Recent White Papers
The Cedar Valley of eastern Iowa (population 170,000) has built a vibrant regional ecosystem over the past decade. With support from the Kauffman Foundation, Entrepreneurial Communities was tapped to provide an in depth case study of the regional ecosystem landscape in 2019. This generative study offers a rich perspective on ecosystem evolution and the role of entrepreneurs in leading community building.
The Cedar Valley Entrepreneurial Ecosystem Full Report
Lessons Learned in the Cedar Valley Ecosystem
Sweetwater County, Wyoming Rural Ecosystem 2021 Recommendations
During the height of the pandemic, states and counties struggled to support entrepreneurs and small business owners impacted by unprecedented economic disruptions. In Sweetwater County, Wyoming (population 42,000), regional leaders were searching for ways to understand the shifting dynamics of the county ecosystem and to create immediate, actionable strategies to support struggling small business owners. We used an entrepreneurial lens to measure local innovation, online business activity, business churn and other key indicators of entrepreneurial health. A excerpt of those recommendations can be found here.
Publications
Near, far, and online: Small business owners' advice-seeking from peers k Kuhn, T Galloway, M Collins Journal of Small Business 15 February 2016
Competitors as advisors: Peer assistance among small business entrepreneurs K Kuhn, T Galloway, Mo Collins Long Range Planning 1 November 2019
Simply the Best: An Exploration of Advice that Small Business Owners Value K Kuhn, T Galloway, Mo Collins Journal of Business Venturing Insights 9 June 2017
Entrepreneurial Surveys
Mo Collins conducted the statewide surveys of Iowa entrepreneurs and small business owners between 2012 and 2014 at the University of Northern Iowa. She left the university in 2014 and returned as Researcher in Residence in 2015 to guide the final survey. These surveys provided insight and direction to Iowa ecosystem efforts, guided new program development throughout the state and raised awareness at the legislative level around barriers and bottlenecks in systems supporting entrepreneurs in the state.
The 2015 Iowa Small Business Report