program operates as GR GATE. GR GATE serves LWIA#9, which includes:

City of Richmond

Charles City County

Chesterfield County

Goochland County

Hanover County

Henrico County

New Kent County

Powhatan County

This chapter documents the GR GATE implementation activities, including outreach and recruitment, intake activities, application, orientation, services, exit, and follow up. Section 5.1 describes the labor market context for the Greater Richmond region. Sections 5.2 and 5.3 present the key players and site partners, their respective roles and responsibilities, and the frequency and types of communication among them. Section 5.4 describes the specific GR GATE implementation activities. Section 5.5 summarizes the chapter findings.


The region’s economic performance is reflected in such staff phrases as “low unemployment rate,” “highly educated,” “job loss among white collar workers,” and “large veteran population.” As shown in Exhibit 12, the region’s unemployment rate in December of 2013 was 5 percent, around 1.5 percentage points lower than the United States as a whole. The region’s veterans also performed strongly, experiencing an unemployment rate of under 6 percent. Notably, a strong contingent of these veterans workers are entrepreneurs, with around 12 percent of all employed veterans engaging in some form of self-employment.

However, despite its strong labor market performance, in 2012 the Richmond workforce area still provided services for almost 12,000 WIA participants and had over 14,000 total WIA exiters.24 Additionally, while their relatively low employment numbers suggest the group performs well in the labor market, many veterans have been unable to find jobs since returning home from service. This, in addition to the continued need for employment services among the

24

PY 2012 WIA Annual Report


site’s general population, indicates there is still great need for workforce investment and training programs. In the sections below, we describe how the GR GATE program works to help meet this need.

Exhibit 12: Local Labor Market Conditions for Richmond Region

LWIA#9 Total LWIA #9 Veterans

Civilian Non-Institutional Population 906,993 83,541



Self-employed (% of labor force) 7.9% 11.6%

# of Small Businesses (<500 Employees) 20,407

Employed by Small Businesses (as % of all employed)

47.0%



5.2 Key Players

Implementation of the GR GATE program is a planned, strategic effort undertaken by a number of staff members and partners. Each staff member and partner has a unique role and set of responsibilities. Exhibit 13 shows the organizational structure of the GR GATE program, and each position is described as follows:

VETEC Project Director. The VETEC Project Director is responsible for overall program oversight and monitoring; coordination within and among sites; reporting; fiscal oversight; and assuring performance outcomes.

GR GATE Project Director. The GR project director (referred to as Site Director in the VETEC model) is responsible for providing overall oversight to the GR GATE program. Currently, this position is filled with an acting site project director.

Case Managers. Case managers are primarily responsible for interfacing with prospective applicants and program participants. They serve as the primary points of contact for individuals interested in applying to the program, and help ensure applicants are eligible to apply to the program. Case managers conduct the information sessions and application submission meetings, and are responsible for tracking participant progress using the PTS. They also conduct ad hoc, “boots-on-the-ground” outreach and recruitment activities.

Site Partners. The Community College Workforce Alliance (CCWA) serves as the GR GATE entrepreneurial training service partner. CCWA employs the GR GATE training coordinator and the GR GATE training administrative assistant.


GR GATE Training Coordinator. Employed by site partner CCWA, the GR GATE training coordinator is in charge of marketing efforts to create awareness about the program, promoting it, and recruiting participants. The training coordinator also oversees the training activities and allocates and tracks program resources.

GR GATE Training Administrative Assistant. Also employed by CCWA, the training administrative assistant provides administrative support to the GR GATE training coordinator. Responsibilities include tracking participants, scheduling trainings and classes, and serving as a point of contact for GATE participants. Notably, the administrative assistant is also involved in the front end of the program and contacts and confirms individuals’ registration for information sessions.

Business Consultants. Business consultants, of which GR GATE has two, provide ongoing coaching to assist participants in identifying and launching their business.

Exhibit 13: GR GATE Organizational Chart25

GR GATE Acting Project Director

Case Managers

Matthew Howell

Site Partners: CCWA

Martin Short – GATE Training Program CoordinatorSharon Landlum – GATE Training Administrative

Assistant


Rebecca Bennett

Nury MojicaSonya Brown

Business Consultants

Harpal MalikTany White


With the involvement of multiple internal and external parties, both staff and partners (i.e., business consultants) describe communication as key to program success. Key players in the program communicate via email, phone, and in-person meetings. Communication is frequent between the VETEC Project Director and GR GATE leadership via emails and monthly meetings, regarding the general direction of the program. The coordinator is in communication with case managers several times a day regarding all aspects of the program. The coordinator also speaks with the business consultants every other day about issues related to participant and program status. Business consultants and case managers communicate with one another regularly to

25

Exhibit 13 reflects GR GATE organizational hierarchy as of March 2014.


track participant compliance, progress, and individual needs (e.g., gas cards). There is no formal communication, and only infrequent communication of any kind, across course instructors.

There is frequent communication between CCWA and the VETEC Project Director; but the communication between CCWA/GR GATE and case managers is mostly one-way (from CCWA/GR GATE to the case managers) and restricted to recruitment and outreach activities. Case managers feel it would be helpful to have more communication from CCWA regarding potential participants, for example, who registered for information sessions, who applied, who attended the sessions, and who dropped out. Other than the quarterly VETEC-wide meeting, there is no regular communication between GR GATE and the other two VETEC sites.

How these communication processes play out is important to implementation of the GR GATE program and its flow of services. The remaining sections describe these implementation activities.


The GR GATE program is implemented as a sequence of six steps intended to lead program participants from program intake to exit and completion. These steps include outreach and recruitment; information session; program application; program orientation; receipt of services; and program exit and follow-up. Exhibit 14 highlights the flow of these activities, and each step is described in detail below.

Exhibit 14: GR GATE Flow of Services


CCWA primarily undertakes outreach and marketing activities for GR GATE. CCWA uses a wide variety of techniques to create awareness about the GATE program and recruit participants. Specific activities include:

Marketing Materials. CCWA distributes pamphlets, brochures, and bus placards, and sends mass emails. The program is also described via advertisements in the local newspaper, magazines, and radio spots, and on billboards. The goal of these ads is to drive people to the GR GATE website (which is maintained by CCWA), where descriptions of the GR GATE program are posted. A public relations firm developed the marketing materials and they were approved by CCWA.

Outreach for Veterans. In-person presentations are made at veteran organizations and veteran job fairs and at VEC and job incubators.

GR GATE Application

Submission and Random Assignment



GR GATE Program Orientation

Receipt of GR GATE Services



Step 6


Outreach via Social Media. Social media such as Twitter and Facebook are also used to raise awareness of the program.

The coordinator also organizes and conducts outreach and recruitment activities. He meets with all local providers of career-related services and gets referrals from the community (e.g., SBA, Goodwill). He also schedules additional information sessions for “rapid response” to situations such as Bank of America in Richmond laying off 100 people. The goal is to schedule more of these sessions to supplement the CCWA-sponsored sessions.

Case managers also do some “boots-on-the-ground” outreach, such as attending local events to promote the program. They provide sign-up sheets and/or IPod registration at recruitment events and supplement outreach and marketing efforts of CCWA through following activities:

Outreach via VEC. Case managers reach out to local VEC offices, promote the GR GATE program to VEC staff in the region, and make presentations to inform them about the program.

Outreach via AJCs. Case managers make presentations to other case managers serving WIA adults and dislocated job seekers to inform them about GR GATE.

Outreach via Local Events. Case managers attend events such as career fairs, entrepreneurship career fairs, events at faith-based organizations, and reach out to technical associations.

Outreach to Libraries. Case managers have connected with community libraries to market the program.

Outreach to Targeted Populations. Case managers have reached out to targeted groups by working, for example, with the army transition services for veterans and the workforce director for a detention center with a large Hispanic population.


Once individuals express interest in GR GATE, they are required to attend an information session before applying to the program. Case managers conduct information sessions and they are held every Tuesday at one of the three program locations, with each location hosting a session once every three weeks. Prospective applicants may register for information sessions either online or by contacting case managers via email or phone. They are also welcome to attend without having pre-registered, but this is not very common. After registering for an information session, individuals receive a confirmation email from the training administrative assistant to confirm time and place of the registered information session.

After receiving the registrant’s name and contact information, the GR GATE training administrative assistant adds the information to an internal spreadsheet and sends it to the GR GATE case managers. This allows case managers to contact registrants via phone prior to the information session, to again confirm the date of the session, ensure the registrant has and will


bring all the documents necessary to determine program eligibility, and provide basic GR GATE information and answer any questions.

During the information session, prospective applicants receive a general overview of the program. Each session lasts about an hour and a half, with the first hour used to provide program information. The remaining 30 minutes are used to conduct one-one-one eligibility determination and set up application appointments.

The case manager starts the information session with a video presentation about the VETEC program. After the video presentation, the case manager covers the following topics:

Description of WIA

Overview of the VETEC program

Details about the GR GATE program

Eligibility criteria for program participation

List of required eligibility documents

Random assignment process and impact evaluation study

Characteristics of a successful entrepreneur

Steps to start a new business

The GR GATE process, including all steps involved

Types of intensive services offered to eligible individuals

Frequently asked questions (e.g. program length, cost, expectations, and requirements).

Initially, the information session included a substantial amount of information on what it meant to be an entrepreneur and the benefits of owning your own business. The most current session focuses on eligibility and program expectations. It does not provide a schedule of courses or syllabi; however, case managers let individuals know that this is a six-week program. Case managers provide participants with a GR GATE folder that includes WIA eligibility documentation checklist, handout on how to start your own business in Greater Richmond, entrepreneurship program resources guide, VETEC information session attendee survey, and contact information for case managers.

These documents are designed to help information session attendees determine whether they wish to apply to the program. If individuals do decide to apply, they may meet one-on-one with case managers immediately following the information session, to discuss program eligibility and to complete an application.


5.4.3 GR GATE Application and Random Assignment

Exhibit 15 illustrates the application process. During the one-on-one session, the case manager covers GR GATE requirements, discusses program eligibility, and conducts eligibility screenings. This time is also used to answer any questions an individual may have regarding program requirements. If the individual has brought all necessary eligibility documentation to the information session and is determined eligible to apply, case managers can accept the GR GATE application that same day. However, this is not necessary and prospective applicants can schedule an appointment to complete the application at another time.

Once the applicant submits the application, the case manager enters the applicant’s information into the PTS for random assignment. Applicants should hear back from the case manager within 10 business days informing them of the random assignment results. As with the other VETEC programs, all WIA-eligible veterans are automatically enrolled into the program.

