The 8-week course walks entrepreneurs through the nuts and bolts of developing a triple
bottom line business plan. This plan will specifically lay out your company’s mission, operations, marketing, budgeting and related growth strategies. You’ll also learn how to build an inclusive organizational culture, forecast your future needs and reduce your operating costs. It will also enable you to develop mission-driven initiatives that integrate financial, environmental and social perspectives into your overall business strategy. The result: Your business will become far better positioned to financially benefit from the growing public interest in sustainability and People, Profit and Planet. Graduates of the Academy receive a Certificate from the Denver Office of Economic Development.

The Academy serves a wide range of small businesses: some green, some not. Our entrepreneurs run retail, product design, consulting, health care, construction, graphic arts, marketing, food/urban agriculture, community development, real estate and other companies. Whether your company provides an eco-friendly product or service, or a more traditional product seeks, the Academy will provide you with a 360° understanding of how to scale your business. From creating effective leadership skills to engaging stakeholders to developing financial metrics, you'll discover the key steps to making the TBL relevant to your venture. Our faculty, mentors, coaches and ecosystem of socially responsible companies are focused on helping you succeed.

9/19 - The Business Case for the Triple Bottom Line
In this introductory class, we review the overall 8-week curriculum and provide a basic familiarity with Triple Bottom Line thinking. We explore the increasing importance that the public places on corporate social responsibility and sustainability and how these practices help companies distinguish themselves. Students also discuss how business can both positively and negatively impact the environment and communities in which they operate. We then relate these trends and issues back to the student’s particular company. The session concludes with students crafting a draft mission statement for their business.

9/26 - Developing a TBL Plan and Strategy
Once students have an overall understanding of TBL thinking, they start designing their business plans. We highlight the impact that a comprehensive business plan has on improving the likelihood for success and the competitive advantage that a TBL plan provides. We discuss the key elements of a plan; point of inspiration, definition of your product or service, target market, operations, marketing, financing and pricing. We then look at how to specifically integrate environmental and social metrics into the overall growth strategy.

10/3 - Making a Profit While Doing Good
In today’s economy, financing any kind of expansion – let alone a Triple Bottom Line strategy – can seem like a daunting effort. Yet TBL thinking can actually improve cash flow in a multitude of ways. This session focuses on the financial aspect of the Triple Bottom Line, with guest experts discussing such concepts as: cash flow analysis, product pricing, sustainable economics, local funding sources and how to use financial calculations to prioritize TBL initiatives.

10/10 - Telling Your Story: TBL Communication Strategies
With a solid understanding of how TBL thinking will transform their company internally, students will next learn how to communicate those initiatives effectively. We ’ll identify markets for TBL-oriented companies, explore the concepts of green washing, examine social media and delve into other effective marketing strategies. Students practice making a short “elevator pitch” about their company’s overall business plan and TBL initiatives.

10/17 - Building an Effective Organization
This session explores how to create a well functioning, values-based organization. We examine critical issues as: employment agreements, IP, operations planning, client contracts, corporate legal structures, leadership styles and management strategies for creating an open and honest company culture. Time is also provided for students to complete their final assignments and receive feedback on their TBL plans, hone their presentation skills, and discuss the next steps for implementing their TBL initiatives.

10/24 - Going Green: Reducing your Environmental Impact
Whether it’s for short-term cost savings or long-term resilience, minimizing resource use and waste output is increasingly becoming a priority for smart businesses. Students will learn about the many ways the operations of their business might adversely impact the environment – and how to minimize that impact with tools such as lifecycle analysis, supply chain management, energy auditing and conservation. Students will map the inputs and outputs of their business and identify the greatest opportunities for shrinking its ecological footprint, along with the costs required to take these steps.

10/31 - Engaging with the Community
This session centers on strategies for creating a corporate culture that has a positive impact on stakeholders: -> employees, customers/clients, and neighbors. We’ll explore local best practices in community engagement, learn about business ethics and hear from a panel of local business owners about how they’ve improved employee satisfaction, built market share, educated their customers and developed partnerships with nonprofits. Students will apply these lessons to their own business, strategizing how to make a positive difference in their community, while generating revenue.

11/7 - Conclusions and Class Presentations
In the final classroom session, students hand in their final TBL plans and give short presentations about their TBL strategy. Each student will evaluate their peers’ presentations, provide constructive feedback, and help determine which of their classmates will present at the public showcase on April 19th.

11/15 - Public Showcase and Graduation Ceremony
The course concludes with a public event showcasing Academy graduates to their peers and leaders in government, social enterprise and business. Attendees will hear from a prominent keynote speaker, while students will receive their certificates. A select group of graduates will present their TBL plans to the audience.

Richard Eidlin, Founder, Greater Good Academy

Lauren Smith, Namaste Solar
 

Rebecca Kirchdorfer, Downing Street Garage

Yvonne Lynott, Lynott & Associates

Rob Smith, RMMFI

Adam Schlegel, Snooze Restaurant 

Beth Parish, Regis University

Bill Morris & Andy O'Riley, Blue Star Recyclers

Randy Williams, ProLevation Inc.