By Megan Sayles, AFRO Business Writer,
Report for America Corps Member,
msaylesafro.com
JPMorgan Chase’s senior business consultants in Baltimore, Beth Hehir and Hans Petit-Homme, hold more than 40 years of combined experience in commercial banking, business banking and financial services.
Now, using their expertise, the pair has combined forces to mentor minority businesses across the city.
Launched in 2020, the Chase Business Banking mentorship program helps Black and Brown entrepreneurs grow and scale their businesses with resources tailored to start-ups, one-on-one coaching led by senior business consultants, access to professional development opportunities, educational seminars and streamlined banking and credit solutions.
Entrepreneurs are chosen for the program on a rolling basis, and they participate for three to six months. Upon graduation, the business owners are placed in a network with other graduates, and they are provided with a directory of other entrepreneurs in their industry.
Since its inception, the Chase Business Banking mentorship program has reached over 1,500 Black, Hispanic and Latino small businesses and hosted educational events, community workshops and business training seminars with over 30,000 participants across 21 U.S. cities.
Hehir, a Baltimore native, had already been mentoring businesses in her freetime before joining the program and decided that this position would be a perfect alignment of her personal values and professional skills.
Petit-Homme is an entrepreneur himself, so he knew he could relate to the challenges that business owners typically face. He seized the opportunity to work with small businesses, which he considers the core of all communities.
During the one-on-one coaching sessions, Hehir and Petit-Homme educate entrepreneurs in five focus areas: operation management, cash flow management, business development, access to capital and most-trusted advisors.
Of the focus areas, the senior consultants said that improving cash flow and building a team of reliable advisors were the biggest pain points for minority businesses.
In turn, Hehir and Petit-Homme have helped entrepreneurs learn how to minimize their expenses, and they have connected them to CPAs, business insurance agencies, attorneys and business bankers who will be able to provide steady support throughout their entrepreneurial journey.
“Programs like this are helping to bridge the financial disparities and gaps. Women entrepreneurs still face challenges getting fair access to capital, yet women-owned firms are the fastest-growing segment of business,” said Erica Dobbs, president and and CEO of Dobbs Defense Solutions and participant in the Chase Business Banking mentorship program. “Working with Chase, I’ve been able to align our business model better to have a more accurate picture of accounts receivable and payable and more accurately project quarterly projections in hopes of obtaining access to capital. It’s been a breath of fresh air for my team.”
Most recently, the Chase Business Banking mentorship program teamed up with the City of Baltimore’s for a Business Breakfast Series to support local women- and minority-owned businesses.
The series, hosted through the Mayor’s Office of Small, Minority and Women Business, brought together industry experts across a variety of sectors and 165 entrepreneurs to provide local networking opportunities and knowledge about business resources that are critical to growth and success.
“The turnout and feedback continue to be visited because it aligns minority businesses with common goals,” said Petit-Homme. “We’re here to help, we’re here to be a resource and understand what you need to succeed, and then how can we be a part of that success?”
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