Exhibit 15: GR GATE Application Submission Process and Random Assignment

GR GATE Application Submission and Random Assignment

GR GATE Flow of Services: Step 3



group

Sub-Step 4



System (PTS)

Sub-Step 3

Individual completes VETEC application

Sub-Step 2

One-on-one session following

information session to determine

eligibility

Sub-Step 1

Notably, there is no significant difference in the GR GATE application process based on an individual’s WIA history. Since only participants are required to be dual-enrolled in both WIA and GR GATE, only those participants who are not WIA-enrolled prior to VETEC complete the WIA enrollment process including any necessary WIA assessments. WIA assessments are typically administered in a separate appointment, which is after random assignment but before the GR GATE orientation session (i.e., before receipt of program services). However, because scheduling these appointments can at times be difficult, GR GATE case managers are working towards completing WIA documentation with participants on the same day as the GR GATE orientation.

5.4.4 Program Orientation

Following application submission and random assignment, all participants assigned to the treatment group attend an orientation session conducted by the case managers and the coordinator. They introduce participants to the program, its requirements, and milestones; describe each partner’s respective role and responsibilities; and discuss expectations from


participants. The session lasts about 60-minutes (8am to 9am). The number of participants varies from about 9 to 15 individuals. Most people who get into the program attend the scheduled orientation session because they are told they cannot continue the program if they do not attend. This policy has caused one particularly difficult situation where an individual attended a session with an infant, which distracted from the presentation. Staff described this as the type of situation where proactive and planned responses to potential negative scenarios would have been helpful.


Service Delivery Model. GR GATE engages participants within a cohort in a regimen of intensive services. Staff, instructors, and participants all think the cohort system is important and beneficial – providing a supportive team learning environment where participants can act as resources for one another during and after the program.

The core services that collectively constitute GR GATE service delivery include:

Initial consultation with business consultants

Assessment

Core entrepreneurship training

Ongoing business counseling

Case management

Performance measures.

The service delivery model also includes supplemental services:

Use of the computer lab

Legal business services

Marketing tools

Networking events

Specialized business services.

Initial Consultation with Business Consultants. Business consultants do not have a formal presentation role in the orientation session but are introduced to the participants. At the close of each orientation session, case managers meet individually with participants to schedule an initial consultation with the business consultant.


Participants may arrive to the initial consultation at different stages of launch. Some have well-developed concepts and perhaps have completed some of the basic steps (e.g., elements of a business plan). Other participants are articulating an entirely new idea for the very first time. Participants may also be considering more than one business idea, struggling to evaluate the relative merits and potential of each.

At the first of perhaps multiple individualized consultations, the business consultant is initially in listening mode, allowing each participant to describe his/her business and its objectives and acting as a professional sounding board and reality check for the participant’s underlying approach and basic strategy. The counselor encourages the participant to speak freely and passionately about his/her ideas – not only as a way of establishing a productive, trusting working relationship but also to gauge the participant’s energy, motivation, drive, and determination.

The business consultant discusses the participant’s prior knowledge and experience with the service or product of interest, the anticipated capital requirements of the business, any special licensure or certificate that may be required, and the participant’s family support system. The initial consultation with the counselor ranges from 60-90 minutes. During this consultation, counselor lays the groundwork for an individualized business strategy and starts assisting each participant to:

Establish and register a business name

Request a business license number

Apply for a Dun & Bradstreet number

Obtain a federal EIN.

The business consultant concludes the initial consultation by providing each participant with an individualized to-do list, while also coaching the participant to initiate the basic research steps of a feasibility plan. The objective is not to validate the participant’s business idea or strategy, or make decisions for him/her, but rather to provide objective professional counsel. The business consultant is beginning at this stage to guide each participant toward a viable business plan and timeline, and ultimately, a successful launch.

Assessment. GR GATE administers PTS Assessment Quiz to all the participants. Further, following federal WIA policy, the Commonwealth of Virginia mandates that WIA participants receiving intensive training services must first complete an objective assessment to properly assess for basic skill levels and service needs.26 The case manager explains to the applicants why they are being assessed and what each assessment tool measures and its purpose. All VETEC participants who have not completed WIA assessments in the prior year take the following:

26

http://old.vccs.edu/Portals/0/ContentAreas/Workforce/VWN/00_12_revisedJan10.pdf



1. Career Readiness Certification (CRC) – An assessment-based credential that gives employers and career seekers a uniform measure of key workplace skills. The CRC is pass/fail, however, with no screening if a participant fails.

2. CareerScope – An assessment of interests and aptitudes that assists in providing recommendations of careers an individual may enjoy and be successful in, and courses or training programs to focus on to pursue those careers.

3. Test for Adult Basic Education (TABE) – A comprehensive academic assessment that provides a foundation for effectively assessing the skills and knowledge of adult learners.

Currently, case managers try to schedule assessments prior to the orientation session, although it has been a challenge to coordinate individual meetings with numerous participants. GR GATE plans to conduct a group assessment to replace the past process of scheduling individual assessment appointments with each participant. Moving forward, orientation would be in the morning and the assessment would replace the class that immediately follows. To discuss this new process, staff had a meeting and the coordinator proposed the new orientation/assessment process.

Core Entrepreneurship Training. Following orientation, participants are immediately enrolled in a two-week intensive entrepreneurship training program. All classes meet at the Cedar Fork location in classrooms, including one equipped with individual computer stations. Sessions are generally offered each month, with participants experiencing a wait time of as little as one day to as much as two weeks, depending on timing of their enrollment. Each day begins at 9am and ends between 4pm and 5pm. The program comprises the following specific classes:

Getting Started in Business (Core-4 hours). Focuses on the qualities needed to get started in business, the steps needed to register with appropriate business-related agencies, several credit options for your business and strategies for on-going personal development.

CORE FOUR Business Planning (Core-28 hours). Focuses on teaching entrepreneurs how to create a Business Plan while understanding business concepts. Business owners learn the FOUR COREs of business: Success Planning, Market Planning, Cash Flow Planning and Operations Planning.

Understanding Credit (Core-7 Hours). Focuses on teaching basics of accounting and credit management. Teaches about sources of funds, accounting the six C’s of credit (character, capacity, capital, collateral, conditions, and confidence), banking relations, ratio analysis, and monthly preparation and review of financial statements.


Finance and Accounting for Nonfinancial Managers. Focuses on giving an understanding of business environments, financial statements, and strategy to make more profitable business and personal financial decisions.

QuickBooks Premier. Focuses on using all the features of QuickBooks Pro plus: efficiently track and manage your unique business, grow with easy-to-use business planning tools, automatically forecast future sales and expenses.

Networking for Small Businesses. Focuses on giving the tools and strategy to network effectively and build relationships in business community.

Marketing for Small Businesses. Focuses on helping participants to create a plan to become more visible and credible in the market as well as begin creating a system for constant improvement. This system focuses on five elements: Motivation, Market, Message, Methods and Marriage.

Social Media for Small Businesses. Participants learn about social media marketing for business, review social media sites and learn how to market products and services using this new medium. Topics include writing for social media, designing effective pages and measuring your business presence.

How to Build Your Own Business. Website Participants learn about critical factors for creating and maintaining effective business websites. Topics include how to save on costs and optimize graphics.

GR GATE recently added a technology course based on participant requests. A public speaking course is also being considered, as is training to develop prerequisite skills for the program in the areas of computer basics (e.g., Word, Excel) and time management.

GR GATE provides instructional materials with the site manager’s administrative assistant preparing course packages for each participant. Participants are encouraged to avail themselves of supplemental materials – such as specific books, magazines, websites, and television shows –which are identified in the course syllabus. ELearning courses reinforce concepts from the core classes. Add-on courses are available as electives; these are 7 hours (except for Social Media for Small Business, which is 14 hours).

The training courses are taught by experienced instructors who are themselves entrepreneurs, have extensive experience providing instruction, and are regarded by GR GATE staff as critical to successful program implementation. This essential skill set aligns effectively with the needs of GR GATE participants. Rather than a long-term agreement, instructors sign a letter of agreement to instruct on a session-by-session basis. GR GATE works directly with the instructors to manage the course logistics. Each instructor is officially scheduled on a rolling basis, with some flexibility as a full or near-full cohort develops contingent on each instructor’s availability.


Instructors are not provided any information on the cohort participants, they “teach whoever shows up.” That funding dictates what is covered in the courses, rather than what an instructor believes to be most appropriate for the participants, is proving a challenge to at least one of the instructors. There are no standardized materials on community resources available to participants, so the level of information provided is dependent on the instructor. However, feedback from course participants and instructors is generally very positive, though the content of the courses can be overwhelming to participants, and balancing the program requirements with the demands of daily life is an ongoing challenge. A large number of students have requested a lab that would give individuals the opportunity to, for example, create sections of a business class within the setting and support of a classroom.

These courses serve as the foundation for successful implementation of the individual’s business plan. Participants must successfully complete 100 percent of the core courses, after which they receive a Certificate of Completion. Class attendance is monitored by the case manager, who communicates with the instructors on a daily basis in person, through email, and by phone. At present, there is no formal timeline in place for instructors to provide the program administrative assistant with the course roster and whether an individual has satisfactorily completed a course. Roughly 90 percent of participants receive a “satisfactory” designation. The administrative assistant provides the roster and “grade” to the case manager for the participant’s file. The goal is to have a timeline in place soon to speed up reporting process.

Participants who are unable to comply with attendance requirements are offered the opportunity to make up missed days with a subsequent cohort. The administrative assistant both targets specific people who have missed a course and sends out general emails with instructions for making up missing courses.

Ongoing Business Counseling with Business Consultants. The business consultant starts engaging participants when they begin the entrepreneurship classroom training. During and following the training program, participants receive ongoing business counseling. The consultant conducts regular meetings based on the participant’s needs and requests. These meetings range from several times a week to three times a year, with the most common schedule being every week or every two weeks. The business consultants also integrate participation from the marketing, accounting, and legal consultants.

Business consultants are seen as facilitator, coach, guide, and resource to participants to optimize the benefits of GR GATE. The assigned business consultant works with each one of his/her assigned participants on a business plan and timeline that is deemed viable for the successful launch of the respective business. Completion of the business plan is generally the last step of the program and part of “Entered Employment.”

Participants have been continuing to work with the business consultants after they have completed the requirements to establish their business, because the business consultant is seen to be the best judge of whether an individual is ready to move forward. According to both the case managers and business consultants, individuals may have completed the program but not be prepared to set up their business without additional mentoring. Although the majority of


the 10 people who have completed the VETEC program are described by some as still using their business consultants, not everyone shares this view. According to one instructor, the one-on-one business consulting is the most significant asset of the program and even more hours would be of great benefit to assist participants in translating classroom content into practice.

