Impact of Kelley Global

Advancement and Development through Entrepreneurship Programs and Training (ADEPT) Global Development Alliance was a public-private partnership funded by USAID with the Kelley School of Business Kelley Global, in collaboration with major alliance partners Hewlett Packard (HP), the VinaCapital Foundation’s Lotus Impact fund, and Business for Social Responsibility (BSR) from October 2013 – October 2016. ADEPT was crafted as a response to Burma’s environment and needs to deepen and broaden the teaching and outreach capacities of the Yangon University of Economics (YEco) and improve the success of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) through information and communication technology (ICT)-led programs—chiefly HP LIFE (Learning Initiative for Entrepreneurs) e-Learning, HP’s flagship online business and information technology (IT) skills training program. Further support for MSMEs and Burma’s entrepreneurship environment were through a BSR-led business working-group for education on issues important to the internationalization of Burma’s companies, and through surveys and mapping of the SME landscape and introduction of SME and student loan portfolios by Lotus Impact.  Additional women’s life-skills training was offered from fall 2015 through Gap’s provision of its Personal Advancement and Career Enhancement (P.A.C.E.) program, originally designed to assist predominately female garment workers in developing economies and taken outside of the factory for the first time with the work in Burma. Gap joined the partnership in conjunction with the opening of its subsidiary factory in Burma. The inclusion of P.A.C.E. curriculum represented the final of four related threads and explicitly strengthened ADEPT’s focus on impacting women in Burma.

The Barbados JOBS Initiative (Job Opportunity for Business Start Up) was a partnership between the Kelley School Kelley Global and the Cave Hill School of Business (CHSB) at the University of the West Indies from February 2011- June 2014 to provide critical entrepreneurship training to the Barbados region, helping the area combat growing social and economic issues by increasing the skills needed to compete in a globalized market. The partnership provided training to more than 30 faculty, developed 3 academic programs and 10 research products, as well as 10 short training courses on entrepreneurship areas customized to Barbados and the OECS. Outreach benefited more than 170 entrepreneurs with training. More than 140 trainers from throughout the region received cutting-edge materials and coaching to bring to their clients and stakeholders, and symposia attracted more than 100 faculty and professionals to learn how to better apply an entrepreneurship culture and mentoring techniques to their organizations and work. Together the partners created advanced experiential learning opportunities, impacting more than 40 students from Barbados and the OECS, and 23 businesses, with life-changing encounters in entrepreneurship and enterprise.

Sponsored by the U.S. Department of State under the Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI) and in partnership with Bethlehem University (BU), Building Entrepreneurship Excellence And Developing Economic Enterprises (BEEADEE) fostered sustainable growth by enhancing the entrepreneurial environment in the West Bank from October 2016-January 2019. Through incubator creation (Bethlehem Business Incubator or BBI) and numerous outreach and education initiatives, the program created entrepreneurial opportunities and relationships—with special attention to women and youth—by facilitating linkages and increasing access for entrepreneurs across a broad constituency. BBI hosted 21 training sessions with 623 participants and provided services to an additional 720 participants. In addition, 13 startups received incubation services at BBI, all leadership teams contained women and/or youth. Seventy BU faculty from all academic disciplines participated in at least one of six training sessions.

The Global Women's Economic Empowerment Initiative (GWEE)—a partnership with the Asia Pacific World Economic Council (APEC), the World Federation of Direct Selling Associations (WFDSA), and Kelley Global—taught women entrepreneurs in developing countries how to start and sustain their own micro-ventures. The program included six 3-hour on-site training sessions delivered by entrepreneurs, comprehensive audio visual and written materials, and practical, video-based standardized training content.

The Global Business Institute was a collaboration with the U.S. Department of State and the Coca-Cola Export Corporation of Dubai. The multifaceted, immersive program gave a select group of students from across participating countries in the Middle East, North Africa, and Near Asia the opportunity to learn about business in the context of American culture. The selection process was highly competitive with thousands of students applying for the 100 program spots each year. From 2012 to 2017, 576 students from Afghanistan, Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, The Palestinian Territories, and Tunisia participated in the program. The program had a variety of impacts on participants, including furthering international scholarship, initiating business formation, and improving employment. The economic and diplomatic effects of these impacts cannot be understated. Alumni surveys indicate: 162 alumni have received a scholarship to study outside their home country; 93% of alumni were employed within six months of graduating; Over 2/3rds of alumni are actively engaged in entrepreneurial activities; 164 businesses have been launched; and, 984 people have been employed as a result of GBI alumni entrepreneurial activities.

The Global Business Institute–Lebanon (GBI) was a collaboration with the Suliman S. Olayan School of Business (OSB) at the American University of Beirut (AUB) and received funding support from the US Embassy Beirut. GBI was a multi-faceted, immersive entrepreneurship bootcamp at which 26 OSB students learned about business in the context of American culture. A combination of classroom learning, coaching, teamwork, social activities, and site visits to businesses and social enterprises provided students with a rich set of skills and experiences that they could employ in starting or working in a business when they returned to Lebanon. In addition, AHEAD, an IT consulting company based in Chicago, Illinois, provided funding to bring participants to Chicago for four days and three nights.

The Global Leadership and Innovation (GLI) program was a collaboration with The Coca-Cola Company and the China National MBA Education Supervisory Committee in summer 2019. The multi-faceted, immersive program was designed to equip a select group of MBA students from across China to lead and grow successful organizations in today’s rapidly changing world. Participants developed strategies and solutions for real-world challenges facing a globalized and interconnected business environment.

From 2013-2015, the Global Social Entrepreneurship Institute (GSEI)  was a multifaceted, immersive program designed to give selected undergraduate college students from 13 European nations the opportunity to learn about and gain practical experience with social entrepreneurship and basic business skills as well as an introduction to American business practices in the context of American culture. The program was interactive, experiential, and packed with classroom instruction, panel discussions, business visits, and volunteer opportunities. Participants worked on an individual project and a team project with an existing Bloomington-based nonprofit.

Sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, the Youth Entrepreneurship Livelihood Program (YELP) was a two-part consulting program that provided significant education and business support to high-potential entrepreneurs in the West Bank, Palestine from September 2014-February 2016. Supported by Bethlehem University (BU) and KSB faculty, the first part of the project brought together Kelley Direct Online MBA students and BU business students to form consulting teams to help small Palestinian entrepreneurial enterprises navigate the challenges of startup and establishment. Through a blend of in-person and virtual interactions, companies received continued consulting support throughout the project. The second part of the project provided consulting services for Palestine Polytechnic University (PPU) to help foster the growth of a sustainable incubator at the university to support high potential entrepreneurs.