Introducing the Small Firm Diaries USA

The Financial Access Initiative started conducting in-depth, diaries-style analyses on small firms in 2021, with studies in 7 countries. Now, building on the insights from our global work, we’ve launched the Small Firm Diaries USA to better understand how small firms in the United States grow, survive, and thrive. 

Supported by JPMorganChase, the Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth, and the Aspen Institute Economic Opportunities Program, we’ve begun collecting data from firms across our six research sites—Atlanta, Baltimore, St. Louis, Chicago, Oakland, and New York City—as well as a few rural areas. 

Over the next 12 months, we’ll be connecting regularly with these firms, to learn more about the way they operate, learn, adapt, and grow in each of their unique settings. Our regular surveys and review of bookkeeping data will shed light on the day-to-day challenges these firms face.

We’re focused on learning about barriers to productivity and growth both for the firm as a whole, and how these barriers translate into challenges for workers. We are interested in understanding more about the quality of jobs that small firms provide, and hearing workers’ perspectives on why they choose this type of employment, as opposed to other options open to them, such as self-employment, gig work, or employment within larger businesses. 

Study Participants

In line with our previous work, Small Firm Diaries USA focuses on small firms with at least two non-owner workers (part-time, full-time, W2, or 1099), that operate in low-income communities and employ low-income workers, and that have been in operation for at least two years. 

We’re not just studying business owners — we’re also hearing directly from their workers. Most research only looks at one side, but by talking to both, we get a fuller picture of the challenges and trade-offs facing low-income firms and the people they employ. Beyond wages and benefits, our surveys dig into what job quality really means, from paid time off, to schedule flexibility, and more. Our deliberate focus on firms in low-income neighborhoods and those owned by people from historically marginalized groups aims to reveal patterns and issues that are often missed in conventional studies.

Data Collection

Small Firm Diaries USA builds on FAI’s experience running financial diaries projects around the world — from the Global Small Firm Diaries to household diaries in multiple countries, including the U.S. 

In this study, we’re collecting both quantitative and qualitative data on how small firms operate day to day. Bookkeeping data allows us to see how businesses respond to fluctuations and handle financial challenges in real time, rather than relying on year-end summaries or retrospective accounts. 

Through regular check-ins and surveys with the firms, we’ll learn about firm owners’ motivations for starting their businesses, financial access and use, and strategic decision making, giving us a richer understanding of how the firms navigate complexity, volatility, and opportunity across a 12-month period.

The combination of high-frequency, quantitative and qualitative data yields insights impossible with either alone. This frequent, longitudinal data collection approach can help policymakers and financial product designers build more responsive offerings to support small firms, and their workers, in the U.S.

In the months ahead, we will share insights and data through these blog posts and other publications. Stay up to date with our progress on our website and LinkedIn.