The 2024 TD Ready Challenge

The 2024 TD Ready Challenge is seeking applications from charitable and non-profit organizations that propose innovative approaches to supporting underserved small business owners to develop a business, launch a new business, or grow an existing business.

We encourage applicants to present novel strategies, technologies or partnerships that have the potential to disrupt systemic barriers for underserved entrepreneurs with the goal of cultivating a more inclusive and supportive entrepreneurial landscape across North America.

 


In its seventh year, eligible non-profits and community organizations could apply for grants of CDN $1 million for Canadian-based organizations and USD $1 million for US-based organizations.


The application period is now closed. To meet the 2023 TD Ready Challenge grant recipients, click on the 'Recipients' tab to explore more.

Each year, the TD Ready Challenge invites eligible organizations to submit applications that offer solutions for a Problem Statement that is connected to one of the four drivers of change of the TD Ready Commitment: Financial Security, Vibrant Planet, Connected Communities, and Better Health. The 2024 TD Ready Challenge is seeking applications from charitable and non-profit organizations that propose innovative approaches to supporting underserved small business owners to develop a business, launch a new business, or grow an existing business. 

We encourage applicants to present novel strategies, technologies or partnerships that have the potential to disrupt systemic barriers for underserved entrepreneurs with the goal of cultivating a more inclusive and supportive entrepreneurial landscape across North America.  

Background

Entrepreneurs in Canada and the US are persevering despite the fragility of the small business sector post-pandemic. Underrepresented and underserved community entrepreneurs are especially vulnerable to certain economic forces.

According to a recent Harvard Business Review article, as of October 2023 “Americans were still filing 59% more applications to start new businesses than they were before the pandemic.” Contrasting this trend, Business Development Canada has found that almost half as many Canadians are starting businesses today as compared to 20 years ago. 

Some industries such as home health and personal care are predicted to grow, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics as the population ages. Meanwhile, other industries such as hospitality and the arts are still recovering post-pandemic. For example, according to research from the Brookfield Institute for Innovation + Entrepreneurship, self-employed creative workers within the arts and culture sector often see fluctuations in their income, earning on a project-by-project basis, and are usually dependent on multiple funding streams. This combination means many struggle to meet basic needs. 

Regardless of whether a small business is just starting, working to recover from the pandemic, or poised for growth, data from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that 18% of small businesses fail within the first year. By the fifth year, 50% will have failed due to insufficient funding and support. Common reasons for small business failure can include access to capital, ineffective business planning, lack of credit history, and lack of knowledge of local languages, especially for entrepreneurs from underserved communities. Research from the Canadian Chamber of Commerce notes that contemporary small businesses face slower growth, lower revenue, and weaker employment.

The Canadian Chamber of Commerce also found that "large gaps remain in business ownership representation for a variety of equity-seeking Groups." In Canada, visible minorities represent almost 26.5% of the population but only 19.2% are majority business owners while in the U.S. minorities make up 32% of the population but business ownership represents only 18% of the population.

Certain groups face greater challenges and barriers to launching a new business or growing an existing business. These groups can include:

  • 2SLGBTQ+ communities1
  • Indigenous communities2
  • Low-income communities3
  • Newcomers4
  • People with existing health conditions and/or disabilities5
  • Racialized communities6
  • Veterans7
  • Women8

Problem Statement

The 2024 TD Ready Challenge is seeking applications from charitable and non-profit organizations that propose innovative approaches to supporting underserved small business owners to develop a business, launch a new business, or grow an existing business. 

We encourage applicants to present novel strategies, technologies or partnerships that have the potential to disrupt systemic barriers for underserved entrepreneurs with the goal of cultivating a more inclusive and supportive entrepreneurial landscape across North America.  

The 2024 Challenge

How can organizations address the Problem Statement?

The 2024 TD Ready Challenge seeks to provide financial support to organizations that have designed innovative, scalable and/or replicable solutions focused on addressing the 2024 Problem Statement.  

Such solutions could be focused on, but are not limited to, one or more of the following: 

  • Providing access to financial capital and support
  • Building business and financial planning skills
  • Providing business mentorship
  • Other

The grants

For 2024, there are a maximum of ten (10) grants available under the TD Ready Challenge for Canada and the US together. Eligible Canadian-based organizations are able to apply for CDN $1 million and eligible US-based organizations are able to apply for USD $1 million.

We will have a clear preference for programs that:

  1. Are pilots or that are programs that will use the grant to scale and/or replicate solutions to additional communities or populations;

  2. Have wide demographic or geographical reach in areas where the TD Bank Group ("TD") operates. This includes all of Canada as well as: (a) those US states that are within the TD Retail footprint (map and listing found here);  and (b) the Lapeer, Livingston, Macomb, Oakland, St. Clair and Wayne counties in the Metro Detroit area;

  3. Have a clear evaluation and measurement process to track impact; and

  1. Are put forward by organizations which have not received any funds or grants from TD of CDN $250,000 or more or USD $250,000 or more during the period starting on August 31, 2023 through to and including August 31, 2024.

Additional considerations

We will not fund grant applications that focus on:

  1. Youth;

  2. For profit companies or institutions; or

  3. Lobbying for policy, legislation or regulations.

  1. As part of the application process, TD requires an understanding of the financial status of your organization. If your organization's audited statement(s) reflect(s) a recent deficit, please explain the reason for this deficit in your application. Please note that a deficit will not impact your eligibility for a TD Ready Challenge Grant.

