Maggie Bullard-Marshall, PMP | Sep 10, 2023
If you’re an individually-owned 8(a) participant or applicant and feeling a little overwhelmed by this new requirement to write a social disadvantage narrative, consider using these tools to get you started.
- Create a free account at https://chat.openai.com/
- Click “new chat” and copy/paste this prompt in the box:Write a succinct social disadvantage narrative for the Small Business Administration. It must include the following elements: (i) At least one objective distinguishing feature that has contributed to social disadvantage, such as race, ethnic origin, gender, physical handicap, long-term residence in an environment isolated from the mainstream of American society, or other similar causes not common to individuals who are not socially disadvantaged; (ii) The individual’s social disadvantage must be rooted in treatment which he or she has experienced in American society, not in other countries; (iii) The individual’s social disadvantage must be chronic and substantial, not fleeting or insignificant; and (iv) The individual’s social disadvantage must have negatively impacted on his or her entry into or advancement in the business world. SBA will consider any relevant evidence in assessing this element, including experiences relating to education, employment and business history (including experiences relating to both the applicant firm and any other previous firm owned and/or controlled by the individual), where applicable. (C) Business history. SBA considers such factors as unequal access to credit or capital, acquisition of credit or capital under commercially unfavorable circumstances, unequal treatment in opportunities for government contracts or other work, unequal treatment by potential customers and business associates, and exclusion from business or professional organizations. (3) An individual claiming social disadvantage must present facts and evidence that by themselves establish that the individual has suffered social disadvantage that has negatively impacted his or her entry into or advancement in the business world. (i) Each instance of alleged discriminatory conduct must be accompanied by a negative impact on the individual’s entry into or advancement in the business world in order for it to constitute an instance of social disadvantage. (ii) SBA may disregard a claim of social disadvantage where a legitimate alternative ground for an adverse employment action or other perceived adverse action exists and the individual has not presented evidence that would render his/her claim any more likely than the alternative ground. (iii) SBA may disregard a claim of social disadvantage where an individual presents evidence of discriminatory conduct, but fails to connect the discriminatory conduct to consequences that negatively impact his or her entry into or advancement in the business world. (6) In determining whether an individual claiming social disadvantage meets the requirements set forth in this paragraph (c), SBA will determine whether: (i) Each specific claim establishes an incident of bias or discriminatory conduct; (ii) Each incident of bias or discriminatory conduct negatively impacted the individual’s entry into or advancement in the business world; and (iii) In the totality, the incidents of bias or discriminatory conduct that negatively impacted the individual’s entry into or advancement in the business world establish chronic and substantial social disadvantage. Business history – SBA considers factors such as: unequal access to credit or capital; acquisition of credit or capital under commercially unfavorable circumstances; unequal treatment in opportunities for government contracts or other work; unequal treatment by potential customers and business associates; and exclusion from business or professional organizations. For each incident, please describe who, what, where, why, when, and how discrimination or bias occurred. Incidents are more easily digested by the SBA if they provide information in the following order: When – Explain when the discriminatory conduct occurred. Exact dates, if available, are preferred but are not necessary so long as the incident provides a specific time period. This discrimination can be from any period of your life; you do not need to be experiencing current discrimination to qualify. Where – Explain where the discriminatory conduct occurred. The incident must have occurred in American society. Who – Explain who committed the discriminatory action. This could include an individual, a group of individuals, or an institution. Individual names, where available, are preferred but not necessary so long as the incident provides a specific figure or organization. What – Explain the discriminatory conduct. Why – Explain the reason(s) that the conduct was more likely motivated by bias or discrimination than other non-discriminatory reasons. Without additional facts, a mere assertion that the action was the result of bias or discrimination is not enough to support a claim of social disadvantage. How – Explain how each instance of discriminatory conduct impacted your entry into or advancement in the business world. Offensive comments or conduct, while reprehensible, will not support a claim of social disadvantage if there is no negative impact associated with the incident.
- ChatGPT will start typing but just ignore that.
- Add some details about your example. For example, I typed, “My example: I am Black and when I was in the military, I was often overlooked for promotion.” [note: the free version isn’t confidential so don’t put actual names or private information; just make up a name like John Doe or use another tool that does protect your privacy]
- ChatGPT will reply in the SBA-preferred format.
- Copy this and paste it in a MS Word document. Edit to make it more personal/specific.
Hope this helps get you started!
Article link: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/8a-companies-can-use-ai-draft-social-disadvantage-maggie
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