News & Media
We’re Recruiting!
Wednesday, September 01, 2010
As the Capital Good Fund expands rapidly, we are looking to bring on new members to our team! We are recruiting for the following five positions: Marketing Associate, Workshop Instructor, Website Design Associate, Research Associate, and Graphic Design Associate.
If you are interested in any of these positions, please contact Co-Deputy Director Mustafa Safdar for more information about applying:
Mustafa Safdar
813-545-8295
(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
1. Marketing Associate:
Our small business loan clients often lack the marketing expertise or technical assistance needed to develop thriving businesses. Nor do they have the money to afford such services. In order to facilitate our clients’ success, CGF is launching a marketing team to work with our business loan clients. The marketing team will offer a strategic market plan, web site construction, logo design, and other marketing services at a reduced and affordable rate.
We are looking for skilled Marketing Associates interested in social entrepreneurship who want to use their talents to better the community in which they live. Marketing Associates will work directly with our borrowers in order to equip them with the tools needed to succeed in the business world. Each Marketing Associate will work on a range of client projects, to be completed within a two-week period. Working in collaboration with a CGF graphic designer, the Marketing Associate will design a strategic marketing plan for business loan clients and help them to implement it. To ensure that we offer the highest quality services, we do not set a fixed time needed to devote to each project. Typically, however, each project will take about twelve to fifteen hours from initial consultation to completion. Since we aim to ensure that the design process is a collaborative effort between the Marketing Associate and the client, Associates will be involved in a series of regular consultations and meetings with the client.
Responsibilities: Work directly with borrowers to assess their business goals, determine their target markets, etc.; develop strategic marketing plans; collaborate with a graphic designer to implement a marketing strategy for each client.
Time Commitment: 10 hours/week. The marketing team will meet for the first time in mid-September. The position will last through May of 2011.
Requisite Skills: A background in marketing, strong writing skills, and strong communication skills.
2. Workshop Instructor:
Many Rhode Islanders lack the financial knowledge and skills to start a small business, establish a credit score, or handle their finances. At the Capital Good Fund, we believe that giving out microloans is not enough—we aim to provide our borrowers with the business and financial skills needed to use our loans effectively. With this goal in mind, CGF offers comprehensive business and financial literacy workshops designed to equip our borrowers with the tools they need to succeed. We are looking for passionate undergraduate or graduate students interested in social entrepreneurship and teaching who want to use their talents to better the community in which they live. Workshop Instructors will teach CGF’s “Business Basics Course.” This course helps participants to develop a viable business plan through the study of concepts like budgeting, calculating profit and loss, investing strategies, etc.
Each Workshop Instructor must go through a training process to become certified to teach the Business Basics Course. Instructors will enroll and complete the Business Basics Course as a participant before they begin teaching. The course is five classes—one every week for two hours. Once instructors are certified, they will begin to teach the business basics curriculum, initially under the guidance of our Director of Workshops. Workshop Instructors will also work with the Director of Workshops to find ways to make the curriculum more interactive and in tune with the needs of our students.
Responsibilities: Enroll in a business basics workshop, and undergo basic teacher training. Teach business basic workshop classes. Research ways to refine the curriculum and incorporate more audio-visual components.
Time Commitment: 10 hours/week. Training for the position will begin in late September or early October. The position will last through May 2011.
Requisite Skills: Strong communication skills. Strong interpersonal skills. Teaching or tutoring experience.
3. Website Design Associate:
Our small business loan clients often lack the money to build a simple website for their businesses. Without a website to market their products and services to the community, clients cannot develop thriving businesses capable of reaching many customers. In order to facilitate our clients’ success, CGF is launching a marketing team to work with our business loan clients. The marketing team will offer website construction, among many other marketing services, at a reduced and affordable rate. We are looking for skilled Website Design Associates interested in social entrepreneurship who want to use their design talents to better the community in which they live. Website Design Associates will work directly with our borrowers in order to help build them a website that can propel them to greater business success.