In addition to the direct service work with participants, the business consultants are responsible for reporting meetings and any non-compliance, interfacing with the site office, and participating in GR GATE team meetings. In cases where participants have lost contact, the business consultants follow up by phone or email to assess current status, identify obstacles, determine current needs, and attempt, where desirable and practicable, to refocus the participants to re-engage in available services.

Case Management. Case managers have the overall responsibility to interface with prospective clients and program participants. Participants are assigned to case managers by locality, who then contact them at least once a month. WIA guidelines provide guidance on what needs to be included in participant case files, although their content differs by case manager to some extent (in whether there is a cover sheet noting the contents of the file, for example). GR GATE plans for the case files to be standardized by April 2014.

The standardization is to include several components. First, there is to be an agreed-on set of supplemental documents (e.g., gas receipts for gas cards) to be requested from participants and included in the files. Second, case files are to include social security cards and a photo ID as identification. Third, the business plan is to be included once it is complete. Recently, case managers have started to get reports from the business consultants and to note meetings with business consultants in the case notes. Finally, gaps in time (i.e., participant non-participation), which had not always been explained in the files, are now to be documented and explained (e.g., illness, vacation). Currently, case managers are using standard manila folders; however, they are soon to receive new binders with tabs to better organize their case files.

Performance Measures. Reporting was somewhat ad-hoc at the beginning of the program but has now evolved to become more consistent, including the following performance measures:

Number of persons engaged in the program

Retention rates of participants

Completion rates (i.e., certifications and business plan to launch new business completed)

Review of weekly and monthly reports to look at recruitment, during which strategies (e.g., ad-hoc sessions to respond to emerging community needs) to increase numbers are discussed.

Supplemental Services. Consistent efforts have been made to tailor the program to the needs of the target population (participants not having the basic resources to travel to the site was a


particular concern). To support participant needs, GR GATE received $12,000 from WIA funds for the duration of the program, which is distributed to participants on a case-by-case basis. The funds have been used mostly for gas cards and bus cards (totaling about $1,000 so far). Participants can also obtain assistance in applying for business financing, which is available for individuals interested in applying for loans and other financial tools.


Program Exit. Program exit requirements include completion of the following core services and milestones:

Assessment

Initial one-on-one consultation

Entrepreneurship classroom and ELearning training (core courses)

Business plan, developed in consultation with the assigned business consultant

Basic business establishment requirements, including business name, business license number, Dun & Bradstreet number, and federal EIN.

At the most technical or definitional level, establishment of a business name and the essential business identifiers (described above) marks an official business launch. However, program staff recognizes that securing first sales, for example, would be a more meaningful measure of actual program success.

As of March 2014, only one participant had successfully exited the program as an entrepreneur. It was unclear if the successful exiter was going to go through follow-up. One additional case was closed because the case managers could not contact the participant. Other than these two cases, participants remain active until they are in the program for 12 months, at which time they would exit the program.

As of the time of the site visit, no set of uniform procedures had been officially established to govern the process for exit, beyond the basic parameter of 12 months following enrollment. GR GATE’s decision to prepare for an exit is entirely individualized, with staff and business consultants following cues from each participant. Thus, some participants may have completed all program requirements (including the business plan); but if they are not ready to launch their business they may still be accessing VETEC counseling services, since GR GATE uses its case management system as a key tool during last phase of the program. According to most staff, participants who are proactively engaging their business consultants for continued assistance are fully accommodated within the 12-month program period. The business consultants even go further, saying that the ideal would be to continue working with participants after they have successfully exited the program.


As the program considers codifying official exit procedures to be followed going forward, program staff are mindful of establishing such procedures that: 1) function in complete compliance within the regulatory framework of WIA, and 2) do not adversely jeopardize any participant’s status with respect to UI benefits.

Program Follow-up. As of March 2014, no set of uniform procedures has been officially established to govern the process for post-exit WIA follow up. GR GATE anticipates that the program will conform to the follow-up protocol prevailing for WIA clients generally, which currently happens once quarterly for a period of one year. It remains to be determined whether WIA case managers or GR GATE case managers will conduct follow-up on GR GATE clients.

5.5 Summary

GR GATE project staff and partners understand their roles and responsibilities. GR GATE works with its partner CCWA to carry out its outreach and recruitment strategy, but the two do not formally communicate regarding specific recruitment activities or developments in the outreach process.

GR GATE recruits applicants by distributing print materials, using social media, attending local entrepreneurship events, and coordinating with other programs that serve WIA adults. The GR GATE information session includes program and application information with case managers conducting one-on-one sessions with interested applicants immediately following the presentation.

Participants are required to attend an information session during which they are introduced to the program and its basic requirements, as well as the steps for eligibility determination. Once selected, participants attend an individual orientation during which they learn about core services, undergo an assessment, and have an initial business consultation.

GR GATE engages participants within a cohort in a regimen of intensive services. The service delivery model includes business start-up core training in the classroom and ELearning, as well as ongoing business counseling with an assigned consultant. Participants are assigned to case managers by locality. The case manager, who works closely with other program staff, course instructors, and business consultants, contacts participants at least once a month.

Participants complete the program after completing the 67-hour contact time for the core training requirement and obtaining the completion certificate, submitting a business plan, and obtaining each of four basic business establishment requirements (business name, business license, Dun & Bradstreet number, and federal EIN). Though completion and exit requirements have now been established for the program, SkillSource will be providing official guidance on procedures for case managers to follow when exiting participants and closing a case in VOS, as well as when following up after exiting.


6. LAUNCH HAMPTON ROADS

The Launch Hampton Roads program serves LWIA#16, which includes the following localities:

Isle of Wight County

Southampton County

City of Chesapeake

City of Franklin

City of Norfolk

City of Portsmouth

City of Suffolk

City of Virginia Beach

This chapter documents the implementation operations of Launch Hampton Roads. Section 6.1 describes the local labor market context of this region. Section 6.2 presents key players and partners, their respective roles and responsibilities. Section 6.3 describes communication among these key players. Section 6.4 reports the program flow of services. Section 6.5 summarizes the chapter findings.


Launch Hampton Roads, one of 15 local workforce boards in the Commonwealth of Virginia, serves over 1.1 million residents and thousands of businesses in Isle of Wight and Southampton counties and the cities of Chesapeake, Franklin, Norfolk, Portsmouth, Suffolk, and Virginia Beach. As a whole, the region’s labor market performance is largely similar to that in the rest of the state (see Exhibit 16). In December of 2013, Hampton Roads’ unemployment rate was just over 5.2 percent, around 1.5 percentage points lower than the national unemployment rate of 6.7 percent.

The region’s veterans also enjoy an unemployment rate below 6 percent, largely due to the workforce area’s proximity to Naval Station Norfolk. Due to its presence, the workforce area serves a large number of veterans, who form a key Launch Hampton Roads and VETEC program target population. This, in addition to the fact that the area served over 20,000 WIA participants and had close to 21,000 WIA exiters in 2012, suggests that workforce and employment services remain critically important to the region.27 The next sections describe how the Launch Hampton Roads program works to help meet this need.

27

PY 2012 WIA Annual Report


Exhibit 16: Local Labor Market Conditions for Hampton Roads Region

LWIA #16 Total LWIA #16 Veterans

Civilian Non-Institutional Population 906,993 143,334



Self-employed (% of all employed) 7.5% 9.1%

# of Small Businesses (Less Than 500 Employees) 19,910

# Employed by Small Businesses (% of all employed)

48.7%



6.2 Key Players

Implementation of the Launch Hampton Roads program is a concerted effort by a number of key staff members and partners. Program staff work cooperatively together to carry out all program activities, and each player has a unique role and set of responsibilities (see Exhibit 17), as described below:

VETEC Project Director. The VETEC Project Director is responsible for overall program oversight and monitoring, coordination between the multiple actors, reporting, fiscal oversight, and assuring performance outcomes.

Launch Hampton Roads Program Manager. The program manager (referred to as Site Director in the VETEC model) is responsible for managing and providing overall guidance to the entrepreneurship grant assistant (see below) and overseeing all aspects of project implementation. The program manager also conducts most of the outreach and recruitment activities, organizes and conducts the information sessions, oversees the intake of applicants into the program, and coordinates with the training provider to ensure all training and service needs are being covered.

Entrepreneurship Grant Assistant. The entrepreneurship grant assistant manages all administrative details of the program prior to program enrollment – assisting with outreach and recruitment activities and serving as the main point of contact for potential applicants. Grant Assistant also conducts all program application appointments, and emails and communicates in other ways with interested applicants.

WIA Career Developer. The WIA career developer serves as the WIA eligibility expert for the Launch Hampton Roads team – conducting the eligibility determination for all prospective applicants to ensure they are eligible for the program. Most eligibility determinations are conducted informally after the information session, but when necessary, the career developer holds one-on-one meetings with applicants.


Site Partner: Old Dominion University Program Coordinator. Old Dominion University (ODU) is the site partner and entrepreneurial training service provider, operating through ODU’s Business Gateway – which serves as the “front door” through which local industry and nonprofits engage the university’s substantial intellectual capital and resources. The ODU program manager serves as case manager for all Launch Hampton Roads program participants. Responsibilities include serving as the main point of contact for program participants, scheduling program orientations, and carrying out all administrative tasks related to providing program services, including coordinating and scheduling trainings and workshops. While not a formal job responsibility, the partner also engages in soft, ad-hoc program recruitment, and outreach.

It is important to note that Launch Hampton Roads does not have designated Case Managers and thus, case management responsibilities are a collaborative effort between Grant Assistant, Program Coordinator, and Site Manager.

Exhibit 17: Launch Hampton Roads Organizational Chart28

Launch Hampton Roads Program Manager

WIA Career Developer

Stephanie McCombs

Hellen Bryant

Entrepreneurship Grant Assistant

Verlaine Quinney

Old Dominion University Program Coordinator

Karen MIller


Rebecca Bennett


Communication among Launch Hampton Roads key players appears to be open and smooth. There is frequent communication between the VETEC Project Director and Launch Hampton Roads program manager regarding outreach activities. Additionally, the site director communicates with the entrepreneurship grant assistant daily through meetings, phone calls, and emails regarding recruitment and the information session. Monthly staff meetings, which also include the VETEC Project Director and ODU, discuss the current program situation and future steps for outreach activities. There is no regular communication between Launch Hampton Roads and the other two VETEC sites, except for the quarterly VETEC-wide meeting.

Acting as the primary nexus between the Launch Hampton Roads and ODU, the program manager is in regular, routine contact with the Program Coordinator operating out of the

28

Exhibit 18 reflects Hampton Roads organizational hierarchy as of March 2014.


