Program Designed to Help High-Potential Small Businesses Grow and Hire More Aggressively

Longtime JumpStart supporter, Burton D. Morgan Foundation has awarded the organization a new $200,000 grant to expand on its work to help scaleup businesses in Northeast Ohio.

JumpStart defines a scaleup as a business that is three or more years old, employs between 10 and 100 people, earns more than $2 million in revenue and is cash flow positive (or close to it). These businesses have the potential to grow and hire aggressively, but they often face obstacles and hit plateaus along the way. The organization began a pilot-program to help these scaleups in late 2014. Now, with continued support from Burton D. Morgan Foundation, the work will expand to more businesses across Northeast Ohio.

“For more than a decade, JumpStart has been helping startup entrepreneurs grow their businesses unlock their potential,” said JumpStart Senior Partner of Entrepreneurial Services and Investing, Lee Poseidon. “Scaleups face many similar issues, and they have an even greater potential to grow and hire in the short-term because they are further along in their journey. For both of these reasons, it makes natural sense for us to be working with these businesses.”

“Burton D. Morgan Foundation believes that much unrealized potential exists in our region for job and revenue generation through company growth. JumpStart has proved to be our valued and longtime partner in the strategic evolution of the Northeast Ohio ecosystem,” added Deborah Hoover, president and CEO of Burton D. Morgan Foundation. “The region’s scaleup work is gaining significant traction, and we are excited to pursue this next level of targeted support to help companies learn and grow through JumpStart’s scaleup program.  Morgan Foundation is committed to helping the Northeast Ohio economy continue on its current positive trajectory through broad-based startup and scaleup support.”

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About JumpStart Inc.
JumpStart unlocks the full potential of diverse and ambitious entrepreneurs to economically transform entire communities.

About Burton D. Morgan Foundation
Founded in 1967 by a true visionary we honor daily, the mission of Burton D. Morgan Foundation is to champion the entrepreneurial spirit. The foundation serves youth, collegiate and adult entrepreneurs by cultivating transformative opportunities and interlocking networks that bring together the best minds and most creative thinkers. Leveraging its extensive experience in venture philanthropy and ecosystem expansion, the foundation today is pursuing a strategic blueprint that will drive entrepreneurial growth and education regionally and nationally by supporting those with the courage to power our economy. To find out more, visit www.bdmorganfdn.org.