Chatham University

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Business Planning and Capital Readiness Program

Business Planning and Capital Readiness is a six-week program to help you develop a comprehensive business plan for your business to secure funding. The program is facilitated by the Center for Women's Entrepreneurship at Chatham University (CWE) in collaboration with Bridgeway Capital.

This program takes a deep dive into each section of the business plan with a concentration on financial projections, what they are, and how to create them. Topics covered will include:

  1. Business Planning: target markets, competition, marketing and sales, operations and management team, scaling, and strategic planning.
  2. Capital Readiness: preparation of financial statements, breakeven analysis, cost of goods sold, forecasting, understanding the lending process and 5 Cs of credit, sources and uses of funding, pitching, and more.

The foundation of a successful business is a solid business plan. Committing your idea to paper in the form of a comprehensive business plan not only increases your chances of obtaining financing but also of keeping your efforts in line with your strategy. You will work through all the major components of writing a business plan and emerge with a business plan that will hold up to the scrutiny of loan applications.

If you are seeking funding for your business, "Business Planning and Capital Readiness" is the program for you.

Through an application process, the CWE and Bridgeway Capital will select 15 emerging businesses and guide them through an intensive six-week training program. Upon successful completion of the program, participants will have the opportunity to pitch for up to $10,000 of business services offered by Bridgeway Capital's Entrepreneurship Hub.

The Business Planning and Capital Readiness Eligibility Criteria:

The Business Planning and Capital Readiness Timeline:

Selected applicants will participate in training sessions over six weeks. Three sessions will be in-person at the Chatham University Eastside Building and three sessions online via Zoom. Applicants will expect to attend all the sessions.

Required: Zoom capable device and internet access to participate.

The Business Planning and Capital Readiness Program will run on Monday evenings from 6:00-8:00 PM from September 25 to October 30, 2023. In-person sessions will be on September 25, October 9, and October 30, 2023.

To view the syllabus for the Business Planning and Capital Readiness Program CLICK HERE!

Program Facilitator: Melanie Ansell, President/Owner My Business Builders LLC

As President and Owner of My Business Builders LLC, Melanie is well versed in assisting small businesses. She is a past Bank President, current business owner, and a teaching professor at several universities on the topics of Finance and Small Business Planning and Management. Throughout her career, she has worked with thousands of start-up and existing business owners to help them create successful businesses and secure funding.

Funding support for this program was provided by the Business Navigator Accelerator Program and by the Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation.

Questions: Contact: Womens-Entrepreneurship@Chatham.edu or call 412-365-1253