Since 2022, I have been serving a two-year appointment to the National Advisory Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship (NACIE), a federal advisory committee managed by the U.S. Economic Development Administration’s (EDA) Office of Innovation and Entrepreneurship under Gina Raimondo, U.S. Secretary of Commerce. Beginning last October and through March of this year, I led a subcommittee of advisory council members shaping a $10B Regional Innovation Hub program that will be funded by The CHIPS & Science Act.
The program prioritizes advancing technologies, building new businesses, and shifting talent patterns around diversity, inclusivity, and job opportunities. It will invest “catalytic” $1B over five years in 10 state ecosystems that qualify for Tech Hub Designation.
Colorado’s Big Opportunity: Tech Hub Designation
After learning so much from my colleagues, the EDA, and the Department of Commerce, I came back to Colorado to help our state pursue Tech Hub Designation.
In April 2023, Governor Polis and the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade (OEDIT) launched TechHubNow!, a new public-private initiative to accelerate statewide collaboration, highlight Colorado’s strengths as a tech hub, and bring together partners who will develop equitable, inclusive, and highly competitive applications for Tech Hub Designation.
TechHubNow! seeks to catalyze innovation and entrepreneurship in Colorado “through advanced technologies that deliver economic and national security.”
In fact, Colorado already has components of a successful hub, including:
One to two advanced technologies (KTFA) serve as the clear focal point
A strong leader to bring together the coalition and execute on its mission
Based in a defined place (MSA), but with clear benefit to surrounding rural communities
Attract and grow diverse talent via inclusive ladders of opportunity
Grow a collaborative ecosystem of established companies & startups
Connect and accelerate industry applied R&D with academia
Appeal to investment from private & public sector funding
Gathering a Consortium & Government Support
Since March, I’ve been working with state economic development officials at the Office of Economic Development and International Trade (OEDIT) to communicate about the tech hub opportunity to our stakeholders. I’m delighted to be collaborating on these efforts with the new Executive Director of OEDIT, Eve Lieberman.
In April, TechHubNow! and OEDIT officials—along with Angela Martinez, Regional Director, U.S. Department of Commerce, and Trent Thompson, Economic Development Representative for Colorado at U.S. Department of Commerce—met with Alejandra Castillo, the Assistant Secretary of Commerce of the EDA to announce Colorado’s intention to seek Tech Hub Designation.
And, in August, Governor Polis and OEDIT announced two strategic proposals to secure federal designation: the Colorado Cleanrange Consortium, representing advanced energy and cleantech industries, and Elevate Quantum–transforming our state’s nationally competitive clean energy tech hub into a global leader and establishing Colorado as the world’s leading hub for quantum information technology.
As I said when the state announced TechHubNow’s launch: My goal is to ensure we elevate our status as a national innovation leader to become a premiere inclusive global tech hub, driving wide-scale, state-wide opportunities for family-sustaining, tech-related careers. TechHubNow! will help Colorado’s coalition to create the most robust application to ensure Colorado is designated and receives funding as an innovation hub.
Recently I had the pleasure of speaking about that new program with David Ponraj on Breaking Down Barriers, a podcast that “explores the opportunity to build wealth in local, regional, and national economies through entrepreneurship-led economic development.”
We discussed:
The Regional Innovation Hub program’s plan for “catalytic” investment of $1B in 10 state ecosystems over five years.
What the Regional Innovation Hub program prioritizes: advancing technologies, building new businesses, and shifting talent patterns around diversity, inclusivity, and job opportunities.
What qualifies a region for the program, and why the program prioritizes a region’s potential over its need–the assets, resources, and opportunities that will translate into the greatest wins for the national economy, as well as for national security.
The importance of breaking down barriers for traditionally marginalized communities, setting the conditions for new businesses to launch and thrive.
Where ecosystem development starts, ideally: Mapping conditions and assets in the region or state, then recognizing opportunities to connect businesses and other entities for growth.
The significant impact startup communities have on state, region, or community ecosystems when “nodes” are connected, including entrepreneurs, angel investors, incubators, universities, and corporate entities.
The National Advisory Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship (NACIE) is in the Department of Commerce. Its purpose is to support entrepreneurs who are advocating for innovative technologies. Regional Innovation Hubs is one program under CHIPS & Science. Learn more about NACIE and the Regional Innovation Hub program.
Celebrating a big transition–and Energize Colorado’s next phase
In March, Energize Colorado kicked off its fourth year by celebrating its major impacts since launching in response to the COVID-19 crisis in 2020, and I announced my transition from CEO to Chair of the organization, effective April 1st.
