Financial Literacy & MicroEnterprise Assessment Tool

All financial literacy & microenterprise programs begin somewhere.

Use this assessment tool to identify the current stage

(Nascent, Emerging, Mature) of your program.

In the Nascent stage, the program is just coming into existence and beginning

to display signs of future potential. In the Emerging stage, the program is

becoming more prominent and established. In the Mature stage, the program

has reached the most advanced point of development.

3 Stages of Financial Literacy & MicroEnterprise

Program

NASCENT EMERGING MATURE

Recruitment

❍ There are no dedicated staffmembers in place to assist clientswith managing their personalfinances or starting a business.

❍ The organization relies on staffassigned to a different role toprovide financial literacy andentrepreneurship services.

❍ Job descriptions for financial andbusiness counselors exist but,are not regularly updated.

❍ Recruitment processes includean evaluation of whethercandidates possess the essentialskills to excel in the position, butlack a behavioral component(assessing whether the candidateis a good fit for the team andorganization’s culture).

❍ There are specific staff membersdedicated to assisting clientswith their financial literacy andentrepreneurship needs, but thisrole is in addition to their otherresponsibilities.

❍ Financial and business counselorjob descriptions are written andreviewed yearly by the supervisor.Roles and responsibilities areclearly defined.

❍ Recruitment processesrequire both an essentialskills assessment as well as abehavioral component.

❍ Dedicated counselors are inplace to assist clients with theirentrepreneurship and financialneeds.

❍ Job descriptions exist andtargeted recruitment takes placefor volunteers, including outreachand recruitment of corporatevolunteers and business mentors.

NASCENT EMERGING MATURE

TOTAL

Directions: Put a checkmark next to the current stage of your program in

the five different sections (Recruitment, Training & Coordination

of Staff, Financial Literacy & Education, Microenterprise &

Entrepreneurship, and Monitoring & Evaluation) and add up

your checkmarks to identify whether your program is nascent,

emerging or mature.

TOTAL TOTAL

Training & Coordination of Staff

❍ Training procedures arenonexistent or emerging.

❍ Of the available training, itis limited to staff receivinginformation on the organization’shistory, mission and shared teamgoals. No role-specific training isprovided.

❍ Staff do not receive training onethical practices and professionalboundaries.

❍ Training on strength-basedpractice is not offered to staff.

❍ Specialized training on vulnerablepopulations such as women andgirls, youth, elderly and LGBTQIindividuals is not in place.

❍ Information on the culturaland religious practices ofthe populations served is notprovided to staff.

❍ An official training plan is in placethat covers the organization’shistory, mission and shared teamgoals as well as their role-specificresponsibilities.

❍ Staff receive training on ethicalpractice and professionalboundaries, but volunteers andinterns do not.

❍ Staff occasionally use a strength-based, client-centered approach,but it remains inconsistentlyimplemented among staff.

❍ Training on vulnerable populationssuch as women and girls, youth,elderly and LGBTQI individuals isprovided in an ad hoc manner.

❍ Information on the culturaland religious practices of thepopulations served is available,but not provided to staff in aroutine and organized way.

❍ Uniform, consistent trainingsystems are in place.

❍ All staff receive training on theorganization’s history, missionand shared team goals as well astheir role-specific responsibilities,including shadowing colleagues.

❍ All staff, including volunteersand interns receive training onethical practices and professionalboundaries.

❍ New staff members receivetraining on the strength-basedapproach and consistently applyit in direct service provision.

❍ All staff attend specializedtraining on vulnerable populationssuch as women and girls, youth,elderly and LGBTQI individuals.

❍ All staff receive information on thecultural and religious practices ofthe populations served.

NASCENT EMERGING MATURE TOTAL TOTAL TOTAL

NASCENT EMERGING MATURE❍ Financial and business staff

are not trained in the financialcoaching model.

❍ Supervisors do not receive anymanagement training.

❍ There are no regular meetings ortrainings held with all economicempowerment staff (business,financial and employmentcounselors).

❍ Financial and business staff aretrained in the financial coachingmodel.

❍ Supervisors receive basicmanagement training.

❍ The supervisor encouragescoordination between staff andother departments and holdsinfrequent meetings betweenall economic empowermentstaff (business, financial andemployment counselors).

❍ Financial and business staffare familiar with the financialcoaching model.

❍ Supervisors have received amanagement developmenttraining program.

❍ The supervisor actively promotesa team-based culture andcoordination through regularteam building activities andcross department coordinationmeetings. Biweekly meetingsbetween all economicempowerment staff (business,financial and employmentcounselors) are held.

Financial Literacy & Education

❍ The organization does not offerfinancial education training tohelp clients gain the knowledgeand skills needed to makesound financial decisions andconnect with mainstream financialservices.

❍ No services or referrals areprovided to assist clients withbanking, filing their annual incometaxes or accessing financialproducts.

❍ Employment or other staff offerfinancial education training tohelp clients gain the knowledgeand skills needed to makesound financial decisions andconnect with mainstream financialservices. One-on-one coaching isconducted on an ad hoc basis.

