As part of our celebration of 35 years of “better public policy for a better world,” our founder Jeff Padden returns to our offices to share what the early days were like in the beginning. Enjoy!
Starting PPA
From 1987 through 1990, I worked for Governor James Blanchard as his small business policy advisor and head of Small Business Services at the Michigan Department of Commerce. In November of 1990, he sought a third term and was defeated by John Engler. When Mr. Blanchard left office, so did I.
So it happened that in the spring of 1991, I was looking to launch the next chapter of my life. After careers as a musician, legislator, and government administrator, I had little idea about where the next direction would take me. Public policy seemed like the logical field, but it took a while to decide that I would launch my own firm. After meeting with several friends and allies to discuss the possibilities, I had lunch with Dr. Melanie Hwalek, owner of an evaluation firm. She had provided outstanding evaluation services for programs in my small business group at the Michigan Department of Commerce. While others had been vague about their ideas for my future, she was decisive and direct. She leaned across the lunch table, pointed her finger in my face, and said, “You should do what I’m doing.” She said that I think like and evaluator and that, with my knowledge and background in public policy, I could do well conducting evaluations in that field. As a clincher, she promised to help me figure out the business. I took her advice, and she was absolutely true to her word.
First Project
The final report of PPA’s first project began with the words, “It is said that out of adversity comes opportunity.” A new administration in Lansing had signaled clearly that the State’s approach to economic development and business services would be dramatically different than that of past administrations. In this dramatically shifting landscape, the Michigan Small Business Development Center [MI-SBDC] and Michigan State University [MSU] were both trying to find new roles to play in business support and economic development. They chose to collaborate on an effort to increase understanding of the small business environment and the firms they hoped to serve. Together, they retained me and my brand-new firm to help them think through what such a study might look like and how it could be conducted. That project became the Michigan Small Business Needs Assessment, a broad and deep scan of the challenges facing Michigan’s small firms that also prescribed strategies for addressing them.
After creating a profile of small firms, the project addressed five goals:
- Increase the understanding of the key service needs of small firms and the importance of those needs to allow improved targeting of services by providers.
- Develop insight into the expectations held by business owners about the most effective means of delivering business services.
- Provide information to service providers that will assist with the application of their services and resources in meeting the needs of small businesses.
- Ensure that the research is directly relevant to the needs of the sponsors and service providers and delivered in a form that is immediately useful.
- Generate data and analyses that are valid on a statewide and sub-state regional basis, revealing differences in needs between urban versus rural businesses and categories of businesses based on size, industry, and ownership.
This ambitious project employed five main research methods:
- Literature search: Domestic and international
- Secondary analysis of MI-SBDC Customer databases
- Key informant interviews: 13 interviews of small business services leaders
- Focus groups: eight groups across sectors, ownership, and geography
- Survey research: leaders of about 1,800 small firms
For members of the target business population, the study examined:
- The business difficulties they face
- The ways in which they address these difficulties
- Their experiences with various service providers and perceptions of their capabilities
- Their preferences about service delivery systems and mechanisms
The results provided insight and guidance to service providers regarding how to target prospective customers, market to them, deliver services most effectively, and maintain strong relationships with them. Both the MI-SBDC and MSU were pleased with the report and were able to use it in shaping their future efforts.
When this study was launched in May of 1991, PPA did not yet have offices. Once the contract was signed, I moved very quickly to find a home for the infant firm and to assemble a team to complete the work. That team included several experienced researchers, starting with Dr. Hwalek who quickly became my principal mentor. We also recruited an advisory committee that included well-known business and academic leaders who provided oversight and guidance. Because of their stature, they also lent legitimacy to this work by a new and unknown company.
In the end, the project was delivered on time in six months and on budget. Completion of the work was followed by a multi-city tour for the media, business leaders, and service providers. The work was extraordinarily well received. It was cited many times in academic and other publications, and PPA received requests for copies of the report for 10 years.
The Future
Reflecting on the earliest days of PPA allows one to wonder about its evolution over 35 years. There were lessons that came from that start-up process and the first project. Here are a few:
- It can be okay to overreach. Every project is an opportunity to learn, both new content and novel research methods. Abject terror of failure can be highly motivational.
- Use partnerships to build internal capacity. Subcontracting work on a turn-key basis can be efficient, but it overlooks the chance to learn and grow. It is far better to collaborate with partners so that their knowledge and skills can be integrated into the organization.
- Remember the past. It is easy to allow knowledge and capabilities to fade and wither. Maintaining them ensures that the firm remains competitive.
In the decades since its origin, the PPA team has gotten smarter and far more capable. It has the capability to undertake highly complex and challenging projects as a matter of course. I have every expectation that the next 35 years will bring continued growth, development, and prosperity. Along the way, the firm’s work will, I have no doubt, continue to improve lives, enrich communities, and strengthen institutions.