Business Gateway to discuss day-to-day program operations. The two work collaboratively and are in frequent contact, in person and by telephone and email – which happens as much as several times each day – addressing such issues as orientation scheduling, attendance and participation, and specific case management issues. The program manager attends some training events at the Business Gateway, to maintain operational oversight and to remain in high-level touch with participants, instructors, and service delivery.

The remaining sections discuss the specific activities involved in the implementation of the Launch Hampton Roads program.


The Launch Hampton Roads program is designed as a set of program steps that carry the participant from intake into program to exit and completion. These steps include outreach and recruitment, information session, application and random assignment, program orientation, receipt of services, and program exit and follow-up. Exhibit 18 illustrates the flow and sequence of these activities, and each step is described in detail below.

Exhibit 18: Launch Hampton Roads Flow of Services

LHR Application Submission and

Random Assignment



LHR Program Orientation

Receipt of LHR Services



Step 6


Launch Hampton Roads outreach activities mainly consist of distributing print materials, such as brochures and information session flyers, in job fairs and entrepreneurship events; on-line and print information dissemination; and coordination with other programs that serve WIA adults and dislocated workers. Specific activities include:

Outreach via AJCs. AJCs are important outreach portals for the program. Project staff makes every effort to ensure that all programs serving WIA adults and dislocated job seekers are notified of Launch Hampton Roads, and all WIA case managers are informed about the program. These activities are usually carried out through AJC staff meetings and a short presentation by the project manager.

Outreach via Print Materials. Launch Hampton Roads brochures and information session flyers are distributed through the local office of economic development to target the business-oriented population. Advertisements are also placed in print materials such as the employment section of the local newspaper (the Virginian Pilot) and free publications (e.g., Employment Weekly).


Outreach via Social Media. The site takes advantage of social networking and the Internet by operating the Launch Hampton Roads Facebook page, LinkedIn page, and Twitter account.

Outreach via Local Events. The site sponsors local entrepreneurship events. In these events, a program sign and banner designed by a local marketing firm are on display, and brochures and information session flyers are distributed at a Launch Hampton Roads booth.

Outreach via EVENTBRITE. Registration for the information session, through social media site EVENTBRITE, uses the network effects created by EVENTBRITE to make Launch Hampton Roads visible to people interested in similar programs/events.

Outreach via Libraries. Additional information sessions are conducted once a month at a local public library.

ODU Outreach. The site partner engages in soft outreach activity to recruit participants from within ODU. Activities include recruiting within the Business Gateway and programs sponsored by the university.

After potential participants register for the information session by phone or through the EVENTBRITE website, a registration confirmation email is sent through EVENTBRITE. For job seekers who do not have Internet access, a phone call is placed to remind them about their registered information session. Additionally, one day before the session a customized email is sent to registrants, reminding them again of the event. This email also lists the eligibility documents they can bring to the information session.

For potential participants who have inquired about Launch Hampton Roads either by phone or through the local WIA website but have not registered for an information session, an outreach email is sent, explaining the basic features of the program and directing them to the EVENTBRITE site.


All potential participants are required to attend the information session before they can be enrolled in the program. These information sessions are held weekly in the AJCs and once a month in local public libraries. Timing of the session varies across locations to accommodate the job seeker’s schedule and transportation needs.

Attendance is taken for all attendees, who are directed to fill out the sign-in sheet before the session starts with their name, email address, and phone number. They are also given an information packet, which among other documents includes: a list of services provided by the AJCs, attendee survey, program brochure, Launch Hampton Road application, list of required


documents for group certification, WIA statement of family size/family income, VOS registration introduction, and additional information on being an entrepreneur.29

The entire information session, which takes about an hour and a half, consists of two parts, the second of which is optional. The first part, presented by the program manager lasts about 75 minutes, consists of the main presentation on the Launch Hampton Roads program. This part, a combination of the VETEC introductory video and a PowerPoint presentation, includes:

Overview of the VETEC program

Details about the Launch Hampton Roads program

Program and WIA eligibility criteria

Introduction of services including training partners and 64-hour core training schedule

Discussion of the random assignment process, evaluation study, and follow-up

Steps to apply

Services available if assigned to control group

Pop quiz to review pertinent information.

The PowerPoint presentation stresses the evaluation component of the program, specifically highlighting the follow-up survey administered to all program participants.

Immediately after the presentation, the Launch Hampton Roads program manager proceeds to the second part of the information session. This consists of a group eligibility determination, during which the program manager guides prospective applicants through a packet of eligibility documents. It is done so individuals can provide signatures and basic information on eligibility documents without having to be present when the WIA career developer conducts an eligibility screening.

After prospective applicants finish this, they submit the documents to the entrepreneurial grant assistant, who places them in a file for the WIA career developer. Should prospective applicants forget a piece of information or have additional questions for the WIA career developer, they are free (but not required) to drop off their signed eligibility documents later or schedule a one-on-one appointment with the career developer.

6.4.3 Launch Hampton Roads Application and Random Assignment

After receiving an applicant’s file of eligibility documents from the entrepreneurship grant assistant, the WIA career developer screens the documents to ensure eligibility. If an individual

29

All the documents included in the information session folder are included in Appendix C.


is determined eligible for the program, the WIA career developer gives his/her information back to the grant assistant, who contacts the individual to schedule an application appointment. During the application appointment, the grant assistant goes through a checklist of items required on the application form and briefly discusses the Launch Hampton Roads program to ensure the applicant is aware of the training schedule and program expectations. The grant assistant then completes the application and creates a VOS account for all applicants. Once the application is completed and a VOS account created, the grant assistant enters the applicant’s information into the PTS for random assignment. Applicants are notified of the result of their random assignment within 10 business days. Case notes are made in VOS to mark the application submission and outcome of the random assignment. Exhibit 19 demonstrates this process. VOS accounts for individuals assigned to the control group remain dormant, unless they decide to avail themselves of traditional workforce services.

Exhibit 19: Launch Hampton Roads Application Submission Process

Launch Hampton Roads Application Submission and Random Assignment

LHR Intake Process: Step 3

Program Director or Entrepreneurial Grant Assistant

enters individual into Participant Tracking System

(PTS)

Sub-Step 4

Individual completes Launch Hampton Roads application and creates VOS

account

Sub-Step 3

Eligible applicants schedule application

appointment with Entrepreneurial Grant Assistant

Sub-Step 2

WIA Career Developer conducts

eligibility determination

Sub-Step 1



group

Sub-Step 5

Importantly, there is no significant difference in the application process based on an individual’s WIA history. Since only participants are required to be dual-enrolled in both WIA and Launch Hampton Roads, all program participants who are not WIA-enrolled prior to VETEC must complete the WIA enrollment process including any necessary WIA assessments. Participant WIA application is then entered into VOS. This process typically occurs sometime after the participant begins receiving services.

6.4.4 Launch Hampton Roads Orientation

After random assignment, Launch Hampton Roads notifies the program coordinator at ODU’s Business Gateway who will be receiving training. The coordinator immediately emails the participant to schedule an individual orientation and to briefly describe what the orientation will accomplish (all orientations are individual rather than group). The program coordinator contacts the participant via telephone to schedule orientation if they cannot be reached via email.

During the orientation, the program coordinator acts in dual roles – both as case manager and as initial business consultant. Lasting about an hour, orientation provides the first opportunity for the program coordinator to describe Launch Hampton Roads in terms of its core


requirements and supplemental services and to articulate the commitment and effort that will be required of participants to satisfactorily complete the program.

Orientation is a period of mutual discovery for both the Business Gateway and the participant. While the participant is acclimating to the program, at the same time the coordinator is receiving information and observing signals from participants. In several instances, the coordinator has suggested removal of a participant from the cohort prior to training for reasons of appropriateness; risks to the safety of others; and ultimately, the university’s liability.

The participant completes a worksheet for summarizing his/her business idea in 50 words or less – a precursor exercise for the “elevator speech” activity that happens during training – while the program coordinator enters the participant into the PTS (linking the participant to the entrepreneurship funding stream). Each participant is provided with a binder containing essential training materials – including the schedule, forms and templates to be used during the training, and three resource guides (one produced by the SBA on behalf of Virginia, a second by the Virginia Department of Business Assistance (VDBA), and a third in cooperation with SCORE. All resources are also provided to participants electronically, on a preloaded flash drive.

Following orientation, the program coordinator emails each registered participant on the Friday prior to the start of core training, to provide additional logistical details regarding facilities, parking, and other reminders.

Assessment. Launch Hampton Roads administers PTS Assessment Quiz to all the participants. Further, following federal WIA policy, the Commonwealth of Virginia mandates that WIA participants receiving intensive training services must first complete an objective assessment to properly assess for basic skill levels and service needs.30 All VETEC participants who have not completed WIA assessments in the prior year take the following:

1. Career Readiness Certification (CRC) – An assessment-based credential that gives employers and career seekers a uniform measure of key workplace skills. The CRC is pass/fail, however, with no screening if a participant fails.

2. Test for Adult Basic Education (TABE) – A comprehensive academic assessment that provides a foundation for effectively assessing the skills and knowledge of adult learners.

Currently, case managers try to schedule assessments prior to the orientation session. It has been a challenge to coordinate individual meetings with numerous participants.

30





The program engages participants in a regimen of intensive services provided through the program’s partnership with ODU’s Business Gateway, located at Innovation Research Park.31 Following orientation, which is also effectively an initial business consultation with the program coordinator, the core services that collectively constitute the program’s service delivery model include:

Business start-up core training

Business mentoring

Networking and special events

Supplemental training

All services are either: (1) provided directly at the Business Gateway or (2) facilitated through the Business Gateway indirectly and provided by external organizations or service providers. Each component is described in detail below.

Business Start-Up Core Training. Core training is provided over the course of two full calendar weeks, the first a mandatory classroom experience. The second, which is optional but strongly encouraged, includes alternating periods of hands-on training, independent study, and workshop experiences. Launch Hampton Roads and the Business Gateway work collaboratively to enroll a maximum of 15 participants for each training cohort, with the goal of enrolling at least 10-12 participants (recognizing 10 as the approximate break-even enrollment level). Thus far, actual attendance has ranged from as few as six participants to as many as 15 per cohort.

Core Entrepreneurship Training (40 hours). Following orientation, participants are immediately enrolled in business start-up core training. The Associate Director of the Business Gateway and a Professor of Management and Entrepreneurship in ODU’s College of Business and Public Administration collaborated to develop the curriculum content and flow of material for this 40-hour core training. They have also been serving as the two primary instructors, covering about 60 percent of the week’s content. A variety of invited speakers cover the remaining content with training on specialized topics. Core training is offered once or twice a month.

