Written by Ellen Gardner, Principal, Write to Know Communications

July 14 - 18, 2008 Toronto, Canada For 18-year old Nadia Thompson, her biggest takeaway from the BizAcademy program, was the unique business skills gained from the integrated social entrepreneurship curriculum. As a student in the international development field, Nadia was intrigued by the program content and diversity of activities. "I could not go to school and learn the stuff I acquired here in one week....it was everything from mentors to business dining etiquette to the elements of a great elevator pitch."

Nadia was one of 12 high-school and university students, selected by the Christie-Ossinton Neighbourhood Centre (CONC) to participate in this year's BizAcademy, a unique program sponsored by the Salesforce.com Foundation. In sessions held around the world, young people from underserved urban areas are given the opportunity to learn how to run a business. In Toronto, the students' crash course on the basics of developing a social enterprise - everything from creating the business and financial plan, to working with creative advertising gurus to develop creative marketing pieces - was facilitated by working closely with experienced employee mentors from salesforce.com and business mentors from the community.

During this year's Toronto session, participants were given the challenge of developing a marketing plan for a social enterprise focused on the creation of murals and the development of a sound studio for young artists and performers. Their task was to develop a written marketing plan, a creative package and to pitch their plans to a board of directors. At the end of the week, a winning team was selected and each winner received an iPod shuffle.

"We came up with this business idea for the participants since Christie-Ossington Neighbourhood Centre is already engaged in a graffiti arts program with at-risk teens," said Lynn Daley, Executive Director of CONC.

For some of the students, this was their first experience of working as part of a team and it's an eye-opener. "For me it was all about accountability," says Nadia Thompson, who assumed the role of President of Business Development for her Project PAYSO Marketing Team. Nadia felt the pressure to succeed. She says, "I knew that if we failed, as a leader I would be responsible and I wasn't going to let that happen. I kept saying to them ‘We're going to win! We're going to win!'" (Nadia's team went on to win).

Over the five day program, the salesforce.com mentors dropped their professional veneer and became business coaches, challenging the students to figure it out themselves. "They have the knowledge but they never told us what to do," said Community ARK (Art Reflecting Knowledge) President, Venessa Chevers-Forrestor, 21. "They showed us how to crunch the numbers and guided us on when to focus on the big picture and when to focus on the details."

Interspersed with their training and planning sessions, the students also heard from real-life entrepreneurs. Fitness professionals and owners of FitMom Canada, Andrea Page and Fenley Fearon recounted their early challenges and the importance of having a vision for your business. "It helps to get out of the headspace of always turning what you love into a money-making venture," said Fenley. "The whole journey should be learning about yourself and being joyful. If money is your only motivation, it can soon become meaningless."

Etiquette Consultant, Karyln Percill provided insight on the business of etiquette dining and dressing for success, while Ketan Manohar, Senior Copywriter of Agency 59 spent a half day on Toronto Island with the teams working on creative marketing design. Later on they spent an inspiring hour with Tamara Dawit, Executive Director and Founder of The 411 Initiative for Change.

The real stars of the week were the students themselves who overcame their nervousness and lack of experience, replacing it with enthusiasm and determination as they stood up on the final day to pitch their business and marketing plans to the ‘investors'. Although they were competing for the big prize, the students showed only pride and respect for each other as they showcased their accomplishments. "It was great to hear the investors' feedback, they were so encouraging," said Cris Meillon, another participant.

It was a week full of lessons and surprises, an exciting leap for tomorrow's artists, activists, and entrepreneurs who, until this program, may have heard scant praise and positive feedback. "They were forced to step outside of themselves and their own insecurities and concentrate on working together to develop a remarkable marketing plan for an emerging social enterprise," said Pramilla Ramdahani, President of the Se-Fad Group who developed the unique curriculum and facilitated the program on behalf of Christie-Ossington for the past two years. "At the end of the program they all realized their potential as agents of social change- the social entrepreneurs of tomorrow"

As they clutched their graduation certificates and said good-bye to new friends, the students departed with a new concept of ‘no limits'. "Business is not easy, it's hard work," said Nadia, "but we learned that by working together with people who are encouraging you and supporting you, your goals are attainable." Venessa agreed. "This week I learned not to give up. Keep going, be persistent and keep doing it."