Women's Bean Project

The Women’s Bean Project was founded in 1989 as a stepping-stone toward personal and economic self-sufficiency for women who come from backgrounds of chronic unemployment, poverty, or displacement. Within the context of a food production/retail business, these women earn a steady paycheck, develop transferable work skills, and strengthen their sense of self-confidence and responsibility. Program graduates achieve job readiness as defined by measures related to the life skills, work skills, and pre-employment skills necessary to obtain and keep mainstream employment.

http://www.womensbeanproject.com/

The Vision:

In 2003, the Women’s Bean Project was emerging from a fiscal crisis that triggered changes in leadership at both the board and executive levels. While the community valued the Project for its important mission and commitment to both business goals and social impact goals, it had suffered financial setbacks that threatened its continuation. The new leadership conducted a comprehensive organizational assessment and developed a new strategic direction and business plan that included the following goals:

Increase capacity to serve participants
Diversify and increase contributed income to create financial stability
Ensure adequate governance and management
Demonstrate and communicate program effectiveness
Become a model for replication—both for social enterprise and outcome measures

The Plan:

Upon being selected as a Catalyst Partner, Women’s Bean Project developed an action plan to position them for growth by strengthening capacity in the areas of program design, program evaluation, financial stability, board development, and human resources. The Foundation committed $200,000 over three years to support their plan.

Year One goals:
1. Conduct a detailed market analysis of current catering operations relative to market potential, pricing, and branding
2. Conduct detailed market analysis of current product line, including review of product packaging, pricing, and customer input
3. Create a development department and fundraising plan
4. Create organization-wide relational database
5. Invest in employee development and training
6. Establish a board development program

Year Two goals:
1. Define target population and implement a standardized intake and assessment system
2. Develop a program evaluation system including outcome measures and a clear definition of success
3. Develop a life-skills program component
4. Implement a self-sufficiency assessment to measure progress within the program

Year Three goals:
1. Build a sustainable fund development capacity using the “Raising More Money” model
2. Develop a customized, comprehensive program evaluation system

The Engagement:

Foundation staff met with the Bean Project’s Executive Director and the Director of Services on a monthly basis to review progress. On a quarterly basis, the meeting included a board member. Meetings covered status reports and provided opportunity for technical assistance, trouble-shooting, brainstorming, and identifying community resources. Updates were provided to the Foundation board on a quarterly basis and goals were reviewed and modified annually.

The Results:

At the end of the three years, the Women’s Bean Project had:
Redesigned its program with clear expectations tied to benchmarks and outcome measures
Developed a relational database and evaluation system to track client progress and assess job readiness skills
Increased production and product sales
Developed a board development plan and added new and highly engaged board members
Upgraded staff management and leadership skills
Implemented an organizational fund raising plan resulting in a substantial increase in individual donors and donations

With its increased capacity and stability, Women’s Bean Project is held up as a successful model for social enterprise and job readiness for chronically unemployed women. It has developed strong community partnerships for job development and placement. Its impact is best demonstrated by the stories of its successful graduates—women who now have the skills and confidence to become gainfully employed and productive members of the community.

The Lessons: