Business & Tech

Coventry EDC Joins Collaborative Effort to Revive RI Economy

A new collaborative network strives to bring local business leaders together to benefit the economy.

Members of the Coventry Economic Development Commission, in partnership with several local chambers of commerce and the Centerville Seminar Center, have set out to revitalize Rhode Island's economy through collaboration and communication.

Coventry's EDC along with the aforementioned organizations have joined forces with 23 other business leaders from across the state and nearby to establish a collaborative training network enabling them to share their knowledge and experience with local business owners.  

Justin Capaldi, owner of Coventry-based Capaldi Web Design and SEO is just one of the nearly two dozen local entrepreneurs willing to help those who currently own a business in Rhode Island or would like to.

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This new collaborative network is called Prophet Share, Inc.

Prophet Share, Inc., formally known as the RI Small Business Recovery Program, is an excellent example of what has become internationally known as “a sharing community”. In simple terms, “a sharing community” removes duplication that doesn’t add value and concentrates on things that do add value. 

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Through participation in Prophet Share, talented business owners and trainers (prophets) no longer have to individually own projection, video and recording equipment. Nor do they have to rent expensive classroom or hotel space in order to share their talent and experience with their peers.  Instead, they jointly have access to a newly redecorated facility that will seat forty-two attendees and has cutting edge technology, internet access for up to forty individuals simultaneously and, a kitchen facility to serve food and beverages.  

As the result of this “penny-pinching” sharing approach, Prophet Share, Inc. will be able to bring high-quality business training to the Rhode Island business community on a meager budget of less than $25,000 annually. 

Now, seasoned business professionals, who have built their business success by creating value for others, can affordably and altruistically “give back” to the community by sharing their experiences and trade secrets.  

“It is essential that the business community provide the long-term collaborative leadership needed to rebuild the Rhode Island economy," said Prophet Share founder David Nash. "Prophet Share’s peer-to-peer training program is an important component of private sector leadership."

While the RI Small Business Recovery Program is changing its name, it is not changing its direction. Prophet Share, Inc. will continue to provide high quality seminars, workshops and mastermind programs to the local business community. In the past 32 months, the Small Business Recovery Program provided peer-to-peer training to more than 7,000 business owners and entrepreneurs. 

Recognizing that various corporate, civic and academic groups are often seeking speakers for keynotes, panel discussion, seminars, workshops, and joint presentations; Prophet Share has established a new speakers’ bureau. 

The speakers’ bureau will introduce a select group of business leaders, original thinkers, and writers for speaking engagements on a local and national level.

An important leadership component of Prophet Share will be the continuation of the six mastermind programs that take place throughout the state. These groups, made up of approximately 10 business owners in each group, meet for three hours each month for the sole purpose of helping each other grow their businesses. 

The groups meet in Coventry, East Greenwich, Lincoln, South Kingstown and Warwick, and are hosted by the Coventry Economic Development Commission, Centerville Seminar Center and the East Greenwich, Northern RI and Southern RI Chambers of Commerce.

Click here to view a complete list of upcoming Prophet Share events and seminars, which range from free to $85 per person.

Attached is a list of the business leaders and trainers who donate their time and talent to assist area business owners in rebuilding a vibrant local economy.  

If you are a business owner interested in getting involved with Prophet Share, visit www.prophetshareri.com or contact David Nash at (401) 447-8000.


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