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Technical Assistance Capacity-Building Program (TACP)
Overview
The Technical Assistance Capacity-Building Program
(TACP) is a practical and instructionally rigorous
training program for the staff members of small
business development organizations. It consists
of two curricula, one for executive leaders
and one for program staff. These curricula help
directors, managers, and business advisors to
build the capacity of their organizations, provide
consistent, high quality services to entrepreneurs
and small business owners, and make a meaningful,
lasting impact on these business clients.
Background
CARAT's curriculum framework is based on the research,
industry collaboration, and testing behind CARAT's
Technical Assistance Certification Program. Cited
as a model technical assistance program by both
a Ford Foundation/Milken Institute publication and
the U. S. Minority Business Development Agency,
this certification program offers performance criteria
and an assessment tool for business development
organizations. A beta test of the assessment tool
in California revealed that the industry still required
training, and indicated the specific training needs.
These training needs became the basis for our TACP
curricula.
With this list of training topics
in hand, CARAT recruited a 21-member business development
advisory committee to oversee the development of
the curriculum. The advisory committee has a statewide
membership comprised of community-based business
development organizations, bankers, government lenders,
and bank regulators. With the committee's assistance,
CARAT is now developing each of the courses in the
program, and will deliver the first two courses
in the Fall of 2005.
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Course
Content
Executive Leadership Institute
- The Executive Leadership Institute for non-profit
technical assistance /business development executive
directors and program managers will train on how
to effectively, efficiently and strategically run
a business development organization. Topics include:
1. Financial Management
2. Fundraising
3. Strategic Planning and Management
4. Human Resources
5. Marketing and Communications -
6. Internal Management Systems & Procedures
Professional Development Institute
- The Professional Staff Development Training for
staff/consultants will train on how to provide quality
service in the specific areas of business consulting
described below.
1 & 2. Business Assessment I & II
3. Client Retention
4. Marketing
5. Financial Management
6. Credit Analysis and Underwriting
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Unique
Program Elements
-
Project-Based
Learning and Application of Materials.
Throughout each course, participants will create
usable work products, such as fund development
plans or marketing plans that they can take back
to their organizations. Participants will be provided
with assistance in incorporating their work products
into their organizations, and will have the opportunity
to discuss their implementation experiences in
subsequent classes and/or consulting sessions.
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Individualized
Consulting. Executive
training participants will have the opportunity
to share their efforts with their colleagues,
obtain feedback from their peers and trainer,
and customized support..
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Small
class sizes will ensure sufficient time for
individualized attention (approximately 20 per
class).
-
Practitioners
Network & Online Community.
An important goal of TACP is to create a community
of learners that will build a base of knowledge
for the rest of the industry. Toward that end,
the program will include roundtable discussions,
plenary sessions, surveys, and on-line discussion
tools to facilitate on-going communication.
-
Tools
& Templates. Each of the courses in the
Professional Development program will provide
tools and templates that participants can use
on the job, and suggestions for how to use them.
These tools will range from paper templates to
online forms, and will include businesses assessment
tools and intake forms, financial analysis forms,
marketing plan frameworks, and more.
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Course
Delivery and Scheduling
The TACP curricula will be delivered in several
venues and regions of California.
1) Fall 2005, Los Angeles
- Two of the courses will be delivered at LA Trade
Tech Community College during their fall semester.
Each course will be a complete community college
course with a total of 56 course hours. More information
about these courses, including How to Enroll, will
be provided on this site when available. The two
courses are:
 Strategic
Planning & Management (for Executive Leaders
& Program Managers)
Small
Business Marketing (for Business Development
Consultants)
2) Winter/Spring 2005/2006, San
Francisco Bay Area - CARAT plans to deliver
several of the courses via Compass Point, Non Profit
Training organization in the Bay Area. More information
on these courses, including course offerings, schedules,
and how to enroll, will be provide on this site
when available.
3) Early 2006 - CARAT will
provide the entire curriculum to 15 select business
development organizations in early 2006. These 15
participants will recieve a complete assessment
of their organizations, and customized training
based on these assessments.
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A
Sustainable Program, A Replicable Model
As described above, CARAT's goal is to deliver this
program on an on-going basis through several delivery
channels, including established non-profit training
organizations such as Compass Point, and community
colleges such as LA Trade Tech Community College.
Rather than delivering ad hoc workshops at industry
conferences or occasional training courses, this
program will be offered on an ongoing basis to provide
business development organizations the opportunity
to attend a complete training curriculum or the
specific courses they need when they need them.
Whether training for a new job, or providing new
skills to more seasoned staff, organizations will
have access to this program. In the end, this sustainable
training model will ensure that small business clients
are receiving higher quality and more consistent
services well into the future.
Once developed, training materials
from this California-based program can be used to
deliver courses to business development organizations
across the U.S. via web-based and/or classroom instruction.
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Program
Beneficiaries
The ultimate beneficiaries of this program are the
low- and moderate-income entrepreneurs who receive
the services of the BDOs we train, as well as their
families, their neighborhoods, and hopefully, the
employees they hire. A composite profile of 70 California
TA organizations showed that 44% identify their
clients as belonging to a particular ethnic minority
(African American, Asian/Pacific Islander, Caucasian,
and Hispanic. Fifty-six (56%) percent claim to serve
these "combined minorities" in equal portion.
The immediate beneficiaries of this project are
the staff members of the BDOs who will attend this
training program.
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California Resources and Training - CARAT
Selma Taylor, Executive Director
1333 Broadway, Suite 604, Oakland, CA 94612
Phone 510/267.8994 Fax 510/835.1332
Email comments and questions to 
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