Each Website Design Associate will work on a range of simple website projects, to be completed within a two-week period. Working in collaboration with a CGF graphic designer and a marketing associate, the Website Design Associate will design websites for our business loan clients that reflects their business goals. To ensure that we offer the highest quality services, we do not set a fixed time needed to devote to each project. Typically, however, each project will take about twelve to fifteen hours from initial consultation to completion. Since we aim to ensure that the website design process is a collaborative effort between the Website Design Associate and the client, Associates will be involved in a series of regular consultations and meetings with the client about the progress of the website.
Responsibilities: Work directly with borrowers to assess what their website needs are. Design simple websites for our clients’ businesses.
Time Commitment: 10 hours/week. The marketing team will meet for the first time in mid-September. The position will last through May of 2011.
Requisite Skills: A strong background in website design.
4. Research Associate:
Research is a strong component of the work performed at the Capital Good Fund. Measuring the social impact of our loans and workshops is essential so we can assess their effectiveness. Critical research is involved in determining how our services are impacting borrowers in the form of increased income and credit scores. In addition, there is a strong research element in determining which products we want to offer to our clients. For example, cost-benefit research analysis is employed when determining a new loan product’s viability. There is also direct client-related research that we need, in which the Research Associate would work closely with a borrower on a variety of small research projects.
The Capital Good Fund is putting together a skilled team of Research Associates responsible for performing essential research on social impact measurement, product development, and client services. Associates will also do loan-related data entry and other tasks. We are looking for passionate undergraduate or graduate students interested in social entrepreneurship who want to use their research talents to better the community in which they live.
Responsibilities: Work with clients on a range of research projects; research CGF-related projects and products; do occasional data entry and grant-writing tasks.
Time Commitment: 10 hours/week. The position will last through May 2011.
Requisite Skills: Strong research and writing skills.
5. Graphic Design Associate
CGF is launching a marketing team to work with our business loan clients. The marketing team will offer our borrowers a strategic marketing plan, web site construction, logo design, and other marketing services at a reduced and affordable rate. We are looking for skilled graphic designers interested in social entrepreneurship who want to use their talents to better the community in which they live. Graphic Design Associates will work directly with our borrowers in building a business “image” and logo that can help their business to succeed and thrive.
Each Graphic Design Associate will work on a range of client projects, to be completed within a two-week period. To ensure that we can offer the highest quality services, we do not set a fixed time needed to devote to each project. Typically, however, each project in the past has taken about twelve to fifteen hours from initial consultation to completion. Since we aim to ensure that the design process is a collaborative effort between the designer and the client, each designer will meet with the client for an initial consultation and for a follow-up meeting once the work has been completed. In addition, the designer is required to send a mid-project update of their work to the client for feedback.
Responsibilities: Design original logo, business card, letterhead, brochure.
Time Commitment: 10 hours/week. The graphic design team will meet for the first time in mid-September. The position will last through May of 2011.
Requisite Skills: Adobe Photoshop, Adobe In-Design, or another graphic design program.
—While all these positions are unpaid, they will give you valuable and exciting experience in a rapidly growing non-profit. –
CGF Reaches the 40 Loan Milestone!
Thursday, August 19, 2010
We are very excited to announce our 40th loan today! This $3,300 business loan went to Irma so that she can expand her growing daycare business. Congrats to Irma and CGF, and thank you once again to all of CGF’s supporters. We continue to grow quickly!
Business Basics Workshop Starting Soon!
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Business Basics Class Starting Soon!
Our next Business Basics Workshop starts Monday, August 23rd. It will be held in our office at 127 Dorrance Street Suite 513, Providence, RI. We will learn about several business concepts that can get a business up and running or give the existing entrepreneur an opportunity to learn about the costs and benefits of expanding. Sign up now by calling 866-584-3651.
There are five (5) classes that each meet for 2.5 hours. We will meet each Monday for five weeks (Class will not meet on Labor Day). Classes are from 6:30-9:00 p.m.
