HIRI PCBR Database - Intermediary Profile Report - Association for Enterpise Opportunity

PHILANTHROPIC CAPACITY-BUILDING RESOURCES
DATABASE - INTERMEDIARY ORGANIZATIONS

Report Title:	Intermediary Profile Report
Report Date:

Organization:	Association for Enterpise Opportunity	Program ID Number: I-16
Date Profile Created:	May 3, 2006	Date Profile Last Updated: May 3, 2006

Program Summary:
The Association for Enterprise Opportunity (AEO) is a national association of organizations committed to microenterprise development. It provides its members with a forum, information, assistance, and a voice to promote enterprise opportunity for people and communities with limited access to economic resources. Its services include pass-through grants and loans, training/technical assistance, consulting, policy and advocacy work, communications, research, and strategic partnerships and alliances.

Started by national group of practitioners and funders in 1991, AEO is is supported to a large extent by foundations and corporations, along with membership dues and other sources of income. Among AEO's collaborators are DHL, eBay Foundation, Citigroup Foundation, W.K. Kellogg Foundation, Hewlett-Packard Company, Prudential Foundation, Covad Communications Group, Field, Aspen Institute, and J.P. Morgan Chase Foundation.

AEO provides assistance to member organizations and programs that are involved with microenterprise development. It often works in partnership with funders who usually have a particular group of 4-8 organizations that will receive assistance. Awardees typically use the financial assistance they receive for training, loans to clients, and related purposes. Grants or loans sometimes are based on a region of geography, minority status, income levels, gender, or other criteria.

A four-to-five day national conference and membership meeting with comprehensive training is offered annually. Additionally, a regional, two-day training institute is offered three to four times per year; typically serving 200 people for each and targeted to their specific areas and needs. Scholarships are usually available to representatives of member organizations to attend the national and regional events. AEO also provides leadership scholarships, especially for minority women involved in microenterprise development, and gives awards annually organizations that have established innovative programs or technology to increase program scale. Information and research on a wide range of topics related to the microenterprise development field are compiled from national resources and institutes and made available to members and the public. AEO also publishes a newsletter, manages listservs, and operates peer networking groups. Members participate on various committees of the association to help change and grow the field.

AEO operates a number of targeted programs. For example, the Prudential Young Entrepreneur Program assists emerging entrepreneurs aged 18-30, and the Microenterprise Standards and Accreditation Project (MSAP), under the AEO MSAP/Research Committee, is working to define standards of acceptable operation for microenterprise organizations and to measure compliance with them.

Internal and external evaluation of programs are conducted regularly, including reviews of milestones in the strategic plan, and reviews of training activities, and surveys of those who have used association services.

Contact Name:	Katie Igrec Lima
Title:	Manager of Special Initiatives
Phone:	(703) 841-7760 ext. 38
Fax:	(703) 841-7748
E-mail Address:	Kigrec-lima@assoceo.org
URL:	www.microenterpriseworks.org

Address:

1601 North Kent Street, Suite 101
Arlington, VA 22209

Date Program Began:	1991	Total Funds Awarded for Most Recent Fiscal Year:	$2,513,844
Date Program Scheduled to End:	N/A	Total Capacity-Building Operating Expenses for Most Recent Fiscal Year:	$232,075

How Program is Operated:

Run internally by the intermediary

Number Staff/Consultants:

17/2

Background Materials Available:

Yes

Geographic Areas Served:

National:

Yes

International:

Selected States:	N/A
Geographic Details:	U.S. and Puerto Rico

Types of Capacity-Building Assistance Offered to Nonprofits:

1. Grants:	2. Direct Service:	3. Direct Financial Support:
Categorical Program	Assessment of Service Needs Coaching/Training for Individual Nonprofits Convening Education/Training for Groups of Nonprofits Information and Referral Infrastructure for Peer Networking Participation in Community Capacity-Building Initiative Website with Capacity-Building Assistance	Facilities/Equipment Support Loans Working Capital

Grants Offered to Capacity-Building Service
Providers and Intermediaries:

*Support for Services to Nonprofits:*	Yes
*General Support:*	Yes

Grants Offered to Support Overall Capacity-Building Infrastructure:

N/A

Areas of Nonprofit Operations Supported:	How Funding/Service Decisions Are Made:
Administration + Finance Communication (Internal/External) Evaluation Fund Development Governance (Board/Executive) Human Resources Information/Technology Support Planning Staff Development/Training	Application by Potential Recipient � Organization Selection Application by Potential Recipient � Outside Selection Pro-active Identification of Applicants by Intermediary

Collaborating Organizations: N/A

Capacity-Building Work Evaluated:	In Progress	Evaluation Results Available:	Yes
Frequency of Evaluation:	Annually	Type of Evaluation:	Multiple Methods

Summary of Evaluation Lessons Learned:
The following lessons learned were among those reported by this program:

A holistic approach is important - focusing on leadership, adaptive thinking, management skills, and an organization's role in the community. This is tougher to do, but provides a solid grounding.
The four capacities being focused upon, as developed by the Marguerite Casey Foundation, resonate well with participants.
Repetition and multiple levels of learning are important.
Capacity-building work is hard and time consuming.
Repetition and multiple levels of learning are important.
The three-year length of this program is important. Participants value the consistency, and the ability to dig deeper into the four capacities.
It is very important that that the initial assessment and selection process be done right to lay a groundwork for success.
After the first year, participants are talking differently about their work, using more strategic thinking.

It is too early to identify specific impacts from the intermediary's activities.