Customer Story

Heather Lux: Wisconsin Women's Business Initiative Corporation

Wisconsin Women's Business Initiative Corporation by the numbers

610

Small businesses borrowers assisted with business plan writing

$250,000

Maximum capital investments secured for clients using LivePlan

69%

Startup success rate for WWBIC-supported businesses

Background

The Wisconsin Women's Business Initiative Corporation (WWBIC) is a statewide organization that provides business training, financial products, and entrepreneurship education throughout Wisconsin. Founded in 1987, WWBIC has facilitated over $90 million in loans, assisted over 70,795 clients, and helped create or retain 16,790 jobs. With a team of 73 staff members and 316 volunteers across seven locations, WWBIC focuses on serving women, people of color, veterans, and lower-wealth individuals.

"The entrepreneur was pleased to see that they could pay their employees a minimum wage of $15 per hour — and still be profitable with their current business model."

Heather Lux

Senior Project Director, Wisconsin Women's Business Initiative Corp.

Problem

WWBIC needed a comprehensive tool to streamline their business planning and coaching services across multiple locations. They required a solution that could facilitate collaboration between clients, facilitators, coaches, and consultants, while also providing robust financial forecasting and business planning capabilities. Additionally, WWBIC needed to adapt their services during the COVID-19 pandemic, transitioning from in-person to virtual training and coaching.

The Milwaukee headquarters of the Wisconsin Women's Business Initiative Corporation.

Solution

WWBIC implemented LivePlan as their primary business planning and coaching tool in 2015. LivePlan's step-by-step planning workflows, collaboration features, and financial forecasting capabilities aligned perfectly with WWBIC's needs. The platform's 24/7 accessibility and integration with accounting software like QuickBooks and Xero made it an ideal solution for both in-person and virtual coaching sessions.

Outcome

LivePlan has transformed WWBIC's ability to support entrepreneurs and small business owners. The tool allowed WWBIC to efficiently conduct virtual training sessions during the pandemic, maintaining their service delivery despite challenging circumstances. LivePlan's forecasting capabilities have proven invaluable in helping clients make strategic decisions, such as determining the feasibility of wage increases or developing new revenue streams. WWBIC has also used LivePlan to help clients secure funding, with the platform's benchmarking tools allowing entrepreneurs to communicate effectively with potential investors. Heather Lux, WWBIC's senior project director, credits LivePlan with empowering entrepreneurs to project their dreams into feasible goals with timelines, ultimately creating more successful startups and viable long-term businesses.