The goals and objectives of Launch Hampton Roads are to: 1) increase understanding of the steps, stages, and activities related to launching and growing a business; 2) show how business ownership may or may not be aligned with personal strengths and life goals; and 3) provide introductory training on strategies and essential skills for starting a business.

31

To operate in parallel with Old Dominion University, Launch Hampton Roads is currently in the process of establishing independent relationships with the College of William and Mary, which will serve the Williamsburg area, and Tidewater Community College, which will serve the downtown area of Norfolk and possibly Portsmouth.


Participants report to the Business Gateway at 9am each day, concluding between 4pm and 5pm. The program coordinator orients participants to the classroom, provides logistical information for the week (including parking) as well as loans computers, and enables each participant to access a password-protected wireless account for the duration of classroom training. Following topics are covered during the first week of training:32

Considering entrepreneurship. Using a template available from the SBA, participants begin crafting a business plan immediately, with a first draft due on the very first day. This session explores the entrepreneurial mindset and discusses risk during the morning. Business idea development steps are facilitated with templates and worksheets.

Evaluating your business. This session is dedicated to in-depth training provided through classroom training and individual consultation to create a business plan, including doing business research and understanding competition and the market, digital mining for critical insights into the market, and pricing strategies.

Starting your business. This session is focused on business establishment activities – including legal structure, legal protections, licensing, and contracts, as well as intellectual property issues (such as patents, copyrights, trademarks, and trade secrets). Participants continue to work on their draft business plans.

Running your business. This session is focused on start-up funding for new businesses – including self-funding ideas as well as external funding options and understanding basic accounting and finance principles for responsible money management.

Business plan reviews/evaluating your business. On the final day of classroom training, two representatives of SCORE join the instruction team and participants formally present their business plans in a format described as analogous to the television show “Shark Tank.” The afternoon is focused on understanding and using social media to effectively market and sell goods and services.

The Business Gateway intersperses lunch, networking events, and guest speakers throughout the week of classroom training – including, for example, local successful entrepreneurs, accountants, attorneys, and representatives of other Business Gateway programs. Speakers are volunteers, serving the program without compensation.

Class sign-in sheets are used to collect daily attendance data. Participants obtain a certificate of completion on the Friday that concludes the mandatory first week, during a formal ceremony with refreshments.

Hands-On Training and Independent Study/Workshops. Following mandatory core training, participants begin a one-week period that consists of a two-day hands-on training opportunity

32

These topics align with chapters in the Small Business Resource Guide developed by the Virginia Department of Business Assistance.


available through the Norfolk Fair Trade Company (see further below) and three days of independent study and workshops.

Hands-On Training at Norfolk Fair Trade Company. The Norfolk Fair Trade Company is located near the MacArthur Center, which is an expansive shopping and entertainment mall in downtown Norfolk. Partly a storefront for locally manufactured products and partly a classroom, the three-month program employs apprentices who, while selling goods in exchange, learn about business operations, customer service, and benefit corporations, and receive personal mentoring for their own entrepreneurial ideas.33

Launch Hampton Roads participants report from 10am to 6pm for each day of training at Norfolk Fair Trade, during which they participate in both seminars and hands-on storefront activity (either Monday and Thursday or Tuesday and Friday), which include:

Customer Co-Creation: Idea to Innovation. The participant: 1) learns how to get a new idea to market by practicing scenarios in a live business environment, 2) works with others to co-create a product or service and learns how to sell the concept, and 3) identifies the first customers and understands the continuous and ever-changing process of new product development.

Where Do I Start? The participant learns how to create a road map for a business – including basic business skills new entrepreneurs need to determine direction and make decisions. S/he also learns how to recognize and create value from business assets and break down objectives into priorities, designed to start gaining immediate traction.

These seminars reinforce, in a “learning-by-doing” format, what participants learned during the first week of classroom training. Participants are paid a rate of $10.48 per hour during their time at Norfolk Fair Trade.

Independent Study and Workshops. Participants are allocated about two days for independent study, including one day during which they develop their business ideas entirely on their own and are encouraged to perform “feet to the street” market research to advance their ideas (either Monday or Tuesday). On the second day, participants report to ODU’s Business Gateway to work on their business plans under the guidance of an instructor (Thursday or Friday). The Gateway recently contracted with a doctoral student in strategic management at ODU to provide ongoing individualized support to participants who are developing their business plans.

On the Wednesday of the second week, participants are engaged at the Business Gateway in a day-long, intensive Internet Marketing Boot Camp for Small Business, picking up where classroom training on social media ended the prior week. Using a test blog, participants work hands on with Google word search planner and GoDaddy hosting packages. By the end of the day, participants have actually set up their own blog/website.

33

Acker, Susan Smigielski (2014, March 17). Using profit to change the world. Inside Business, p. 16.


Business Mentoring. The Business Gateway has established a mentorship program that now consists of a substantial pool of successful small business owners, business coaches, subject matter experts, and those with previous small business mentoring experience in the local Norfolk area. To be eligible to apply, potential mentors are required to submit an application, sign a mentor-protégé agreement, attend a brief orientation with the program manager, and have been in business longer than two years or have previously run a small business. Following core training, the program coordinator evaluates each participant’s status and progress, to determine his/her readiness to be matched to a successful small business owner in the Norfolk area – who will serve as a mentor and business advisor, typically within the same industry, if not the same sub-industry. In exchange for providing guidance and counsel to participants in Launch Hampton Roads, mentors: 1) receive feedback from the Business Gateway on their mentoring styles and 2) themselves benefit from increased visibility in the community and opportunities for advancing their own ventures.

Networking and Special Events. Launch Hampton Roads hosts special events to help participants effectively network and practice their networking skills. Outside speakers provide guidance and talk about their own experiences starting a business. Participants are also connected to other events and workshops in the community, such as those held by Chambers of Commerce and other business organizations. Monthly peer networking and support groups also provide opportunities for program participants to interact with one another and discuss any difficulties or challenges. The program coordinator continues to work directly with participants to engage them in these post-core activities.

Case Management. Case management for Launch Hampton Roads is collaborative. Maintaining case notes through VOS is a shared function between the grant assistant, site director, and program coordinator. Grant assistant is responsible for case notes on participation in the information session and application, up to the point at which a participant has been selected. Once selected, the program coordinator takes over the monitoring of individuals in the service delivery phase, inside ODU’s Business Gateway. Grant assistant maintains physical case files on each participant, which are updated routinely. Since case management processes are governed by WIA guidelines, file management and content parallels that of the overall WIA caseload.

Performance Measures. Launch Hampton Roads reports on program performance in accordance with the following measures:

Number of participants engaged in the program

Retention rates of participants

Completion rates

Review of weekly and monthly reports to monitor pace of recruitment and intake against overall participation targets established in the grant application.


Supplemental Training. The program coordinator continues to closely engage participants individually in the period during and following core training. Once participants have completed core training, and have submitted a working draft of a business plan, they become eligible to be considered for additional training. This is funded with program resources, which may be provided internally through ODU’s Business Gateway, or externally through independent providers and resources. Whether in the form of individual instruction, classes, workshops, or other method, specialized training may be pursued in federal procurement, government contracts or subcontracting, exporting and specialized trade businesses, public speaking, and technical writing, plus special business, trade, or occupational licenses and permits.

Considered on a case-by-case basis, and assuming justifiable need and alignment with business goals, the program coordinator may direct participants to known options, or consider options requested by participants themselves. Though there is no specific limit, the program coordinator is considering only options that do not exceed $1,500. She submits a request for training to the program manager, who has approval authority. Where there is any uncertainty, the program manager submits the request to the Vice President for WIA and the project’s grant programs for formal approval.


Program exit requirements include completion of the following core services and milestones:

Completed the 40-hour core training and obtained the completion certificate

Submitted a preliminary business plan

Obtained each of four basic business establishment requirements (business name, business license, Dun & Bradstreet number, and federal EIN).

Some participants enter the program with some of the basic business establishment requirements already fulfilled. While awaiting issuance of formal guidance, there is ambiguity among staff on operating procedures to govern the actual program exit process. The program is continuing to make services available to participants as long as there is perceived need and they wish to remain active, which could extend for up to 12 months following enrollment.

While acknowledging the likely difficulty of applying some of the commonly used WIA measures to participants in entrepreneurship training programs, staff has not begun to consider how WIA follow up will be conducted procedurally.

6.5 Summary

The Launch Hampton Roads site has engaged services of additional staff members to implement the program. This site does not have case managers. Instead, the grant assistant, program coordinator, and site director serve collaboratively in the role of case manager.


Launch Hampton Roads has established a successful partnership with ODU, which, through the Business Gateway, opens doors for participants to a wealth of resources and opportunities throughout the university, both material and human. These resources include high technology facilities, professors representing ODU’s College of Business and Public Administration, and training instructors and others who themselves are experienced entrepreneurs.

Launch Hampton Roads recruits potential participants by distributing print materials, using social media, attending local entrepreneurship events, and coordinating with other programs that serve WIA adults. Participants are required to attend an information session at which they are introduced to the program and its basic requirements, as well as the steps for eligibility determination. Once selected, participants attend an individual orientation at ODU’s Business Gateway during which they learn about core services, undergo an assessment, and engage in an initial business consultation.

Participants engage in a regimen of core services that include business start-up core training in the classroom, opportunities to participate in a hands-on experience through the Norfolk Fair Trade Company, being matched with a business mentor in the local area, participating in networking and special events for entrepreneurs, and receiving supplemental training tailored to their own business needs. Case management is collaborative with the entrepreneurship grant assistant, site director and program coordinator working jointly.

Participants complete the program after completing the 40-hour core-training requirement, obtaining the completion certificate, submitting a business plan, and obtaining each of four basic business establishment requirements (business name, business license, Dun & Bradstreet number, and federal EIN). Though the requirements themselves are clear, SkillSource will be promulgating official guidance on procedures to follow when exiting participants, as well as procedures for following up on their status after exiting.


7. FINDINGS ACROSS SITES

This chapter summarizes the implementation activities undertaken by the three VETEC regional sites. Section 7.1 compares the key players in each site, their respective roles and responsibilities, and communication among them. Section 7.2 compares program activities related to outreach and recruitment, intake, application, orientation, services, exit, and follow up, and program performance measures.