❍ The organization offers two ormore economic empowermentservices, such as cash assistanceand employment services in oneplace, but does not deliver it inan intentional bundled services1

modality.

❍ The organization has establishedreferrals to external providersto assist clients with filing theirannual income taxes, accessingincentive financial savingsresources and other financialproducts.

1 Also known as integrated services, the Bundled Services model is an intentional process to move clients through a series of programs to leverage the amount and quality of client outcomes. Established as a best practice by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, bundled services represent a holistic set of programs centered on public benefits access, employment services and financial capability services.

❍ Dedicated financial coaches/counselors offer financial education training and one-on-one coaching to help clients gain the knowledge and skills needed to make sound financial decisions, connect with mainstream financial services, and establish financial goals such as building a reserve emerging savings fund or saving for a business, house or higher education.

❍ The organization adheres toa bundled service model of delivering financial literacy as part of a suite of economic empowerment services to promote financial stability such as public benefits or cash assistance access or screening, employment and financial literacy services.

❍ The organization has staff or an established volunteer service to provide free tax preparation for families to file their annual income taxes (if applicable).

❍ The organization offers incentivized financial savings resources to assist clients in purchasing assets, and other financial products to encourage saving money over time.

❍ The organization offers in house financial loan products to assist with emergency expenses, purchasing an asset or education costs.

TOTAL TOTAL TOTAL

NASCENT EMERGING MATURE

Microenterprise & Entrepreneurship

❍ Clients interested in starting theirown businesses are not providedassistance nor are they referredto those who could provide moretailored guidance on banking,bookkeeping, insurance, etc.

❍ Entrepreneurship and microenterprise development programming is inconsistently offered as an alternative to formal employment or supplemental means of gaining income and assets for clients who express interest.

❍ Staff provide group training on developing relevant business skills.

❍ Staff refer clients to external providers who can offer guidance on topics such as banking, bookkeeping, licensing, etc.

❍ The business counselor assesses client needs and skills and provides referals to additional resources to help the client meet his or her goals.

❍ Employment staff have referralmechanisms to ensure that clientswho are interested in entrepreneurshipand microenterprise access theprogram as an incentive for securinginitial entry level employment.

❍ Entrepreneurship and microenterprisedevelopment programming offer analternative to formal employmentor supplemental means to gainingincome and assets.

❍ Business counselors recruit andprovide orientation to potential micro-entrepreneurs.

❍ Business counselors provide grouptraining on developing relevantbusiness skills and navigating the localbusiness environment.

❍ Business counselors assess clientneeds, skills and motivation, andcomplete a business plan (togetherwith the client) to identify the stepsneeded to reach the business goal.

❍ Business counselors offer or referclients to those who can provideguidance on specialized topics suchas marketing, banking, bookkeeping,licensing, insurance, legal issues andleasing.

❍ Clients are provided with assistanceon accessing mainstream financialcapital resources or providedindividual loans or grants fromin-house funds.

NASCENT EMERGING MATURE

TOTAL TOTAL TOTAL

Monitoring & Evaluation

❍ Financial and businesscounselors do not collect data onbudget or business start-up orsupport.

❍ Supervisors do not ensure fullcompliance with all policies,procedures and protocols.

❍ Financial and business servicesdata is not collected or reviewed.

❍ Financial and businesscounselors collect data on familybudgets and business plans.

❍ Supervisors ensure partialcompliance with all policies,procedures and protocols.

❍ The supervisor irregularlycollects and reviews financialand business services data todetermine areas of strength andareas of improvement.

❍ The supervisor sometimesdevelops and implementsinterventions to improve thescope and quality of clientservices.

❍ Financial and businesscounselors routinely collect familybudget, business plans andfollow up data.

❍ The supervisor ensures fullcompliance with all policies,procedures and protocols.

❍ The supervisor is accountablefor ensuring accurate and timelytracking and reporting of financialand business services data andoutcomes to donors and allrelevant parties.

❍ The supervisor systematicallycollects client feedback andimplements interventions toimprove the scope and qualityof client services based on thefeedback received.

NASCENT EMERGING MATURE

TOTAL TOTAL TOTAL

Directions: Add up your total checkmarks from each column

and write them below. The highest number is the

stage your program falls under:

NASCENT EMERGING MATUREIf your program is in the Mature stage, keep up the good work! For more information on best practices, please refer to the Economic Empowerment page of our website.

TOTAL TOTAL TOTAL

If your program is in the Nascent stage, please refer to the Economic Empowerment page of our website. If you have further questions on improving your financial literacy and microenterprise program, contact EURITA at eurita@rescue.org for technical assistance.

If your program is in the Emerging stage, please refer to the Economic Empowerment page of our website. If you have further questions on improving your financial literacy and microenterprise program, contact EURITA at eurita@rescue.org for technical assistance.

www.eurita.org

IRC European Resettlement and Integration Technical Assistance (EURITA) This EURITA resource was developed by the International Rescue Committee and adapted for EURITA under an agreement financed by the United States Department of State and does not assume endorsement by the U.S. Federal Government.