Speaking
Most American businesses don't fit the frameworks built to support them. I talk about what changes when we design for the ones that actually exist.
Jessica Affatato speaks to economic developers, funders, universities, chambers and community organizations about the 78% of U.S. businesses with no employees, and about the infrastructure, measurement and relationships that decide whether those businesses stay and grow. Her talks draw on her research (The Wrong Metrics), her practice as an IEDC-certified Economic Development Professional, and five years running Harbor Cheese & Provisions on Long Island.
Upcoming
Elevate | New Orleans | Wednesday, October 28, 2026
Knowledge Drop session alongside New Economy Initiative and MAIN Québec. Introducing Weaver's five resource pools and the case for measuring microenterprise differently.
Popular Topics
The Hidden Economic Power of Women Microentrepreneurs
Nonemployer businesses make up 78.4% of U.S. establishments, and women run a growing share of them. This talk treats microenterprise as an economic base rather than a starter phase, and shows what communities miss when they only count hires and growth.
Building Entrepreneurial Infrastructure That Works
Programs end. Infrastructure stays. This session introduces Weaver's five resource pools (social capital, physical and digital infrastructure, knowledge transfer, market access and financial accessibility) and how founders actually move between them, so ecosystem builders can see real gaps instead of guessing at them.
Rethinking Success Beyond Venture Capital
Most founders aren't chasing an exit. They're building stability, autonomy and income. Drawing on The Wrong Metrics and the Vocabulary Flip, this talk shows how growth-and-jobs metrics pull programs toward founders who aren't in the room, and what to measure instead.
Why Community Is Essential Infrastructure for Small Business
Relationships do work institutions can't: the warm handoff, the lender who knows your name, the peer who vouches for you. This talk looks at how trust moves through a local economy, why national indicators struggle to count it, and how communities can build it on purpose.
The Future of Inclusive Economic Development
Inclusion starts with who your language and metrics describe. A practical session on auditing program vocabulary, intake and outcomes so more founders recognize that support is meant for them.
Small Worlds, Big Worlds: Creating Collisions in Entrepreneurial Ecosystems
Close-knit networks build trust. Bridging ties bring in new resources. Ecosystems work when trust gets lent across those edges. This talk explores how to design the collisions that open a tight local network without losing what makes it work.
Drive Time, Not Distance: Mapping Resource Access for Microbusiness (new)
A resource ten miles away can be an hour away. Using drive-time mapping, this session shows where resource deserts form for microbusinesses, from suburban Long Island to rural communities, and what that means for where support should go.
Formats
- Keynotes
- Panels and moderated conversations
- Workshops and working sessions for staff, boards and partners
- Guest lectures and classroom visits
Who I Speak To
Economic development organizations, BIDs and chambers of commerce, funders and CDFIs, universities, municipal leaders, and community and nonprofit partners.
Short Bio (for event organizers)
Jessica Affatato is the founder of Weaver, a Long Island resource ecosystem for microentrepreneurs, and the author of The Wrong Metrics, research on how traditional economic development measures miss the 78% of U.S. businesses with no employees. She holds the IEDC Economic Development Professional credential, a Master of Management in Corporate Innovation and Entrepreneurship from Penn State, and spent five years building Harbor Cheese & Provisions.
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