7.1 Key Players

The implementation of the VETEC program is an orchestrated effort of several key players. Exhibit 20 summarizes their roles and responsibilities at each site. The VETEC model, as described in Chapter 3, specifies distinct roles for a site director, case managers, and site partners. During the process of VETEC project implementation, sites do not always adhere to these roles and sometimes involve other players not specified in the VETEC model. Site directors34 for ENOVATE and GR GATE are fulfilling their role as envisioned by the VETEC model. The only exceptions are that 1) the site manager for ENOVATE has more involvement in the management of case managers and outreach activities than specified in the program model and 2) the GR GATE division manager is entrusted with some of the responsibilities attached to case managers in the model.

Launch Hampton Roads has several players not specified in the VETEC model. The site manager has taken on additional responsibilities for all outreach efforts, conducting information sessions, and holding one-on-one meetings to complete applications for potential participants. In addition, this site does not have case managers. Instead, it has hired an entrepreneurship grant assistant to help with those program-related activities. The grant assistant, program coordinator and site director also serve collaboratively in the role of case manager. This site also uses the services of a WIA eligibility expert to determine eligibility for the program. In contrast, the case managers at the other two sites handle this part of the process as per the VETEC model. Neither an entrepreneurship grant assistant nor a WIA eligibility expert is among the key players specified in the VETEC model.

The role of training partners in outreach, recruitment, and other program related activities is left to the sites in the VETEC model. In actual site implementation, the training partners have varying levels of involvement depending on the site. In GR GATE, the training provider, CCWA, conducts most of the outreach and recruitment activities for the program, in addition to providing training services. In Launch Hampton Roads, the training provider, ODU, is also involved in case management and has access to the PTS.35

34

Referred to as site manager/project director/project manager by the different sites. 35

Summary of communications across sites is provided in Appendix D.


Exhibit 20: Roles and Responsibilities of Key Staff Key Players VETEC Paradigm ENOVATE GR GATE Launch HR

Site Director Overall program oversight, fiscal oversight and monitoring.

Coordinate with partners. Report to VETEC director

periodically about the program status.

Official Title: Program Manager Overall program oversight. Manages and provides overall

guidance to case managers. Actively involved in outreach

activities. Reports to VETEC director

periodically about the program status.

Official Title: Site Manager Overall program oversight. Responsibilities range from supply

requests, following up with contractors, to reporting on performance measures.

Reports to VETEC director periodically about the program status.

Official Title: Project Manager/Entrepreneurship Grant Coordinator

Overall program management. Conducts all outreach activities

and each information session. Meets applicants for one-on-one

application meetings. Reports to VETEC director

periodically about program status.

Case Managers Primary point of contact. Communicate with potential

participants about the program. Conduct outreach and recruitment. Conduct information sessions. Confirm eligibility and complete

application submission process. Enter participant into VOS and PTS. Maintain WIA/VOS files.

Same as program paradigm.

Same as program paradigm.

Grant Assistant, Program Coordinator, and Site Director serve partially in this role.

Other Partners Provide assistance to implement and conduct VETEC program.

Involvement in delivery of program services.

Role in outreach, and recruitment, is left to the discretion of sites.

Partners: Business Development Assistance Group (BDAG) and Northern Virginia Community College (NOVA).

Partner: Community College Workforce Alliance (CCWA).

Conducts most of the outreach to spread word about the program.

Conducts information sessions.

Partner: Old Dominion University (ODU).

Plays a role in case management. Program director updates

participant records in PTS.

Additional Players

Training Coordinator In charge of marketing. Oversees training activities. Allocates and tracks the program

resources.

Official Title: Program Coordinator Overseas training activities. Tracks program participants. Conducts participant follow up.

Entrepreneurship Grant Assistant

Assists with outreach, recruitment, activities and case management.

Conducts individual orientations. Responds to inquiries from

customers.

WIA Career Developer/SkillSource WIA

Expert

Not a formal member. Resolves issues related to program

eligibility.

Not a formal member. Determines eligibility for program.

Business Counselor/Consultant Guide participants to develop business development goals.

Provide outline of training curriculum and class schedule.

Dedicated counselors. Provide initial and on-going business

consultation. Assist participants with business

plans.

Dedicated counselors. Provide initial and on-going

business consultation. Assist participants with business

plans.

No dedicated counselor. Program coordinator and

instructors act as counselors to provide guidance to participants.


7.2 Program Activities

This section describes the program activities as implemented by the three sites.


Exhibit 21 shows the strategies used by the three sites to recruit participants for the VETEC program. The first column lists each recruitment strategy. The second column indicates whether the strategy is in the VETEC model. The remaining columns indicate whether each site employed the strategy. The model calls for sites to target individuals already in their VOS and WIA systems. These individuals are already attached to the workforce system and are more likely to be VETEC eligible. Similarly, the model calls for sites to reach out to customers who come into the AJCs for other employment services. ENOVATE outreach and recruitment relies heavily on WIA/VOS-enrolled individuals, and AJCs to recruit for its VETEC program. GR GATE also targets WIA enrolled individuals and uses AJCs to advertise about the program. Both GR GATE and Launch Hampton Roads are not using VOS to target individuals.

As seen in Exhibit 21, all three sites use a variety of outreach methods – in addition to the ones suggested by the VETEC model – to raise awareness about VETEC among the target populations. For example, use of social network sites is not included in the model, but two sites are using social media to provide program information.

No common advertising materials are shared across sites and there is no communication among the sites regarding recruitment strategies. Instead, sites have designed and developed their own advertising materials for all outreach and recruitment activities. Furthermore, each site uses a different combination of strategies to conduct outreach and recruit participants.


Exhibit 22 compares the information sessions implemented at each site with the VETEC model’s specifications. According to the program model, information sessions should not last more than one hour, and should cover a set list of topics. Most of the information session should be devoted to providing an overview of the program model, including a discussion of the purpose of VETEC, the services it provides, and what will be required of participants. In this way, the information provided should enable prospective applicants to make an informed decision on whether or not to apply. The sites have made changes to the information session over time to adhere more closely to the guidelines specified in the program model.


Exhibit 21: Outreach and Recruitment Strategies

Recruitment Strategies

VETEC Paradigm

ENOVATE GR

GATE Launch

HR 1 Advertise in local magazines, newspapers, and

newsletters

2 Attend community events, local employment and entrepreneurial events

3 Put advertisements online

4 Send email blasts

5 Send letters

6 Target WIA eligible individuals through VOS and/or AJC

7 Distribute brochures in different languages

8 Advertise in public libraries

9 Advertise via radio ads and billboards

10 Distribute brochures/pamphlets

11 Distribute Information Session Flyers

12 Present program information at incubators

13 Present program information at veteran organizations and veteran job fairs

14 Sponsor local entrepreneurship events

15 Use social media

Both ENOVATE and GR GATE are closely following the program model in terms of the duration of the information session and content presented. Interested individuals can receive initial eligibility screening at the information session if they have all required documents. The VETEC model allows sites to conduct the initial eligibility screening at the information session or later.

The Launch Hampton Roads information session is longer, at more than 90 minutes. The first 75 minutes are dedicated to presenting information as specified in the VETEC model. This portion of the information session also includes additional topics, such as services available to the control group and the follow-up survey. The remaining time is utilized for filing forms and making copies of eligibility documents. Although attendees are asked to bring eligibility documents, no eligibility screening is actually performed at the session.


Exhibit 22: Details of the Information Session

Information Session Topics

VETEC Paradigm ENOVATE GR GATE Launch HR

Registration Register online or by phone. Walk-ins are welcome.

Register online. Registrants receive confirmation

email. Walk-ins are welcome.

Register online or by email/phone. Walk-ins are welcome.

Register online via EVENTBRITE or by phone.

Registrants receive confirmation email. Walk-ins are welcome.

Frequency Monthly Monthly at 6 locations. Held every week at one of the three locations.

GR GATE Coordinator schedules what he calls “rapid response” sessions as needed.

Weekly at workforce center. Once a month in public library.

Duration Maximum 60 minutes.

45 minutes for presentation. Additional time for screening.

60 minutes for presentation. Additional time for screening.

90 minutes for two part presentation. First part (75 minutes) is mandatory. Additional time is utilized to fill forms and

make copies of the documents.

Topics Covered VETEC informational video. Containing program overview that clearly identifies three sites.

Program eligibility, program services, and effort required.

Overview of the evaluation component, including random assignment.

Veteran’s priority of service. Time for Q&A.

Same as specified in paradigm.

Covers basic information specified in paradigm.

Additional components: Information session also discusses WIA

services available if assigned to control group and follow-up survey to be administered to participants.

Second half of session is spent filling out parts of WIA eligibility paperwork (note, final eligibility is determined at later date).

Eligibility Screening Eligibility screening at the information session or at later date based on site’s discretion.

Make an appointment for a later date to determine eligibility and complete application process.

If attendees bring the documents to determine eligibility, they can be screened at the session.

If no documents, make an appointment with the case manager for a later date.

No eligibility screening. If attendees bring documents, copies are

made. All interested attendees make an

appointment for a later date.


7.2.3 Application Submission Process

VETEC participants are required to be dual-enrolled in both WIA and VETEC. However, the VETEC model explicitly states that individuals should not receive WIA application or assessment materials prior to random assignment. Furthermore, the model process differs slightly based on whether individuals are enrolled in WIA prior to their VETEC contact:

Enrolled in WIA prior to VETEC: Once assigned to the treatment group (receives VETEC services), the individual’s information is updated in VOS.

Not enrolled in WIA prior to VETEC: Once an individual is assigned to the treatment group, s/he completes the WIA enrollment process including any necessary WIA assessments. After this process is complete, the individual’s information is entered into VOS for the first time.

Exhibit 23 compares the application process as outlined by the VETEC model to the process actually implemented at each site. ENOVATE and GR GATE are closely following the application process outlined in the model. An individual’s WIA-related information is entered or updated into VOS only after they become program participants. Completion of WIA assessments occurs after Step 5 (random assignment). GR GATE program applicants have the option of completing the application at the information session if they have all the required documents. Although the program model specifies that individuals should enroll into WIA/VOS only after becoming program participants, Launch Hampton Roads deviates from the model at step 3. At this step, a VOS account is created for all individuals including those who are assigned to the control group.


Exhibit 23: VETEC Application Process by Site

Steps in VETEC Application Process

VETEC Paradigm ENOVATE GR GATE Launch Hampton Roads

Step 1 Applicant schedules application

appointment.

Same as specified in program

model.

Same as model.

Step 2 Formal eligibility determination is

made. Same as model.

Step 3 Individual completes VETEC

application.

At this stage VOS account

is created.

Step 4 Case manager enters individual

into Participant Tracking System. Same as model.

Step 5 Individual randomly assigned to

either the treatment or control

group.

Same as model.

