Kentucky Leadership Program Coaches Entrepreneurs (cont.)

As homework, the Fellows then start putting their networks to work. First, they find their own entrepreneur (or entrepreneurial team) back home to coach. After six or seven sessions, they work closely with the entrepreneur or entrepreneurial team to put together a “dream team” of advisors, investors, suppliers, customers or a potential board of directors for whom the entrepreneur makes a 15-minute presentation.

The coach does not provide any technical assistance or advice but keeps the entrepreneur focused on the tough questions that any investor might ask. In essence, this presentation engages the entrepreneur with a cross-section of valuable contacts in the community or region. Established technical assistance providers are brought into the process when needed.

Other seminars cover networking, rural entrepreneurship policy, marketing, visits with entrepreneur-friendly communities and business incubators (such as ACEnet in Athens, Ohio), and youth entrepreneurship.

Mini-grant experiences: Building regional alliances

One of the goals of the Institute is to form a regional identity, because Kentuckians tend to identify strongly with their individual counties. The mini-grant experience helps foster this regional identity by putting Fellows in cross-county teams to develop mini-grant project proposals that are critiqued by the class.

Class participants form six teams based on their interests in building an entrepreneurial culture. Team projects have included technical college and high school entrepreneurship initiatives; an entrepreneurial contest for innovative ways to use wood waste; policy work on starting a regional innovation center; a seven-county agri-tourism project and an entrepreneurial awareness program. Project funding is equal to $1,000 per team member (teams have ranged in size from three to 10), and teams are required to find an outside match of at least 25 percent.

The mini-grants provide direct experience in projects that build an entrepreneur-friendly region, but the most important aspect of the experience may be the written and verbal reports that Fellows present about the lessons learned. These visceral reflections allow participants to internalize insights about entrepreneurial leadership and advocacy. They also foster new thinking about regional identity and cooperation among institutions. For example, elected leaders from seven counties in the region are moving forward with the agritourism initiative, a tremendous accomplishment in a region with traditionally county-based mentalities.

Rural Scotland: Understanding global markets

The 2004-2005 class took part in a 10-day tour of rural Scotland, mostly in the highlands and islands area, and the 2005-2006 class will take a similar tour. This region was chosen for its similarities to Appalachian Kentucky and because many Kentuckians can trace their ancestry to the British Isles.

The trip offers multiple learning opportunities: to observe youth entrepreneurship initiatives, entrepreneurial coaching in action, and how rural entrepreneurs can link to global markets; to learn about rural entrepreneurship policy and to visit an entrepreneurial-friendly community. The participants had first-hand experiences of how isolated rural entrepreneurs can tie into markets in the U.S. and Asia. As one participant noted, “I thought our county was isolated, but isolation is relative in a global context. These (Scottish) people are even more remote. If they can tie into global markets, so can we.”

While there were many educational benefits from the trip, the shared experience built an incredibly strong support network among the Fellows. “We’re family now,” was a common refrain. This is significant thinking in a region that is proud of its tradition of fierce independence.

Evaluation: So what?

An external evaluation team is collecting quantitative and qualitative records of the Fellows’ accomplishments and other lessons learned, and a report about the 2004-2005 class will be issued in the spring of this year. Not only are those graduates now coaching business start-ups and expansions, they are making differences in changing the mindset and culture of the region through their mini-grant experiences. In addition, five participants from the 2004-2005 class and one from the 2005-2006 class are running for elected office on pro-entrepreneurship platforms.

Fortunately, the project’s funders understand that the most significant payoff from this initiative probably will not be seen for at least five years. However, the reputation of the Institute’s current accomplishments is triggering interest in expanding the program to other parts of the state. Our team also has been approached by economic development leaders from several states who are interested in replicating aspects of the initiative. Indeed, the Kentucky Entrepreneurial Coaches Institute may serve as a model that can be integrated into existing leadership programs throughout the country.

For more information, visit the Kentucky Entrepreneurial Coaches Institute Web site at www.uky.edu/Ag/KECI/.

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