From the start of Project YWCA seven years ago, the newly named Concept to Company (C2C) continues to promote a close-knit relationship between Carnegie Mellon University students and aspiring female entrepreneurs enrolled in the YWCA Enterprising Women class of Downtown Pittsburgh. The students involved have the opportunity to expand the entrepreneur’s learning possibilities by ensuring each woman understands the class material and is able to apply the information to their business idea. Additionally, each student is able to keep in close contact with the women they interact with and monitor her progress even after the ten-week program has ended.

Last year, C2C encountered an amazing opportunity for expansion after coordinating the first Micro-enterprise Symposium on February 28, 2009. Hosting sixty-one attendees, Carnegie Mellon University and SIFE were able to show their strong support for the community’s underprivileged and underfunded entrepreneurs. Students’ involvement within this event included self-designed and self-presented workshops.  For example, one group presented an interactive, step-by-step workshop that shared helpful hints about Google advertising.

The expectations of C2C by the Pittsburgh community became overwhelming after this successful event. As a result, SIFE defined a new initiative and project: Project Pulse. Both C2C and Project Pulse involve interaction with local small businesses. However, the defining difference is the stage at which entrepreneurs are in when SIFE decides to offer assistance. For C2C, students are able to advise women entrepreneurs from the YWCA Enterprising Women class on their business idea and assist in the creation of a business plan. For Project Pulse, students closely form bonds with entrepreneurs from greater Pittsburgh in hopes of improving a business that has already designed and is currently producing a product or service.

Currently, Project Pulse is working with two entrepreneurs: a self-published author and a non-profit collector and re-manufacturer of used computer systems.