Giving Tuesday: Working Solutions is the First to Believe in small businesses—micro, start-up, early-stage, home-based—owned primarily by lower-income individuals, women, and entrepreneurs of color. In FY2021, Working Solutions served 876 small business owners with $6.3MM in microloans and grants, and 8,000 hours of free business consulting. Consider making a gift today to support our continued work as a Bay Area financial first responder.

Working Solutions is proud to be in good company in a special edition of the Los Angeles Times magazine featuring the work of CDFIs nationwide. Check out this issue to learn more about all of the ways in which Working Solutions and our peers in the CDFI industry Finance Justice and Finance Change.

Working Solutions continues to grow our impact—$6.3 million in capital deployed to 876 small businesses in FY2021—a 40% increase over our last, already tremendous fiscal year. Paired with over 8,000 hours of free business consulting, these results show the ongoing need that small businesses have for Working Solutions, especially in these challenging times. Thank you to our entire family of institutional and individual funders and partners for supporting our work as the First to Believe in small business.

Working Solutions is thrilled to have our work featured in the San Francisco Business Times as a Bank of America Neighborhood Builder. Read this article about how Working Solutions, the Opportunity Finance Network, and our fellow CDFIs Finance Justice to build a more equitable economy. Thank you to Bank of America for this wonderful opportunity!

Working Solutions is thrilled to welcome our new CFO, Gasper Magallanes. Gasper comes to Working Solutions with a deep background in CDFIs and extensive experience in financial and strategic growth initiatives with social mission ventures. Prior to joining Working Solutions, Gasper was the inaugural Director of Due Diligence for CNote, a fintech impact investing firm in Oakland, and he has also served as a consultant advising community finance organizations locally and nationally.

The San Francisco Business Times 2021 Giving Guide is live, and we are grateful to Bank of Marin for featuring Working Solutions with a full-page spotlight. We appreciate the opportunity to highlight our work with local small businesses like Something Better Foods, Andytown Coffee Roasters, Bow N Arrow Clothing, and Nona Lim. Don’t forget to Shop Local for the holidays through our Client Directory. Thank you, Bank of Marin!

Working Solutions is a nonprofit, certified Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) dedicated to providing affordable capital and customized consulting to diverse small business owners across the San Francisco Bay Area. We are currently hiring for the position of Business Development Officer. Read the job description and learn how to apply here.

In the words of one of our Working Solutions Board Members, "We all have a responsibility to support recovery by shopping local and supporting small businesses." We couldn’t agree more. Check out these Bay Area resources to help you “Shop Small” this holiday season.

From October 19-21, Working Solutions was proud to participate in a virtual conference hosted by the Opportunity Finance Network (OFN), our national association of CDFIs. Each year, OFN hosts an inspiring conference for CDFI professionals, funders, and supporters. This year’s virtual conference included a presentation by Working Solutions CFO and OFN Board Member Christina Travers hosted by the CDFI Women’s Network.

As we recognize Women’s Small Business Month in October, Working Solutions is excited to celebrate major milestones for several of our women-owned client businesses. Congratulations to Zella’s Soulful Kitchen, HEAL: Pilates, SF Parking, and Yvonne’s Southern Sweets on their re-openings and anniversaries!

Working Solutions is a member of the California Association for Micro Enterprise Opportunity (CAMEO), and we are committed to sharing expertise and best practices to help our industry thrive. Last month, Working Solutions Lending Manager Priscilla Woo presented as part of a CDFI Essentials event hosted by CAMEO, sharing her skills and experience on loan closing, servicing, and documentation with peers.

Working Solutions client Robert Guidry, owner of Masterclass Mobile Barbershop, was featured on KTVU alongside Crystal Rasmussen, Working Solutions Business Consulting Officer. Robert is committed to rebuilding his barber shop business which was hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, and even during tough times, he still gives back to the community with free haircuts at the VA Hospital in Palo Alto.