From the very beginning, co-founder Brad Feld and I along with our fellow co-founders – Marc Nager, Erik Mitisek, Abram Sloss, and Eric Drummond – sought to unite Energize Colorado partners, volunteers, and board members. We also focused on building a dedicated Energize Colorado team to close significant gaps in support for Colorado’s small businesses.
The transition from CEO to Chair allows me to both focus on emerging economic development opportunities at federal and state levels, and it also supports Energize Colorado’s next phase of growth in service to the state’s underinvested in entrepreneurs and small businesses.
The Next Step: Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) Certification
Over the last three years, Energize Colorado has sought to meaningfully address the nearly half-billion-dollar gap in small business funding in Colorado, particularly for women, BIPOC, veterans, and rural small business owners and entrepreneurs.
Our unique, data-driven approach resulted in Energize Colorado becoming Colorado’s newest and most efficient mechanism for deploying low-cost capital in tandem with dedicated assistance. To date, Energize Colorado has deployed $45M in grant and loan capital to more than 5,000 small business owners and entrepreneurs.
Through that process, it became clear that our state needs innovative ways to deploy capital to those who have been historically underserved. To best meet our mission of “creating a resilient and equitable small business ecosystem,” we decided that the organization should seek to become a certified Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI). Energize Colorado will make this transition over the next two years.
To best support this direction, I recommended to our Board that we seek a new CEO to guide the organization through the process of becoming a CDFI. In the meantime, Scott Romano, Energize Colorado’s Chief Operating Officer and the organization’s first employee (hired in September of 2020), will serve as interim CEO. Current Board Chair and co-founder Brad Feld will stay active on the board as Chair Emeritus, actively participating in selecting the next CEO.
As Chair, I will be focused on fundraising, leading the search committee for a new CEO, and supporting the team on a successful path as the organization seeks to achieve CDFI status.
Contributing to National Policy and Regional Innovation Hub Strategy
In my new role as Board Chair, I will support Energize Colorado’s mission by enhancing my involvement with other state and regional initiatives and federal programs supporting the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Colorado.
In the next phase of my work, I look forward to taking an active role in Colorado’s pursuit of the CHIPS Act Regional Innovation Hub strategy and continuing to serve on Governor Polis’ Revenue Estimation Advisory Council (GREAC). It is my continued goal to provide input to national policy and programs that will benefit Colorado entrepreneurs and beyond.
Highlights from the Energize Colorado 2022 Impact Report
As Energize Colorado wraps up 2022 (our third year of operation), I am excited to share highlights from our Impact Report. Supported by our partners, volunteers and board members, the Energize Colorado team has made significant progress toward building a more resilient ecosystem in Colorado by supporting small businesses, particularly those owned by the most underinvested in groups of entrepreneurs: women, rural, veterans, and BIPOC.
The numbers are impressive. Since Energize Colorado’s founding in March, 2020, we have:
supported 10,000 businesses through Energize Colorado programs
provided 5,000 businesses with $45M in grants and loans
engaged 650 volunteers
collaborated with 75+ partners in the promotion and delivery of first the Energize Community program
In 2022, Energize Colorado:
awarded $41 million in grants to 4,363 entrepreneurs across underinvested in communities
deployed more than $1.7 million in low-interest loan dollars to 92 entrepreneurs across the state
mentored 65 entrepreneurs in the 10-week Energize Community Accelerator
launched the Community Resource Compass, including 75 community resources
surveyed 14,000 small business owners for the Small Business Resiliency Index (SBRI)
Strength in Three Core Areas
In 2022, Energize Colorado shifted focus to strengthen capabilities in three core areas: capital deployment, ecosystem innovation, and research and insights. Energize Colorado now delivers capital through our new revolving loan fund, which expedites the time it takes from loan application to receiving funds. The Energize Community Program (ECP) is Energize Colorado’s fprogram that deploys funds through our revolving loan fund.
From the start, Energize Colorado focused on ecosystem innovation through leveraging the expertise of our team and volunteers to fill gaps within the small business ecosystem. This year, we identified two specific gaps: 1) the lack of a technical assistance resource directory, and 2) the challenges of capital absorption.
Research and insights set Energize Colorado apart from other lenders. The Small Business Resiliency Index (SBRI) has been incorporated with all of our capital programs. The SBRI is the first comprehensive index that tracks the impacts of society’s economic cycles on the Colorado small business ecosystem and the barriers small business owners face in building resiliency and inclusivity into their future growth. By measuring the resiliency of small businesses, business owners can better understand what to do to become more resilient in the event of the next economic downturn.
