Do you still encourage the use of the engineer-centered Lean Canvas (circa 2010)?

Not everyone identifies with the term “entrepreneur”.  And for good reason. Entrepreneurs are seen as mini-capitalists–working to become big capitalists. But that’s changing.   Today’s social justice, climate conscious, deep systems change oriented entrepreneurs are working in ways that challenge “patriarchal, colonial, white supremacist culture, gas guzzling SUV” era defined venture building dogma, advice and support. We call them liberation or liberatory entrepreneurs.  They are interested in exploring flat growth curves, anti-oppression-based operational and governance, wealth redistribution frameworks, how to lead with love, communal entrepreneurship models, and most importantly, pursuing the personal transformation need to clear a path towards new possibilities.

It’s time to review your program and ask “is my program outdated?”.  Here are a few questions to help you assess where you are at:

1. Does your advisory board, board, staff meet the 50/30 standard?
2. Does your program still teach lean startup practices?
3. Do you privilege the standard for profit, venture backed enterprise structure? Above all other venture forms? Do you have the expertise onboard to help entrepreneurs looking to build worker cooperatives, enterprise level mutual aid networks?  How to challenge IP ownership models?
4. Have you designed a program that reflect multiple worldviews on enterprise crafting and what being an liberation entrepreneur is about?
5. Do you encourage new economy thinking by teaching entrepreneurs about the history of capitalism and integrate teachings from non-business related realms like philosophy, spirituality, history and the arts?
6.  Is your mentor pool and ecosystem equipped to help entrepreneur develop alternative resourcing or flat growth strategies?

These are just some of the areas in which most programs fall far short.  And where we come in.

What we do:

• Evaluate current organization, programming/curriculum and content from a DEI but also post growth/feminist perspective.
• Help determine interest in liberation entrepreneurship in your service area
• Co-create new curriculum, facilitator guides with you and your stakeholders
• Assess/Report/Design participant recruitment processes
• Help you re-think mentor recruitment, onboarding and training for liberatory spaces.
• Create liberatory mentor onboarding/training programs/manuals
• Help you develop entrepreneurship “consciousness raising” groups or programs to unlock imagination.
• Support program evaluation frameworks.
• Offer unique workshops and facilitate offers and needs markets.

Some of our formal training and credentials:

• Experience as radical entrepreneurs, incubator leaders/managers and innovative curriculum development project leaders.
• Trauma Informed, Mental health aware facilitation, mentoring, and advisory services.
• Lived experience developing and implementing 10+ programs
• Feminist facilitation practices
• Trauma of Money certification (July 2022)
• Post Growth Institute “Offers and Needs” facilitation.