- Program Education
- Program Area Special Initiatives
- Grant Amount $300,000
- Grant Period March 1, 2004–February 28, 2005
- Location Washington, DC, United States
- Geographic Focus United States
About this grant
MICROTEST, initiated by the Aspen Institute’s Micro-enterprise Fund for Innovation, Effectiveness, Learning and Dissemination (FIELD), is a process through which practitioners collect key data on their performances and assess their effectiveness using trend analysis and peer group comparison.The project has grown from a group of 14 practitioner agencies in 1997 to more than 70 agencies currently. In collaboration with the Association for Enterprise Development, MICROTEST performance data provides the basis for developing industry standards.Funding will enable MICROTEST to pursue major goals: building its sustainability and enhancing the value of the performance and outcomes data it generates. Activities will include establishing a fair membership fee; focusing on expansion; creating data packaging templates; developing a Social Return on Investment in Micro-enterprise measurement; organizing a group to compile best practices; producing a FIELD publication on outcomes; and collaborating with the Association for Enterprise Development in the development of numerical performance standards and an accreditation process.To date, MICROTEST has focused on building the capacity of staff to serve current levels of membership; and developing a viable business model to guide expansion throughout the industry.