When you start out in a small business, you don’t always have the luxury of perspective, or the resources to know what to avoid before it’s “too late.” We created the Impact Lab as a free program to help small business owners like you figure out what’s holding them back, and help them work toward their goals with solid, data-driven planning and personalized, community-based support.

Due to their expertise in Brazilian cuisine, Jane and Eduardo had no problem coming up with a large variety of products to offer their customers. But over time, they began to have difficulties keeping up with inventory management and allocating time. Mission Edge helped them to have a more accurate perception of their business costs and future growth opportunities.

It’s hard to believe that it’s been more than ten years since Mission Edge started in 2011. We’ve grown a lot since then— we now have over 30 employees and serve over 100 organizations. Learn about how we’ve grown our fiscal sponsorship for nonprofits and small business in 2022 to better serve our clients looking to make an impact!

For small business owners, profitability is the key to essential business functions, including: Paying our employees fairly and on-time, investing in the long-term growth of our businesses, and allowing us to stay flexible with changing market conditions and competitors. Use these financial metrics to determine the profitability of your small business!

Mission Edge helped Laura Valdés, founder of Valdés Language Services, make future growth financially possible. From improving her marketing to cultivating clear plan for hiring contractors and growing her business, our finance expert Carolynn helped Laura gain clarity around how to make running her business sustainable.

Ready to give budgeting a try, or ready to up-level your money skills? Check out one of these resources recommended by Impact Lab’s financial experts, and let us know what you think!

How Mission Edge helped Michelle organize her finances and grow her candle business. When she started working with Mission Edge, Michelle had been in business for over 2 years. She wanted to increase her revenue, but her accounting and bookkeeping methods were outdated.

When lifestyle and fitness coach Shaniece Benson first started working with us, she needed help with financial management. All of her financial statements lived in PayPal, and she hadn’t yet nailed down a system for organizing her receipts, leaving her feeling overwhelmed and scattered.

We know the stereotypes about “successful” entrepreneurs — little sleep and a full schedule, with every millisecond dedicated to some form of productivity. We asked our team of finance experts for their current favorites — content in the form of books, podcasts and videos relevant to small business owners like you.

A life-long lover of fitness, Latoya McKelvin has found purpose in unlocking compassion “one pelvic curl at a time.” Latoya wants to increase revenue and grow her business. But in order to reach those goals, she needed to examine the roadblocks that were preventing her from getting there.

This networking company made a plan to get out of debt and improve member retention — while paying themselves a livable salary.

Sara Rosales believes in the power of collective community support.

Sara is a business Consultant and the founder of Mujerex Enterprise LLC, an organization that’s focused on helping women and minority business owners with business entity formation, formation strategy and planning.

Danicka Brown-Frazier, Co-Founder of San Diego-based cannabis accessories and lifestyle brand Greenish Brands, has ambitious goals for her business – like doubling her revenue every year through 2027. However, before focusing on significant growth, she knew she had to address foundational issues with her finances.

Naria Le Mire is a registered dietitian and nutrition coach who’s passionate about helping her clients break the “diet” cycle and find out how to make all foods fit. She creates individualized nutrition plans for her clients to meet their individual goals, from sustainable weight loss to FODMAP-friendly and everything in between.

We served 59 small business owners in 2022, and we are blushing with pride at how much they triumphed after working with us in the Impact Lab. Here’s how a handful of our entrepreneurs gained financial freedom and grew their businesses with the help of our finance experts last year.

Signing up for another accelerator program might actually be halting your growth and wasting your precious time. Here are some things you should consider before you join another accelerator program.

Rolando Berring is an Impact Lab entrepreneur whose designs — and passion— make him stand out from the crowd.

He’s the owner and designer behind Berrprintz, a custom Etsy shop that offers printed t-shirts, hoodies, backpacks, hats and more.

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is a growing trend in the business world, and for good reason — consumers want to know that the businesses they contribute their hard-earned money to are doing some good in the world.

For Chris Brown, gaining financial clarity in the Impact Lab created room for growth. Chris found himself getting bogged down in the logistics of running a small business. When he joined us in the Impact Lab, our goal was to address some of his current challenges while freeing Chris up to work “on” his business rather than “in” it.

Work policies set clear expectations and help to define work culture — yet with all the unexpected fluctuations caused by the pandemic, it can be difficult to know what works best for you long term. Here are 3 tips from our nonprofit HR team to help you communicate your updated work policy — whether it’s in-person, remote, or hybrid.