Looking Forward to 2023—and Beyond
We are excited to iterate on ECP and continue our mission of building a more resilient and equitable small business ecosystem in Colorado. We pride ourselves on being builders and innovators – this is our secret sauce – but none of it would work without the community of volunteers, partners, community leaders, elected officials, and generous supporters who believe in our mission to support the most underinvested in entrepreneurs in our state, as they are the bedrock of Colorado’s culture and prosperity.
I’m delighted to announce that I have accepted two new opportunities to share my expertise in entrepreneurship and innovation at the national level.
This month, I begin a two-year appointment to the National Advisory Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship (NACIE), a federal advisory committee managed by the U.S. Economic Development Administration’s Office of Innovation and Entrepreneurship. Gina Raimondo, U.S. Secretary of Commerce, has reestablished NACIE with the primary goal of developing a National Entrepreneurship Strategy that “strengthens America’s ability to compete and win as the world’s leading startup nation and as the world’s leading innovator in critical emerging technologies.”
NACIE is charged with identifying and recommending solutions to drive the innovation economy, including growing a skilled STEM workforce and removing barriers for entrepreneurs ushering innovative technologies into the market. The council also facilitates federal dialogue with the innovation, entrepreneurship, and workforce development communities. I’m thrilled to be working again with co-chairs Steve Case (Chairman/CEO of Revolution, Chairman of the Case Foundation, and Chairman, Startup American Partnership) and Kristina Johnson, President of The Ohio State University.
I’m also thrilled to be joining the Advisory Board of the Center for American Entrepreneurship, a nonpartisan Washington, DC–based research, policy, and advocacy organization that “works with policymakers at the federal, state, and local levels across the country to build a policy environment that promotes new business formation, survival, and growth.” I have been following John Dearie’s policy work for the last 5 years. Through Ian Hathaway, who is a CAE Fellow, John and I were formally introduced. John and his team do great work on behalf of entrepreneurs across the U.S. It will be an honor to work with Joni Cobb (Chair of CAE), John and fellow Advisory and BOD members.
As excited as I am to impart learnings from my ecosystem building work in Colorado and the Midwest in Ohio, I am eager to learn from others serving CAE and NACIE, including corporate innovators, entrepreneurs, ecosystem builders, venture capitalists, university leaders (presidents and PhDs focused on commercialization) and other leading technology innovators and advocates.
As Abigail Adams said, “Learning is not attained by chance, it must be sought for with ardor and attended to with diligence.” The continuous cycle of learning and contributing, along with the opportunity to build new relationships with like-minded professionals across the U.S., are my primary motivators for these two new engagements.
In March, Energize Colorado turned two. As anyone on my team can tell you, I’m immensely proud of the work we have done and the impact we’ve delivered in those two years.
Little did I our volunteers know that some of our co-founders and board members were working behind the scenes to have the Governor’s Office recognize our second anniversary with this proclamation:
As we head into year three, Energize Colorado has ambitious plans to deepen its impact through the Energize Community Program, including funding readiness, a community accelerator, and a low-cost loan program for businesses in East Colfax, SW Denver, Pueblo, and the child care industry.
Reflecting on these two years, I see serving Colorado as a natural progression from my experience as CEO of Cintrifuse, the public-private partnership that built a thriving innovation ecosystem in SW Ohio. Leading Energize Colorado has deepened my insights about regional economic ecosystems, how they perform under stress (such as a pandemic), and what is required for businesses to thrive now. It has underscored for me the necessity of lifting small businesses in rural or historically marginalized communities now and in years to come.
Looking further back, I see that the entrepreneurial mindset I’ve learned to trust over the decades—one that embraces big vision while maintaining the flexibility to find the right people and the path to achieve that vision–has served Energize Colorado well. I’ve leaned into strengths in digital innovation as well as my delight in connecting generous people who want to give back with opportunities to do so. This gives me so much joy.
Moving forward, I know that this unprecedented time and experience in launching Energize Colorado has strengthened my resolve to build a sustainable organization, one that leads with understanding and respect for Colorado’s small business ecosystem and remains eager to do our part to connect and collaborate with all who share a mission to lift our state’s underserved businesses.
Which factors contribute most to business resiliency? To the resilience of innovation ecosystems and economies? It may surprise you to learn that the mindsets of people within the business are as predictive as use of technology or access to capital.
