Our Team
Evaluation rigor and extensive knowledge of small business dynamics ensure interventions for BIPOC, AAPI, women and veteran entrepreneurs are working.
Why EEP?
We are the only research and evaluation firm focused solely on measuring the impact of small business interventions. It is all we do. As our name implies, we do so from a commitment to improving interventions focused on BIPOC, AAPI, women and veteran entrepreneurs, which makes us a trusted evaluation partner for funders and organizations trying to make small business ownership more equitable.
EEP is a woman-owned, social enterprise located in Madison, Wisconsin with global clients and partners. Kimberly Zeuli, PhD, leads a team of professionals with a proven track record in designing and managing small business evaluations.
The Approach
Our practice approaches evaluation from a “capacity-building” perspective. We provide our evaluation partners with the support, data and insights to foster greater impact. Our custom monitoring and evaluation plans draw from a broad range of quantitative and qualitative assessment tools that include surveys, interviews, focus groups, case studies and data analysis.
We are experts in survey design and also partner with academic survey centers on survey design and to provide a robust survey infrastructure. We have proven methods for ensuring high response rates even for hard to survey populations.
We recognize that evaluation findings may serve multiple purposes, for different audiences. Our evaluations ensure that the insights can be used to build a narrative about the intervention and the impact it is having and hopes to achieve.
We explicitly consider the ask being made of the people and organizations being evaluated, as well as their capacity to complete the evaluation. When appropriate, we can also surface direct feedback on the plan from the evaluation subjects, giving them agency in the process.
We are a collaborative consulting organization with a transparent process that allows client guidance throughout the engagement.
Recent Projects
Based on her original research, Kim Zeuli designed a robust evaluation plan for the JPMorgan Chase Small Business Forward initiative when it was launched in 2014. EEP remains their independent evaluation partner, adapting our approach for an initiative that has continued to grow. In 2020, we evaluated 18 entrepreneurial support organizations across the U.S. and surveyed nearly 2,500 small businesses.
Founder
Evaluation rigor and extensive knowledge of small business dynamics ensure interventions for BIPOC, AAPI, women and veteran entrepreneurs.
Kim Zeuli, PhD- Founder and Managing Director
Kim provides leadership on all EEP projects, drawing from a career devoted to research and advising on entrepreneurship in the context of urban and rural economic development. Kim received her Ph.D. in Applied Economics, has held various academic positions, and is widely published.