2023 OFN Forums Overview
The 2023 Connect+ and Small Business Finance Forums will feature expert-led sessions on a variety of topics, and we invite you to help us shape the curriculum!
OFN is now seeking session proposals from a diverse and inclusive group of organizations and presenters that offer a wide range of perspectives.
2023 Connect+ Forum Overview
Virtual | March 21, 2023
OFN’s Connect+ Forum is a free, half-day virtual forum with plenaries and breakout sessions centered around topics that are trending in the industry and/or are of highest priority for CDFI staff. In previous years, the forum has covered issues such as Equitable Housing Finance; CDFI Growth; and Resilience. In 2023, the Connect+ Forum will be focused on CDFI Operations & Human Capital.
Over the past few years, CDFIs have earned increasing public recognition for their role as trusted, mission-focused lenders and ability to generate positive impact in under-resourced communities across the country, particularly during disruptive times that have included a global pandemic and rising inflation. As the spotlight on CDFIs has grown, so has the demand for the services and capital the CDFI industry provides.
In response, many CDFIs have scaled substantially – from originating hundreds of loans as PPP lenders to ramping up programs and services for community members to creating new loan products to fill capital gaps.
However, as they adapt to changing conditions and increased scale, CDFIs have also increasingly encountered the need to invest in their own operations and human capital to facilitate sustainable, inclusive growth that optimizes their ability to serve the needs of their communities.
Join us at the Connect+ Forum on Tuesday, March 21, 2023 as we consider how CDFIs can most effectively recruit, develop, and retain talent; optimize the efficacy and impact of products and programs; build stronger systems and policies; and invest in operations and technology.
Learn more about the Connect+ Forum and view recordings from previous years here.
2023 Small Business Finance Forum Overview
Chicago, IL | June 20-21, 2023
JW Marriott
OFN's Small Business Finance Forum is returning in-person to downtown Chicago’s magnificent mile for the first time in four years! Now in its tenth year, this annual Forum brings together more than 350 attendees from CDFIs, mission-driven small business lenders, funders, investors, and other partners for a day-and-a-half of valuable learning and networking that supports the shared goal of helping our nation’s small businesses succeed.
For the last decade, the Forum has provided small business and microlending CDFIs with timely content, inspiration, and the chance to connect. In 2023, the Forum will feature over 20 sessions; opportunities for peer learning and networking; a Small Business Partner Showcase with products and organizations that help CDFI small business lenders do their jobs more efficiently and effectively; as well as new trainings developed by OFN to meet members’ needs.
Learn more about the Small Business Finance Forum, including highlights and sessions from previous years, here.
Topics of Interest
2023 Connect+ Forum
The 2023 Connect+ Forum will be focused on CDFI Operations & Human Capital.
Areas of particular interest include:
2023 Small Business Finance Forum
OFN welcomes all ideas and proposals relevant to small business lenders. Below is a list of topics to help you get started.
Core competencies and best practices for small business lending including:
Trends in small business lending such as:
Suggestions for Developing a Strong Proposal
To increase your chances of being selected, we strongly suggest that you:
OFN will work hard to select a mix of strong session proposals that offers value to a range of audiences and levels of experience. We do our best to accommodate as many strong proposals as we can. Sometimes we do this by asking people who propose similar topics to combine their ideas into a single session.
Sample Session Descriptions
Below are two sample session descriptions that you can model your description on:
I Heart CDFI Notes: Engaging Individual and Institutional Investors to Deepen Mission Impact
There’s something very special about the relationships CDFIs hold with investors who help advance our collective mission. While not all investment note offerings are the same, those relationships are at the heart of a growing recognition of what real community investment can look like when investors put their capital to work with CDFIs. In this session, hear from CDFIs with growing notes products about how they manage investor relations and what growth means for their loan funds. We'll talk shop about offering documents, legal advice, accredited vs. nonaccredited investors, and administrative challenges. Together, we'll ponder: Are CDFI investment notes a way to democratize investment? How do we strengthen our links to long-term CDFI supporters like faith communities while developing connections with new individual and institutional investors to create more diversity and inclusion in our investor base? What issues or focus areas are important to these CDFI investors? How can we partner with advisory firms? And what is our opportunity for growth?
The Journey Is the Destination: How CDFIs Can Move from “Colorblind” to “Antiracist”
Women of color accounted for 89% of new businesses opened every day over the year before COVID-19. Black women are 300% more likely to launch a new business than a white person, and Latinas are 180% more likely−and both are more likely to fail, due to lack of affordable capital and access to business advising. The CDFI industry was founded as an antidote to the failings of the traditional financial system, like red lining and lending discrimination. We’re working hard to close these gaps, but “colorblind” policies and ways of doing business hold us back from truly centering Black and Brown business owners and confronting racial and economic injustice head on. As an industry we must move from colorblind to antiracist, and this session is an open and frank discussion of how we do it.
Presenter and Session Policies
Session Length: All sessions will be approximately 60 minutes.
Small Business Finance Forum Registration: Session presenters will be required to register and pay the registration fee for the Small Business Finance Forum. Exceptions will be made for presenters who only plan to attend the session rather than the full Forum. We regret that OFN cannot provide compensation or travel reimbursements to presenters except in rare instances.
Session Organizer: The Session Organizer will be the primary contact for all communications regarding the selected proposal and the session. The Session Organizer assumes full responsibility for the design of the session, the coordination of all session presenters (if applicable), compliance with OFN’s Presenter and Session Policies, and a successful session delivery.
Presenter Confirmations: All session presenters must be confirmed 30 days after a session proposal is accepted.
Session Scheduling: OFN will determine the scheduling of all sessions. By confirming speakers’ participation in the session proposal, you are agreeing that they are available at the times designated below.
Timeline & Submission Instructions
If you have questions about the process or your session idea, please contact Seth Julyan or Sindhu Lakshmanan. You can also download a practice copy of the proposal submission.