What you’ll learn:
- Budgeting
- Investing Strategies
- Cost Benefit Analysis
- Environmentally Friendly Business Practices
- And Much Much More!!!
The Cost:
- The course costs $25.00.
- Class materials are included and you get a one-on-one 45-minute credit report counseling session detailing your credit history and strategies for improving your score!
Call to reserve your spot today! 866.584.3651 ext. 103
We’ve Moved Into Our First Real Office!
Monday, August 02, 2010
In order to accommodate our rapid growth, we’ve just moved into our first real office! Located at 127 Dorrance St. (5th floor) it’s ideally located for our clients to get here, due to its proximity to public transportation, as well as for our student staff, due to proximity to Brown. The 1,300 square foot space has 5 individual offices, as well as a large conference room area where we will host workshops, staff meeetings, events and board meetings.
So come on by and say hello! We’re here most of the day.
CGF Featured in Providence Business News
Sunday, August 01, 2010
Nonprofit microlender fills the gap for small business by seeking out in risk
By William Hamilton
PBN Staff Writer
Andy Posner would never make it as a banker, and that’s fine with him.
Posner is a founder of a Providence nonprofit that makes small loans to low-income Rhode Island residents with terrible credit history and no collateral to speak of. It’s the type of lending that banks and credit unions largely avoid because the profit margins are tiny, if they exist at all.
And there’s the risk of default. Banks couldn’t stomach it, but Posner’s group, the Capital Good Fund, lives for it.
The Capital Good Fund is part of a growing number of microlenders nationwide that are filling the needs of small businesses and individuals as traditional lenders tighten underwriting standards, and decline to make loans deemed too small to be profitable.
“I view [risk] as a good thing,” Posner said. “If we didn’t have any problems in terms of [borrowers] not being able to pay, it would mean we’re not doing risky-enough lending, we’re not achieving our mission.”
A few other organizations offer microloans in the area, but the Capital Good Fund is somewhat different. Its focus is on small-business owners who want to start or expand an environmentally friendly company. The group also lends to those looking to cover the costs of seeking U.S. citizenship, as well as those wanting to buy a computer.
And the fund is the only local organization making unsecured loans.
The organization even earned a mention from former President Bill Clinton, whose foundation provided a $6,000 grant, when he appeared on a Sunday news show several months ago.
Posner started the fund in 2009 while completing his studies for a master’s degree in environmental studies at Brown University, along with a classmate, Molly West. His thesis: green microlending.
Although Posner has since graduated, the fund still has close ties to Brown. The university’s Swearer Center for Public Service provided $5,000 at the outset, and the fund’s staff of two full-timers, two part-timers and a team of interns has been using an office at Brown’s Urban Environmental Lab.
The fund has made 31 loans so far, totaling $48,000. Not exactly a lot of volume, but Posner is forecasting significant growth in the future.
Posner’s group underwrote nine microloans in 2009, and has completed 22 so far this year. By year’s end, Posner foresees passing the 100-loan mark, and then the 500-loan point within months after that. Right now, the Capital Good Fund has a pool of $50,000 to lend.
The lending standards might be relaxed, but the Capital Good Fund isn’t just giving money away. Potential borrowers must have a business idea and references and must be ready to explain problems with credit history.
Posner, now the fund director, figures about 30 percent of those who inquire about a loan are approved. “Nobody gains if we make a loan to someone who can’t afford it, or doesn’t need it,” he said.
So far, only one borrower has defaulted, failing to repay a $1,500 loan.
There are people such as Ducy Cornejo, who borrowed $3,000 to launch an environmentally friendly cleaning service.
Posner said she had previously owned apartment buildings in the city, but got into financial trouble when the real estate and the financial markets went south.
“Her credit was terrible,” Posner said. “No one else would lend to her.”
Cornejo still owned an apartment building but her tenants struggled to pay the rent in a bad job market. So she turned to the Capital Good Fund, started the business and hired some of her tenants.