That’s the message of Theo Edmonds, JD, MHA, MFA, and Cameron Lister, MPH, co-founders of UPOP, a research firm that uses a data-based approach to look at “specific culture signals that reliably predict performance outcomes, employee wellbeing, and growth.” UPOP helps companies see cultural factors that point to resilience in their future.
Edmonds and Lister started UPOP as a research project within a National Science Foundation-sponsored research center in Louisville, Kentucky. In 2021, they moved operations to Denver and played a leading role in structuring Energize Colorado’s Small Business Resilience Index (SBRI), a tool we designed to help businesses and policy makers better understand Colorado’s current small business landscape.
SBRI Spotlights the Whole Human
The SBRI includes data from surveys sent to approximately 14,000 small business owners from Energize Colorado’s database. Incorporating Edmonds’ and Lister’s holistic approach to business health, the SBRI analyzes metrics of social capital with those of operational capital. More typical business metrics (operations and technology) are measured alongside those of hope, trust, and belonging—the “whole human.”
What do hope, trust, and belonging mean in business? Hope measures how businesses set goals for the future and find ways around barriers to success. Trust includes receiving guidance from the state and trusting state leadership. Belonging measures how owners feel the business and they belong in the broader community, crucial to shared success.
“What has surprised people most is that hope, trust, and belonging are so strongly predictive of success as opposed to operational metrics, like cash on hand, sales, profit, and so on,” says Lister.
The Challenge—and the Opportunity
The SBRI reveals opportunities to improve factors that contribute to resilience among Colorado’s small businesses. For example, during the last two years, a lack of timely and consistent information from all levels of government led many businesses to distrust the wide range of programs made available to them. That distrust further reduced their access to capital, technical assistance, and other resources that could have directly supported them and contributed to the state’s small business economic recovery. Trust was even further eroded among BIPOC and Veteran communities.
Many small businesses also lacked a strong future orientation (hope). Those with higher levels of optimism and adaptability fared far better in economic recovery.
“We’re used to thinking about business in linear processes,” says Edmonds. “Looking at people and businesses—at innovation ecosystems—in that way is no longer serving most of us by any data measure. Research has clearly shown that hope, belonging, and trust are predictive of how willing or not willing people are to engage, to create social capital, to utilize resources offered to them, all of which contributes to business resilience.”
The Future: Culturally Responsive Economies
The SBRI provides an efficient way to identify the earliest signals of where the economic and business market may be going, and how to unlock the dormant capacity of diverse entrepreneurs to build those markets. “What we’ve done over the last several years is essentially find a Rosetta stone for understanding different types of groups that allows us to understand where people might fall within resilience and innovation,” says Edmonds.
When state economic leaders address cultural factors, explains Lister, “not only will you solve economic issues and problems, but at the same time, you’ll solve human issues and problems, which will provide more resiliency in the face of challenges in the future.”
“Let’s get state and local leaders to understand the role hope, trust, and belonging have on economic development” says Lister. “Let’s take the measures to start figuring out culturally responsive approaches to solving system problems that impact our economy.”
As Energize Colorado nears yet another milestone—entering its third year in March 2022–I’m pleased to share that Kaiser Permanente has made a $1 million contribution to Energize Colorado’s Gap Fund. Since 2020, the Gap Fund has deployed nearly $27M directly to small businesses in the forms of grants and low-interest loans. Philanthropic enterprises like Kaiser Permanente are taking note, recognizing the value of contributing to efforts that reach the businesses and communities most in need.
“In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, community-based organizations are creating ways to serve businesses and community members,” says Stephanie Ledesma, interim senior vice president of community health programs for Kaiser Permanente. “Awarding grants to these organizations furthers our shared commitment to inclusive economic growth, which builds upon our long-standing commitment to supporting the social needs of our members and communities.” With the support of Kaiser Permanente and its leaders, especially Mena Yaft who serves on the Gap Fund Executive Committee, Energize Colorado has been able to help businesses bridge a gap during an unprecedented time.
In addition to supporting small businesses directly through the Gap Fund, grant money received from Kaiser Permanente will help us execute our new Square Mile Program. The Square Mile Program aims to improve the economic outcomes in underserved communities in the Pueblo, Southwest Denver, and East Colfax corridor areas, as well as in the childcare provider industry. The intent is to meet small businesses owners where they are, helping them prepare to with loan readiness and providing business advising and technical assistance while creating a community cohort of businesses that support one another. The Square Mile strategy is a top initiative for 2022. Read more about the Square Mile Program in Kaiser Permanente’s recent article.
