Who else at the summit was blown away by the vast amount of resources and shared knowledge at our Policy Summit? We heard from advocacy groups,  multiple government agencies, past and present government officials, and convened ecosystem builders and entrepreneurs from across the country, representing 50 ESOs. It the midst of soaking up all the knowledge, we connected, toured the Capitol, and took time to break bread with each other. 

Here’s a quick recap of our two (and a half) days together for the first ever SCN Policy Summit, with resources and calls to action you can implement right away.

Federal funding exists for ecosystem builders and entrepreneurs 

We heard from multiple government agencies and nonprofit organizations who shared the funding opportunities and programs available for entrepreneur support organizations (ESOs) and entrepreneurs. Make Startups shared the details of their work helping ecosystems unlock federal workforce funding specifically for ESOs to implement programs. 

Melissa Roberts Chapman shared about the $80 Billion in funding specifically allocated for ecosystem building and entrepreneurship. We heard from the EDA, the SBA, and the National Women’s Business Council on grant opportunities - not to mention the session with Chris Cain on how CDFI funds can support ecosystem building efforts. And Pava LaPere from EcoMap shared her organization’s work compiling available government grants on their blog here.

The case study that wrapped this up in a bow came from ESO Ventures, who shared how they formed the Capitol in the Community Fund, which has transformed their entrepreneurial community for Black and Brown founders through government funding sources with $0 coming from private equity funds. 

Showing up is half the battle

Showing up prepared and holding politicians accountable help move the needle forward. We heard first hand the impact you can have by showing up in the right way from a panel of ecosystem builders who work within the government or who work with government officials. 

Monique Priestly, an ecosystem builder and new Vermont State Representative shared her realization that it wasn’t just enough to bring other changemakers together, they needed to actually be in the building. Scott Resnick, current ecosystem builder and former City Counsel member shared his tips for engaging with representatives: “When they hear entrepreneurship, they hear VC and they don’t see themselves in that.” His pro tip (one of many) was to make sure your representatives see entrepreneurship as something that’s important to their locality.

Make Startups shared how they worked with representatives on both sides of the isle to co-sponsor the Startup Act and talked about how change can be made when you have a seat on your state’s Workforce Board. Right to Start followed up with practical examples of what to do and what not to do when meeting with representatives. 

Overall takeaways when it comes to meeting with your representatives include:

  • Connecting your call to action with a personal success story (but keep it short)

  • Bring other entrepreneurs with you to share their experiences

  • Hold representatives accountable for policies they say they support (Mike Binko’s scorecard was brilliant)

  • ALWAYS be grateful and appreciative of the staffer

  • Understand who you’re talking to and what levers they can pull

  • Drop the jargon and speak in plain language

  • Know your numbers (like new businesses create almost all net job growth)


Kudos to these ecosystem builders from Nebraska for taking the opportunity to meet with their representative while they were in DC!

Removing Barriers through Policy and Advocacy

Policy change that removes barriers for entrepreneurs, reallocates support, and puts better systems in place can have more impact than securing funding. We heard from the Institute for Justice, who is working in collaboration with cities across the country to remove barriers through policy change and advocacy work. We heard how Right to Start’s Policy recommendations are having impacts in the ecosystems across the country.  

There are bills being written right now that you can endorse to help push the needle forward in support of entrepreneurship. You can take action right now by showing your support in the following ways:

  1. Endorsing the Startup Act (Make Startups)

  2. Signing the Statement of Principles (Right to Start)

In the coming weeks we will be publishing content and highlights from the Policy Summit. We are also looking for members to chair and join our Policy & Advocacy Committee so that we can keep up the momentum. If you want to work together on policy and advocacy that supports more positive change for entrepreneurs,reach out to Mark Lawrence at mlawrence@inncuvate.com.