Fran PASTORE

Description

WUSME AMBASSADRESS IN CONNECTICUT

Women’s Business Development Council (WBDC), Stamford, CT (Founder & CEO)

Formed in 1997 as part of a network of women’s business centers in the U.S. that serve as resource partners to the U.S. Small Business Administration.

Grew the organization to be one of the country’s leading women’s business centers with a budget of more than $5M. WBDC has served more than 17,000 women from Connecticut’s 169 towns; building assets for families, creating thousands of micro-entrepreneurs and developing opportunities for career advancement. In 2022 WBDC clients generated more than $168M in revenue.
– Lead senior management team comprised of COO, CFO, VP of Programs & People, VP of Impact and Child Care Business Support, and Director of Marketing & Communications, with indirect leadership and management oversight of approximately 32 additional full-time and contractual staff and hundreds of volunteers, including a Board of Directors consisting of 22 high-level corporate, community, and civic leaders as well as entrepreneurs;
– Responsible for an annual budget of more than $5M including maintaining fiscal oversight and management, and ensuring compliance with all relevant federal, state and municipal regulations;
– Secure 100% of the annual revenue through major gifts, corporate, foundation, and government grants and earned income – identifying new sources of funding while maintaining existing donors;
– Leverage strategic and operational expertise of the full Board of Directors and integrate senior WBDC staff into long-term planning sessions;
– Identify opportunities and trends in the marketplace to create more than 200 training programs annually representing a broad spectrum of programs responsive to client needs; entrepreneurial training, financial education and professional development;
– Build and maintain relationships and momentum around community advocacy with officials in federal, state and local governments, business and community leaders; conduct dialogs on thematic issues affecting women entrepreneurs as they stabilize the economy by: serving on panels, testifying before legislatures, and by sharing the vision and model of WBDC’s success with other non-profit organizations, promoting women’s entrepreneurship locally, nationally and internationally;

-Work in partnership with state government to build a practice within the organization dedicated to providing entrepreneurial training and grants to support child care providers within the state. Since 2020, 395 grants totaling $4.27M have been awarded, helping child care business providers to maintain 1,752 jobs and 6,643 child care slots. In addition, 42% of grant recipients report increased revenue and 46% report increased profits.

Launch small business grant program to provide capital to businesses investing in the growth of their company. Since January 2021, 167 grants totaling $1.5M have been awarded to small businesses in every county in Connecticut. 80% of recipients report increased revenues; 62% report increased profits; and 50% have hired new employees.