Join me in congratulating the Energize Colorado team and in thanking Kaiser Permanente for its support.
In the wake of COVID-19, which factors have contributed most to the economic resilience of Colorado’s small businesses? As the state looks toward recovery, how are our underserved small businesses faring? The team at Energize Colorado and I were eager to know.
With a green light from the State of Colorado, I set to work forming a diverse and creative group of economists, public health experts, and business leaders to answer those questions. The Energize Colorado team and I collaborated with CU Leeds School of Business, McKinsey & Co., and Underestimated People of Purpose to create the first comprehensive index tracking the COVID-19 pandemic’s impacts on the Colorado small business economy.
The Small Business Resilience Index (SBRI) is a culturally responsive dataset that includes social capital as well as business capital, critical factors for resilience. We analyzed 750 responses from surveys sent to 14,000 small business owners in Energize Colorado’s database, measuring the correlation between the SBRI, demographics, and overall business performance in order to understand predictors of small business resilience. We included measures of social capital—hope, trust, and belonging. How were small business owners, the individuals who matter most to the success of the business, coping?
The SBRI data point to common barriers small businesses face, including access to capital, which disproportionately impacts businesses with net revenue under $500,000 per year. Because of this and other factors, Colorado’s smaller businesses continue to lag in recovery.
Key Findings of the SBRI
82% of respondents said the 2020 pandemic and lockdowns had hurt their businesses, and 46.5% of businesses said they believed they would not be able to continue to operate if another lockdown happened today.
We estimate that small businesses in Colorado making under $500K/year in revenue lost an estimated 7.5 to 8.2 billion dollars in profit over 2020, equal to 2.3% of Colorado’s total GDP or a 160% of the state’s total GDP loss alone last year.
These businesses struggled to access relief funds as well.
Those making more than $500k in revenue performed significantly better.
36.0% reported a >15% decrease in profit last year, compared to 8.0% reporting a >15% increase.
“Trust” in local and state governments from small business owners scored the lowest (getting a 56 out of 100 possible).
The greatest contributor to low trust scores, in addition to difficulty receiving recovery funds/loans, was a lack of timely consistent information about economic conditions and policy changes.
Companies that were more adaptable to new technology and its uses performed significantly better than companies that did not focus on these areas.
Educational attainment is significantly related to technological adoption and goal-setting/KPIs.
A Culturally Responsive Index
Cultural responsiveness is the ability to learn from and relate respectfully with diverse groups of people. The SBRI looks at the dormant capacities of diverse entrepreneurs to build markets, and Energize Colorado’s culturally responsive approach to using quantifiable data science to find these early signals supports the growth of the Colorado business community.
It’s our vision that, by quantifiably measuring the small business ecosystem, the SBRI will be a guiding light for future program development for Energize Colorado as well as a tool to help small businesses access specific resources to improve their resilience. To that end, we have presented the data to state economists and will be sharing our insights with Colorado’s small businesses in the first quarter of 2022.
Each small business that responded to the survey will receive a specific report that includes a resilience score and actionable insights, plus connections to resources across the state that can help bolster their resilience. We are also planning small educational events to teach businesses about the vectors of resilience that are unique to our findings. Although we can’t predict when the next downturn will happen, it’s our hope that the SBRI will help businesses when that time comes, that with these insights they’ll be stronger and they’ll navigate better.
Which macro trends are driving changes in Colorado’s small business economy? And what do those trends look like at the ground level? These are some of the key questions that Colorado Governor Jared Polis asks of the economists and business leaders who serve on the state’s Revenue Estimating Advisory Committee (GREAC).
I’m honored to announce my appointment to GREAC as of October 2021. Housed under the Governor’s Office of Planning and Budgeting, the committee is led by Luke Teater (Chief Economist, Governor’s Office) and Lauren Larson (Director, Governor’s Office of State Planning and Budgeting). I’m delighted to serve alongside Energize Colorado’s Brian Lewandowski, Executive Director of Business Research at CU Boulder, as well.
I look forward to joining these and other outstanding committee members and to contributing insights gleaned from the 20-plus months I’ve led Energize Colorado. It’s my hope that what I’ve learned in serving Colorado’s small business community—particularly rural-, minority-, women-, and veteran-owned businesses—will help economists not only predict revenue, but influence policies and programs that can bolster Colorado’s small businesses over the long term.
