A Year of Innovation, A Future of Possibility

Dear Friends, Colleagues, and Partners,
This year, our community of entrepreneurs, alumni, ecosystem and funding partners, and research collaborators showed what it means to invest in innovation with purpose—turning new ideas into measurable gains for small businesses and the neighborhoods they anchor.

Founded more than 30 years ago by Dr. Michael Porter of Harvard Business School, ICIC remains focused on a single mission: helping under-resourced communities and their small businesses thrive through programs and research that create jobs, income, and wealth.

Across these pages, you’ll see that mission in action. Business owners are modernizing operations, entering new markets, and hiring locally. Our programs deliver executive education, coaching, technical assistance, and access to capital at scale; our data-driven research helps public and private leaders focus investment where it can do the most good. Together, these efforts translate into growth for firms and momentum for communities.

For ICIC, innovation is not a slogan—it is a practice. From AI-enabled technical assistance to modern financing and partnership models, we pair leading-edge tools with the practical wisdom of entrepreneurs. The stories in this report reflect the resourcefulness and creativity we see every day—and how bold ideas become real outcomes for businesses and local economies.

Looking ahead, we will continue to raise the bar on outcomes. We will deepen alumni services; expand thought and practice leadership on inclusive growth; and equip small businesses with the technology, tools, and peer networks needed to navigate a changing economy. We will keep meeting entrepreneurs where they are—and building with them, not for them—so that inclusive prosperity endures in under-resourced communities nationwide. 

Thank you for your partnership and your belief in this work. Breaking barriers, building businesses, and strengthening communities remains our shared charge—and our promise for the year ahead.

With gratitude and resolve,

Steve Grossman
CEO, ICIC