Within a year, the business proved viable, and she paid the $3,000 back and took out another loan for $3,900.
Most of the fund’s loans are between $1,000 and $5,000 with a one-year term and a 15 percent annual rate. There are no late payment or prepayment penalties. The only fee borrowers pay is $8 to file an application.
Posner spends most days meeting with local banks, credit unions and community groups soliciting donations or at least cooperation. He said the fund should be considered a way to reach the so-called unbanked and underbanked.
The Capital Good Fund loans are reported to credit-rating agencies, allowing borrowers to build or rebuild a credit history. “I view this as a way for people to enter the banking mainstream,” Posner said.
He envisions the fund reaching self-sustainability if it can make 15,000 loans annually.
Posner now earns about $20,000 annually – but he doesn’t have plans to go anywhere else.
“I would do this for free; it’s my calling,” he said. “This is what I want to do with the rest of my life.” •
CGF Featured in Providence Business News
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
The article below appeared in the July 13th edition of Providence Business News.
“Nonprofit microlender the Capital Good Fund was founded by Andy Posner, who recently graduated from Brown University with a master’s degree in environmental studies. The fund, based in Providence, makes loans of between $500 and $3,000 to entrepreneurs and immigrants interested in applying for U.S. citizenship. Posner, the fund director, recently answered a few questions about the venture.
PBN: Give us the details about the fund.
POSNER: Our mission is to create a poverty-free, inclusive green economy through innovative microfinance. We provide loans and workshops to lower-income Rhode Islanders for a variety of purposes so that they can better their lives, their communities and the environment. Capital Good Fund is the only lender in Rhode Island that makes unsecured loans with no minimum credit score requirement.
The best way to illustrate what we do is to talk about our borrowers. Take Curtis Gomes, for instance, who graduated from our business basics workshop (which we hosted in partnership with the Providence Housing Authority), and then took out a small business loan from us. All he needed to get his general contracting business off the ground was $3,000 to purchase insurance, some tools and a computer. Or, consider the case of Toni Lynn Bonadie who, with a $750 loan, started a yoga company. There is also Ducy Cornejo, who took a $3,000 loan to start an environmentally friendly cleaning company a year ago and, after paying off her first loan, has now taken out a second, larger loan, in order to expand the business. These are just three examples of the 29 life-changing loans we have made to date.
PBN: What are your lending criteria?
POSNER: We have a set of four qualitative underwriting criteria that we use to evaluate the loan applicant. We also have group loans where a group of people get together to support each other’s businesses; in those cases, the group decides who is approved for the loan.
The questions we look at are: 1) Do they need the loan? 2) Can they afford the loan? 3) Are they likely to repay the loan? 4) Are they likely to succeed with the loan?
To answer these questions, we look at a basic business plan, references, character, credit, etc.
Out of the $47,625 lent out, we have only written off $1,500.
We currently have more than $50,000 in our loan pool. That won’t need to be replenished because our default rate is so low.
PBN: Who has supported Capital Good Fund?
POSNER: The support of Brown University has been absolutely essential. In particular, Alan Harlam and the Swearer Center for Public Service have provided us with financial, moral and intellectual support. In addition, we wish to thank Kurt Teichert and the Community Carbon Use Reduction at Brown program for supporting our innovative, energy-efficiency loan program – the DoubleGreen loan – as well as the Small Business Development Center, English for Action, the International Institute of Rhode Island, Providence Housing Authority, the R.I. Economic Development Corporation, to name a few.
PBN: How does Capital Good Fund fit into the broader social enterprise landscape in Rhode Island?
POSNER: I’ve heard other entrepreneurs describe Rhode Island as a “petri dish” for new ideas, and I couldn’t agree more. I came here from Los Angeles to get a master’s degree, and by the time I graduated I knew that I had to stay. After all, where else can someone get such easy access to so many business, political and community leaders? Rhode Island is small enough to be manageable yet big enough to offer all the things an entrepreneur needs: a community of intelligent people, challenges that need to be addressed, and proximity to larger markets (e.g., Boston). That’s why I am proud that fund was part of the first graduating class of the Social Venture Partners of Rhode Island’s Change Accelerator program. I see Rhode Island as a hub of social enterprise nationwide – a trend that will create jobs and attract investment in the state.
