CDFI.RECAP2021
As we enter the final quarter of 2021, we've assembled several panels with CDFI leaders from around the country.
The three panels below are meant to be practical resources. Whether you're spending most of your time with clients on the front lines or steering macro strategy, you'll find both examples and inspiration that you and your team can rally around in 2022.
The pandemic exposed differences between efficiency and capacity, the power of defining a client journey, and the need to consider the employee experience as 3 keys to future success.
In an industry struggling with turnover and burnout, how can teams continue to increase their capacity for impact without increasing the size of their team? There have been a lot of changes that teams have had to make over the past 18 months to achieve more with the same (or fewer at times) staff and resources. Stretched to their limits, CDFIs have been serving an ever increasing number of business owners who were on the verge of closing, and are still recovering from the disruption of the pandemic.
Trevor Bradford Loan Officer - Cook Inlet Lending Center in Anchorage, AK (Native CDFI)
Katherine Sobel Director - PeopleFund in Austin, TX
Stephen Davis President - Community Investment Collaborative in Charlottesville, VA
Forward movement can seem uncomfortable, or impossible, in the midst of a long to-do list. We’re always busy and there are real challenges to implementing team-wide change that can cause some leaders to hesitate.
Hindsight is 20/20 in that everyone always wishes that they had implemented a successful solution sooner. We think many solutions are easier to execute than anticipated once the first step has been taken. Hiring a key staff member, making adjustments to the board, onboarding new technology, or any other bold decision involves some risk, but it's impossible to create more impact by doing the same thing over and over again.
Colleen Hafner Director - Rise Community Development in St. Louis, MO
Catherine Dolan Director - Westminster Economic Development Initiative in Buffalo, NY
Sheri Flanigan Chief Operating Officer - Justine PETERSEN in St. Louis, MO
Necessity is the mother of invention. We're digging into the lessons learned, and outcomes of those inventions with several CDFI leaders. We'll discuss silver linings in this session... necessary action that has changed their organization for the better.
Maybe there were seemingly obvious changes that were finally supported by foundational evidence in 2020 & 2021? Maybe there were lessons learned regarding new products and taking a different perspective on risk? This is a chance to hear from peers regarding their own innovations and risk taking. We'll dig into unexpected outcomes, and whether or not they plan to continue the same approach moving forward.
Ruben Alonso III President - AltCap in Kansas City, MO
Mark Mastersen Executive Director - Northside Community Development Fund in Pittsburgh, PA
Oye Waddell Founder - Hustle USA in Phoenix, AZ
Tawny Wilson Loan Officer - NDN Collective in Rapid City, SD