Wachovia Wells Fargo NEXT Awards for CDFIs

Posted by on March 20, 2011

Applications Now Open for
The 2011 Wachovia Wells Fargo NEXT Awards

The 2011 Wachovia Wells Fargo NEXT Awards for Opportunity Finance opened for applications today! We hope you are asking yourself if your CDFI is “NEXT.”

NEXT is about two things:

* Whether your CDFI has a market-tested product, a market, or a strategy with clear growth potential that will benefit the people and communities you serve in a big way. Ask yourself if the main thing holding you back is recognition and capital.
* Whether your CDFI is ready to go to the next level. Ask yourself if a multimillion dollar NEXT Award this year would catapult you to a new level next year.

It may surprise you to learn:

* Past Awardees are diverse.
* The application is easy, requiring standard documents and a short vision statement. For CARS™-rated CDFIs, your CARS™ report does almost all the work for you.
* Finalists, as well as awardees, benefit from media coverage, helping build recognition, raise capital, and bolster reputation.
* Finalists receive guidance from a skilled and diverse Selection Committee, which spends hours reviewing business strategies, products, and management—and shares its observations with finalists.
* First-time applicants have won in past years.

You can talk to past Awardees for tips and perspectives. In fact, we are making that happen. Join us on the NEXT Awards information call on March 24th or visit our Connect with Awardees page.
http://www.nextawards.org/infocallreg.asp
http://www.nextawards.org/awards/connect.asp

Visit our Web site to learn more about what it means to be NEXT!

http://www.nextawards.org/