PBN: What role do you see microfinance playing in addressing the economic crisis Rhode Island is facing?
POSNER: The beautiful thing about microfinance is that it allows people to take charge of their lives and their destinies; rather than hope that someone hires them, our borrowers start or expand business ventures in order to make a living on their own. It never ceases to amaze me the extent to which our borrowers – who are people that have been disadvantaged in myriad ways throughout their lives – are eager to help others in their communities through entrepreneurship. So the benefits of our loans are tremendous: They allow people to increase their income immediately and create jobs for others; they provide hope and opportunity at a time when both are lacking; and they even save taxpayers money by reducing the need for public benefits.
Now, microfinance isn’t a silver bullet. But when you think about how many people are seeking jobs compared to how many jobs are out there, the numbers are simply daunting. These microbusineses are an important part of the economic recovery and, once established, they help to create a dynamic local economy that will be more protected from future economic shocks.”
New Borrower Profile!
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
We just completed another profile of yet another of our inspiring borrowers—Curtis Gomes of Curtis Gomes Painting & Construction. Click here to read the profile! And if you need any work done on your house be sure to contact Curtis!
CGF Update: Our Work to Date, By The Numbers
Sunday, June 20, 2010
Here’s our latest update on our accomplishments, by the numbers: we have made 28 loans totaling $47,165 (with only one default, of $1,500), and we have graduated 24 people through our business and financial literacy workshops. Not bad for our first year of operation. And now that we have two more full-time employees, we expect to see continued rapid growth.
Photos and Stories Of Recent Loans
Friday, June 18, 2010
In the last few weeks we have rapidly grown our loan portfolio, making 6 loans and bringing our total to 27 loans equaling $45,000. Four of these loans have been part of our innovative—and life-changing—partnership with Amos House (a fantastic social services agency in Providence), in which we provide capital to clients of theirs that have job offers (or offers of increased hours at their jobs), but need a drivers license to take advantage of those opportunities. Due to fines and fees associated with reinstating their licenses (about $1,000) these hardworking individuals are unable to get their licenses back. In response, CGF and Amos House created a group of seven handpicked individuals that meet weekly to support one another, request loans and make payments, and learn about financial literacy. The group-lending program has facilitated a forum for members to talk about their long-term financial and personal goals, which has inspired some group members to start saving up money in order to open a small business down the road.
We have given four loans to graduates of the Amos House Culinary Education Program. Borrower Troy Stevens is now able drive to and from work in the evenings after public transportation stops, and has increased his work hours a local restaurant as a result. Ruben Alicea is now a more valuable employee at a local café and has received a raise because he can now assist the business with emergency food pick-ups and catering. Additionally, borrower Damon Fowlkes, trained in carpentry, has just been hired by a landscaping company since he can now drive to and from clients’ houses. And borrower Nelson Rojas is able to work at two different locations for his storage company as a result of the reinstated license. He is grateful to be able to use the extra money to support his two-year-old daughter. All members of our “access-to-employment” loan and support program are excited to continue meeting for the next year, and the Capital Good Fund is grateful to be working with such inspiring borrowers and such a supportive organization like the Amos House.
CGF Is Revelation to Action Finalist!
Friday, June 11, 2010
The Capital Good Fund has been accepted as a finalist in Ashoka’s prestigious Revelation to Action contest! The competition aims to “find and help fund creative solutions for motivating local citizens to strengthen communities across New England and New York.” From an applicant pool of 358 organizations, CGF was chosen as one of fifteen finalists. Winning this award would help us to support our innovative Double Green Credit Builder Loan! The top ten winners will receive $5,000, so support CGF by voting for us at http://www.changemakers.com/en-us/revelation.
