LEAD is collaborating with the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation (MSDF) to conduct a two-year study to understand the impact of the Foundation’s investments in companies that serve the microenterprise segment. The MSDF lending portfolio comprises a range of NBFCs, including emerging fintech firms that primarily cater to the microenterprise segment. The impact assessment is particularly relevant as microenterprises form the bulk of the MSME segment, and have the potential to spur job creation and local growth and development.

The study aims to assess the impact of access to formal finance on microenterprises, ranging from determining the effect on enterprise growth and job creation to household well-being.

This discussion note summarises insights from a series of three workshops that were conducted with key experts to better understand the characteristics and businesses of micro-entrepreneurs from diverse sectors. The themes explored in the workshop included identifying robust measures of entrepreneurial orientation, job creation, and proxy indicators to identify low-income households in urban settings, relevant for the study. These inputs will help refine the study design and finetune the survey instruments.