7.2.4 Orientation

Specific details of the orientation session are presented by site in Exhibit 24. At all sites, following the application appointment and random assignment, all participants assigned to the treatment group attend an orientation session that ranges from 45 to 60 minutes (as in the model). ENOVATE and GR GATE have group components for the orientation sessions; Launch Hampton Roads schedules individual sessions. Orientation is organized and led by program staff at all sites, with active participation from site partners and training providers.

Orientation sessions are designed to introduce program participants to the program and provide an overview of key program details and expectations. The model includes a discussion of VETEC requirements and milestones, an introduction to site partners and their roles and responsibilities, and a description of what is expected from participants during the program. All the sites are covering these topics as specified in the program model. ENOVATE and Launch Hampton Roads use the individual meeting format to discuss assessment results. Individuals enrolled in ENOVATE also set up their initial business consulting appointments during this session.


Exhibit 24: Details of the Orientation Session

Orientation Session

Components VETEC Paradigm ENOVATE GR GATE Launch HR

Registration Process

Individuals enrolled in the program are to work with the VETEC program staff to schedule an orientation session.

All participants assigned to the treatment group attend an orientation organized by SkillSource.

The Administrative Assistant emails participants with the cohort number, standard program narrative, and orientation information.

ODU emails participants to schedule an individual orientation and to briefly describe what the orientation will accomplish.

Duration Unspecified. 60-minutes 45 to 60-minutes 60-minutes

Format (Group or Individual)

Unspecified. Group immediately

followed by an Individual session.

Group Individual

Presenter(s)

Led by program staff, with active participation from site partners and trainings providers.

Led by SkillSource/WIA, with active participation from NOVA and BDAG.

Case managers (key presenters).

Coordinator (optional) Business Consultants

(introduced but do not present).

Grant Assistant

Topics Covered

Introduction to the program.

Overview of key program details and expectations.

Requirements and milestones.

Introduction to site partners and their roles and responsibilities.

Description of what will be expected from participants during their participation.

Same as specified in paradigm.

CareerScope assessment is completed and the results are discussed.

Case managers work with participants to review IEP.

Participant’s set-up initial counseling appointment.

Description of Launch Hampton Roads supplemental services.

Discussion of results from PTS assessment quiz.


The VETEC model engages participants within a cohort in a regimen of intensive services. The key program services that collectively constitute the VETEC delivery model include:

1. Assessment

2. Business Counseling

3. Entrepreneurship Training

4. Mentoring


All VETEC participants are to receive training on the essential core curricula. In addition, sites have the flexibility to provide supplemental services. They provide detailed information on these services to the VETEC Project Director. Supplemental services vary across sites and include access to labs, legal services, and marketing tools, among other services.

Sites are given substantial flexibility when implementing their service delivery models. As Exhibit 25 shows, all sites are offering key program services. ENOVATE and GR GATE offer ongoing business counseling along with supplemental services. All sites provide business counseling and business mentoring to some extent, though the intensity of these services varies. ENOVATE and GR GATE have dedicated business counselors to provide initial business counseling. At Hampton Roads, the program coordinator serves as the business counselor. ENOVATE and Launch Hampton Roads also match program participants with mentors. At GR GATE, business counselors and course instructors act as mentors. Key program services are discussed in detail in the following sections.

Exhibit 25: Key Program Services

VETEC Paradigm ENOVATE GR GATE Launch HR Assessment

Business Consulting

Entrepreneurship Training

Mentoring

Assessment. Exhibit 26 shows the variation across sites in the assessments used and the processes followed. Following federal WIA policy, the Commonwealth of Virginia mandates that WIA participants receiving intensive training services must first complete an objective assessment to properly assess their basic skill levels and service needs. In some cases, individuals have already been assessed by WIA. VETEC participants who have not been assessed by WIA are assessed using one or more of the following tools: CRC, CareerScope, and TABE. The key differences between sites are the assessment tools used. All three sites also administer the PTS Assessment Quiz to all participants.


Exhibit 26: Details of the Assessment Process

Entrepreneurship VETEC Paradigm ENOVATE GR GATE Launch HR

Assessment Tools Assessment of basic skills. CareerScope or Career

Readiness Certification (CRC).

Career Readiness Certification (CRC).

CareerScope. Test for Adult Basic Education

(TABE).

Career Readiness Certification (CRC).

Test for Adult Basic Education (TABE).

Scheduling

If the participant has not already completed WIA assessments, the case manager provides access to a computer station to enable completion.

Case managers schedule individual sessions preferably prior to the orientation session.

In the initial email or telephone contact the Program Coordinator directs each participant to SBA.

Each participant is instructed to complete the assessment in advance and bring the responses to the orientation.

Format (Individual or Group)

Individual. Individual. Individual.

Process for Assessment

Interpretation

Case managers review the results with each participant and briefly discuss careers with which the participant’s interests and aptitudes are aligned.

Case managers explain the purpose for being assessed and what each instrument measures.

Case managers review the results with each participant and briefly discuss careers with which participant’s interests and aptitudes are aligned.

Program Coordinator uses assessment to engage the participant about suggested next steps.


Business Counseling. Exhibit 27 shows business counseling activities provided at each site. The VETEC program model states that program participants will attend an initial business consultation conducted by each site’s partnered business counselor. These counselors provide initial and ongoing business consultation and assist participants in creating the business plan and acquiring documentation. VETEC staff assist to schedule this appointment on behalf of the participant.

The initial consultation is to help guide participants in developing their individual business development goals and strategy, and to outline the VETEC business-training curriculum and class schedule. Based on the results of the self-assessment and this consultation, participants in need of additional training prior to starting VETEC services are enrolled in basic skills courses (e.g., computer trainings). GR GATE and ENOVATE each have dedicated business counselors. Alternatively, at Launch Hampton Roads, the program coordinator and instructors act as the counselors. Business consultants continue to be available throughout the duration of the program at all three sites.


Exhibit 27: Details on Business Counseling Provided Across Sites

Entrepreneurship VETEC Paradigm ENOVATE GR GATE Launch HR Service Provider Site’s partnered business counselor. Business Development

Assistance Group (BDAG). Consultants whose sole

responsibility is to provide business consulting.

Community College Workforce Alliance (CCWA).

Consultants whose sole responsibility is to provide business consulting.

Program Coordinator and instructors acts as business consultants.

Services Guide participants to develop business development goals.

Provide outline of training curriculum and class schedule.

Provide initial and ongoing business consultation.

Assist with the development of the business plan.

Assist participants in acquiring FEIN, DUNS number, business name, and business license.




Business consultants act as facilitator, coach, guide, mentor, and a resource to participants.




Supplemental or Other Services

BDAG acts as an intermediary, facilitating access to third-party sources including: (1) Export-import matters for international markets; (2) Special certifications for new business owners (3) Loan applications.

BDAG’s Marketing Manager provides assistance in developing a tailored marketing plan.

Integrate participation from the marketing, accounting, and legal consultants.

Frequency Ongoing and continuous. Two directional communication

and outreach between consultants and participants.

Ongoing and continuous. Two directional communication

and outreach between consultants and participants.

After initial consultation services are provided as needed.


Core Entrepreneurship Training. Following orientation, participants are enrolled in an intensive entrepreneurship training program. Training and training services are provided by site partners and training providers. Each site is to develop an entrepreneurship curriculum to serve as the foundation for successful implementation of a participant’s business plan, with site flexibility to design these training curricula when implementing service delivery. While the VETEC implementation model stipulates which nine core components are to be included, it does not specify the details of specific training. Sites can also determine the schedule and intensity of training and are allowed to decide whether to use existing service delivery models (if available) or create an entirely new strategy. In addition, VETEC encourages and supports participants in pursuing additional credentials when available and applicable to their chosen business line.

Details of the training programs across sites are presented in Exhibit 28. This exhibit shows that they are similar in certain respects, but the flexibility provided by the VETEC model has led to significant training differences in both content and contact hours. Total contact hours vary from 40 hours to 80 hours based on the location of the training. There is also variation in the supplemental training provided at each site. All the sites have similar attendance policies. However, ENOVATE also provides continuing education credits.

Mentoring is an important component of the core training. According to the program model, each site is to coordinate an entrepreneurship-mentoring program. The program is to be comprised of VETEC graduates and successful small business owners who serve as mentors and facilitate peer support groups. Both ENOVATE and Launch Hampton Roads match program participants with mentors. Hampton Roads uses a pool of approved small business owners, business coaches, subject matter experts, and those with previous small business mentoring experience in the Norfolk area as mentors. Business counselors act as mentors for GR GATE program.


Exhibit 28: Details of the Entrepreneurship Training Services

Entrepreneurship VETEC Paradigm ENOVATE GR GATE Launch HR Process Following orientation, participants start

the training. Same as model

Program Format Cohort classroom training. Allows for flexibility.

Cohort. Intensive Entrepreneurship

training program.

Cohort. Intensive entrepreneurship

training program.

Cohort. Intensive entrepreneurial

training program.

Total Classroom Hours 80 hours. 67 hours. 40 hours.

Core Training Simple Steps for Starting a Business Business Planning Accounting Finance and Credit Sales and Marketing Website Development/Social Media Networking/Special Events Specialized Training Entrepreneurship Mentoring Program

Entrepreneurship: The Basics (8 hours).

Mastering Sales Magnetism for Small Business Owners (12 hours).

Marketing for Small Businesses (12 hours).

Accounting for Small Business Owners (16 hours).

Understanding QuickBooks Premier (16 hours).

Getting Started in Business (4 hours)

Understanding Credit (7 hours) CORE FOUR Business Planning

(28 hours).

Considering Entrepreneurship (8 Hours).

Evaluating Your Business (8 Hours).

Starting Your Business (8 Hours).

Running Your Business (8 Hours).

Business Plan Reviews/Evaluating Your Business (8 hours).

Supplemental Training

Understanding QuickBooks Premier.

SCORE including: Start-up, business concept, marketing plan, financial projections and funding sources.

Match individuals with mentors.

Finance and Accounting for Nonfinancial Managers.

QuickBooks Premier. Networking for Small Businesses. Marketing for Small Businesses. Social Media for Small

Businesses. How to Build Your Own Business

Website. Entrepreneurial E-learning

courses. Business counselors act as

mentors.

Customer Co-Creation: Idea to Innovation.

Where Do I Start? Independent Study and

Workshops. Match individuals with

approved mentors.

Training Provider(s) Site partners and training providers NOVA. SCORE.

Individual instructors hired by GR GATE.

Old Dominion University’s Business Gateway.

Attendance Participants must complete 90% of the NOVA courses.

Participants must complete 100% of the core courses.

Participants must complete 100% of the core courses.


