Development Disabilities Association's (DDA's) Starworks program is a social enterprise which employs people with developmental disabilities to provide light manufacturing and assembly services to BC companies. The social enterprise is ideally suited for repetitive tasks, with volumes that lie between a company’s capacity to do the work easily in-house versus volumes that would be cost effective to automate.

The social enterprise had a strong system for providing the social service program and supports for disabled employees in the program. SVPartners worked with Starworks to strengthen their business systems and sales strategies. The team formed a business advisory committee, developed a sales plan and strategies, to increase due diligence with customers to avoid bad debts, renovated the facility to maximize warehouse space, implemented an inventory software system, developed a new website, and produced new marketing materials. Human resource development was key to strengthening the business component of this dual-mission organization. The team hired a General Manager with a business background and a sales person to proactively market the social enterprise’s services.

Over a three-year period, revenues of the social enterprise nearly doubled. In addition, Starworks employed 18 people with mental disabilities when it began in 2000. Today, the number has increased to 40 individuals. In 2006, Starworks paid $144,787 in wages to developmentally disabled individuals, many of which live on disability benefits and/or on incomes below the poverty line. Also, as a result, the increased revenues flowing to the organization, Starworks has reduced its dependence on fundraising dollars that can now be used for family support programs.

http://www.starworks.ca/