Case Management. Case management details across the three sites are presented in Exhibit 29. The model envisions VETEC case managers as the primary points of contact for individuals interested in the program. Their responsibilities include communication with prospective program applicants prior to the application process, VETEC eligibility confirmation, review and submission of VETEC applications, and entry of applicant data into the PTS. Case managers are also to be involved in VETEC outreach and recruitment activities. Although case management roles and duties vary, participants across all three sites receive some form of case management services. ENOVATE and GR GATE case managers perform additional duties along with the ones specified by the program model. Launch Hampton Roads does not have case managers as an official position. The entrepreneurship grant assistant in collaboration with the site director and program coordinator undertakes the responsibilities of a case manager.


Exhibit 29: Details of Case Management

Entrepreneurship VETEC Paradigm ENOVATE GR GATE Launch HR

Service Provider

On-site case managers. BDAG case managers.

On-site case managers. Grant Assistant, Site Director and Program Coordinator split the responsibilities of case manager.

Services

Primary point of contact. Outreach and recruitment. Communicate with

prospective program applicants prior to the application process.

Confirm VETEC eligibility. Review, accept, and submit

VETEC applications into PTS.

Enter and maintain WIA/VOS files.

Same as program model. Carry out all administrative tasks for providing program services.

Coordinate and schedule trainings and workshops.

Communicate with training providers regarding participants’ progress through the program.

Oversee program compliance (e.g., attendance).

Assist with make-up course scheduling.

Responsible to help participants with the initial setup of their business, including structure (only BDAG case managers).

Provide individualized support to assist with needs (e.g., gas cards).

Oversee program compliance (e.g., attendance).

Supplemental Services

GR GATE received $12,000 for the duration of the program to support individual participant needs.

Funds are distributed on a case-by-case basis by case managers.


7.2.6 Program Exit and Follow-up

Program Exit. VETEC exit requirements include: completion of the core training; development of a business plan in consultation with the assigned business consultant; and completion of basic business establishment requirements, including obtaining a business name, business license number, Dun & Bradstreet number, and federal EIN. Sites are using all of these requirements and have added additional requirements (such as completion of focus groups). So far, the main reasons individuals have exited from the program are that sites could not contact the individual after repeated attempts or for extraneous circumstances, such as incarceration.

Across sites, there is still ambiguity among staff regarding operating procedures governing the VETEC exit process. There is also confusion related to the definitions of when a participant has “exited” or “completed” the program, when a file is “closed,” and when business-consulting services should cease for individuals who have been “closed.” As the sites consider codifying official exit procedures to be followed going forward, program staff are mindful of establishing procedures that: 1) function in complete compliance within the regulatory framework of WIA, and 2) do not adversely jeopardize the participant’s status with respect to UI benefits.

Program Follow-Up. As of March 2014, no uniform procedures have been officially established to govern the process for post-exit participant follow up. Although staff acknowledges the likely difficulty of applying some of the common measures to participants in entrepreneurship training programs, it remains to be determined which staff (either WIA or VETEC) will be responsible for conducting follow up.

7.2.7 Program Performance

Submission of monthly and quarterly reports by each site is vital for monitoring overall VETEC program performance against grant goals. Currently, site directors at each site are fulfilling this requirement by submitting timely reports, on both monthly and quarterly basis, directly to the VETEC Project Director. Quarterly reports address updates, progress on accomplishments, and allow each site partner to provide updates on program needs and recent activity. Monthly reports are created from input across various staff components and capture applicant and enrollment demographics (e.g., gender, age, education level, and business idea by industry). There is consistency among staff across sites on the reporting measures, as well as the format and delivery schedule of these program performance reports.


8. LESSONS LEARNED AND RECOMMENDATIONS

8.1 Introduction

As part of fulfilling WIF funding requirements, the grantee engaged IMPAQ International as a third party independent evaluator to measure and evaluate the impact of the VETEC program. As stated in the VETEC grant application, the evaluation design assumes that each site will follow a set of common processes and implement essentially the same program. As a result, participants will have the same experience regardless of site location, starting from application through the program completion.

This report reviews the implementation of the VETEC program across the three participating demonstration sites to identify lessons learned, help develop potential solutions to identified challenges, and provide recommendations for continued implementation and improvement. These lessons learned serve as: 1) a guide for the three demonstration sites to continue to provide improved services, and 2) suggestions for additional sites to implement VETEC in their respective regions. New sites can benefit from important lessons that identify what successes and challenges to be aware of in launching, implementing, and managing an entrepreneurship program.

8.2 Lessons Learned

Based on data gathered during IMPAQ’s site visits and documented in the previous chapters, we draw two main conclusions.

The VETEC program has similar objectives and program steps at each site, although there is variation in the implementation and operation of the program across sites.

Staff and partners, along with potential and enrolled participants, have a positive view of the program.

Similar objectives and program steps. All three sites have outlined similar objectives for their programs and are following the program steps specified in the VETEC model. Sites have devised outreach and recruitment strategies and conduct information sessions and orientation sessions. Each site has also successfully designed training curricula and offers core and supplemental entrepreneurial training services, business counseling, and mentoring. However, variation exists across sites in the implementation of program steps. Methods used for outreach and recruitment, and duration and content of information and orientation sessions vary. There are also dissimilarities in terms of content and contact hours for the training services and intensity of business counseling and mentoring.

Positive program view. Despite challenges, many of which are natural by-products of implementing a new program, both staff and partners report VETEC as a “great program” and believe it is worth expanding. The quality and real life entrepreneurial experience of the instructors and the business consulting services stand out as best practices. The program has


evolved from being “a blank slate.” Site personnel agree that a solid foundation with a clearly defined plan, processes, and expectations is needed for the maturation of the program and next steps, so that all parties within and across sites are on the same page.

Successes. There have been significant successes achieved because of, and concurrent with, VETEC implementation. Below are eight key successes:

1. Dual Enrollment. All sites have been successful in integrating VETEC into WIA. All participants are dual-enrolled so they can continue to receive services under both WIA and VETEC. After exit, VETEC participants may continue with WIA for an undetermined time or until employed.

2. Performance measures. The program identified performance measures during implementation. Each region agreed to these performance measures. VETEC leadership successfully negotiated with the State authority to modify the WIA common measures for an entrepreneurship-training program. This is vital to the program since participants are dual enrolled in VETEC and WIA.

3. UI waiver. Obtaining the UI waiver was a significant VETEC success. It required modifications to Virginia’s VOS to allow entry of self-employment outcomes. It was difficult to implement, have people adjust to it, and have it recognized by the VA Employment Commission.

4. Cohort model. All the sites implemented a cohort model. This model is viewed as important and beneficial by staff, instructors, and participants. The cohort provides for a supportive team-learning environment where participants can be resources for each other both during and after the program.

5. Workshops and labs. The VETEC program has successfully integrated workshops and labs. Workshops and labs address staff and participant concerns regarding cohort members being overwhelmed with coursework. These forums provide opportunities to translate theory into practice, which is a core element of adult learning theory.

6. Curriculum. All three sites have successfully designed the entrepreneurship training curriculum. The VETEC implementation model stipulates which nine core components are to be included, but it does not specify the details of specific training. Sites have engaged instructors that bring real-world experience to the classroom along with extensive experience providing instruction. According to staff, the quality of instructors has been a critical factor in successful program implementation.

7. Random Assignment. One of the critical components of the program is to evaluate program impacts on participants. As the external evaluator, IMPAQ is responsible for all components of the evaluation process including random assignment. All sites are adhering to random assignment requirements as specified by IMPAQ.


8. Learn from experience. Sites are adapting to emerging needs and learning from their experiences. While standardization and fidelity to the VETEC model is critical, programs are being adaptive and have been evolving over 10 months to become more effective and efficient, to better serve participants.

Challenges. Along with the successes identified above, the sites have also faced several challenges during program implementation. Drawing on prior experience and based on observations and data collected through the site visits, the IMPAQ team has identified the following eight challenges. These ultimately inform recommendations that can improve implementation efforts moving forward.

1. Recruitment. It has been a challenge for the sites to recruit from the target population. The program targets a hard to reach population. There is no single clear location where entrepreneurs or individuals interested in self-employment congregate. To increase participation, sites should focus on recruiting WIA/VOS- enrolled individuals and veterans, and conduct more ‘boots on the ground’ outreach.

2. Marketing materials. According to staff, people often do not recognize program logos or understand the meaning of an entrepreneurship program. Sites should focus on designing marketing materials with a message that resonates while not creating unrealistic expectations about the program.

3. Information session. The information provided during the information sessions has evolved and improved, but still uses terminology (e.g., treatment group) not easily understood by lay people. Sessions should be limited in time to cover only pertinent information, as defined by the model. It would be helpful also to provide detailed and concrete information on the level of commitment needed to complete the program.

4. Case Management. As specified in the VETEC model, it is important to engage case managers in providing program assistance. Having dedicated case managers is a best practice. Further, clarification is needed regarding how case files should be organized and what should be specified in them. A checklist, for example, might be helpful. Clear guidance should be given regarding what needs to be monitored and what performance standards are expected.

5. Standard training model. Sites do not follow a standard model for training. Program requirements for classroom training vary from 40 hours to 80 hours across sites. Sites determine the schedule and intensity of training and whether to use existing service delivery models or create entirely new strategies. It would be beneficial to identify a common standard across programs. The program model should explicitly state the required number or range of hours of training, as well as the number of hours dedicated to each training activity.

6. Business plans. The business plan is considered a key VETEC completion component, so quality should be monitored. There is no standard VETEC form for the business plan; as


a result, plans vary greatly in quality and format. Standard formats (e.g., SBA model) exist that could serve as templates. In addition, since one goal of the business plan is to obtain capital and loan money, the end product should maximize the participant’s chances for submitting a successful loan application.

7. Exit. Considerable confusion centered on the definition of program completion and program exit. Across sites, staff were provided with ambiguous operating procedures governing the program exit process. Additionally, they were confused regarding the definition of when a participant “exited” or “completed” the program, when a file was “closed,” and when business-consulting services should cease after an individual was “closed.”

8. Communication. Communication across sites is limited. Staff and partners recognize that with the involvement of multiple internal and external parties, communication is key to program success. Moving forward, VETEC sites should identify ways to leverage resources and create shared /common tools. It would be useful to share materials and lessons learned across sites.

8.3 Evaluation Next Steps

Now that the implementation study is complete, IMPAQ will conduct the VETEC process study in 2015. The process study will include visits to each of the three sites running the program. These site visits will include focus groups with VETEC participants, and review of relevant documents on program implementation. This qualitative process evaluation will complement the planned impact evaluation by examining why and how certain outcomes occur through a study of the factors that affect program impacts.