Eligibility Criteria

Programs presented in applications must deal directly with people and provide benefits to people and communities. Applicants can be Canadian, or US organizations as described below.

  1. Canadian registered charities and not-for-profit organizations; or
  2. U.S. charitable and not-for profit organizations which meet the following criteria and can provide written confirmation of same:

a. Have received Section 501(c)(3) determination from the Internal Revenue Service (the "IRS"); or

b. Are treated by the IRS as an organization that is not a private foundation as described in Sections 509(a)(1),(2) or (3) of the Internal Revenue Code (the "IRS Code"); or

c. Are a local/state government organization.

Note: 2019, 2020 & 2021 TD Ready Challenge Grant recipients are eligible to apply.

  • Elementary and secondary schools
  • Religious organizations (i.e., organizations whose primary purpose is religious practice or worship). However, faith-based organizations that provide programs and services for broader community benefit, may be considered.
  • Pageants
  • Sports teams and sporting events
  • Individuals or individual pursuits/fundraising initiatives
  • Recreational groups (lodges, fraternal clubs, self-improvement organizations, etc.)
  • Conferences, trade shows, fairs
  • Production of videos, DVDs and television shows
  • TD Employees
  • 2022 and 2023 TD Ready Challenge Grant Recipients

Challenge Structure and Calendar

Event

September-October

An internal TD North American Judging Panel will review applications and select applications to move into final round of reviews.

November

TD Ready Challenge finalists to be notified and next steps will be shared.

December / January

A TD North American Executive Judging panel and subject matter experts will assess applications that move into final round of review and determine the selected recipients.

January 2025

2024 TD Ready Challenge successful recipients will be selected and notified.

Final Round Judging Panel

Selected applicants who move into the final round of review will have their applications assessed by our TD North American Executive Judging Panel, consisting of TD executives and external subject matter experts from both Canada and the United States.

General inquiries

Yes. All applications must be submitted electronically via the application portal.

Individual meetings with applicants are not possible. The online submission ensures that all applications are submitted and reviewed in a consistent way.

Given the time required to connect with all potential applicants, application reviews are not possible. The online submission is the best way to manage everybody's time and to ensure that all applications are submitted and reviewed in a consistent way.

Grant applications must be received by 4:00 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time on Thursday, September 5, 2024. In fairness to all applicants, late or incomplete applications will not be considered. Applicants are responsible for allowing enough time when submitting their application to ensure its timely submission. Paper applications will not be accepted.

No. The initiative proposed needs to be delivered in areas in areas where TD operates. This includes all of Canada, US states within TD's Retail footprint (map and listing found here), and the Metro Detroit area (Lapeer, Livingston, Macomb, Oakland, St. Clair, and Wayne Counties).

Submitting the application

No. You may submit only one application to the 2024 TD Ready Challenge. Additional applications will not be reviewed.

Your application must be accompanied by your organization's most recent audited financial statement conducted by a public accounting firm/professional, which must have been completed in the past two years. Important: accountant's reviews of non-audited compilations are not acceptable.

No. The documentation requested is required in order to submit a complete application. In fairness to all applicants, incomplete applications will not be considered.

All required documents must be in PDF format. The minimum font size for the detailed project application must be 10 point. Excel files will not be accepted. Your application must be accompanied by your organization's most recent audited financial statement conducted by a public accounting firm/professional, which must have been completed in the past two years, which must be scanned and condensed into a single document. You must not upload separate files as they will not be considered part of the application.

Shortly after submitting your application, you will receive an e-mail notification confirming your submission.

Yes. A copy of your application will be embedded in your e-mail notification confirming your submission. We recommend that you keep a copy of the application for your own records. However, we ask that you do not send it to us as this may lead to duplicate records.

If you receive this error message, please contact a member of your organization's technology staff. You may need to adjust your computer's settings in order to access the application.

Yes. You can copy information from an existing Word document and paste it into the appropriate text box in the application.

Evaluation

There will be 3 rounds of assessment as follows:

First Round of Assessment:

Following the Submission Deadline Date, an internal TD North American Judging Panel, selected by TD in its sole discretion and consisting of members of the TD Sustainability & Corporate Citizenship team and internal TD employees from both Canada and the United States, will review applications and assess them against the below criteria. This Panel will select applications to move into the next round of reviews and all applicants, whether successful or not, will be notified of their application status by email.

Assessment Criteria Weight
Strategic alignment

The need or opportunity described by the applicant aligns with the 2024 Problem Statement.		 30%
Feasibility of the proposed plan

The intended outcomes or results of the 2024 application proposal are feasible considering the activities, resources, and minimum 12-month funding window. The applicant will be in a reasonable position to expand the impact of the 2024 application proposal within 12-36 months.		 30%
Well-positioned team

The mission and/or core activities of the applicant aligns with the 2024 TD Ready Challenge Problem Statement. The applicant is well-positioned to deliver on intended results and objectives, which includes that the applicant has current established ties with the community in which they are working and/or has the ability to create new ties with communities they may be intending to reach.		 20%
Value for money

The budget is reasonable considering the activities, outputs and scale of the application proposal.		 20%

IMPORTANT: Applicants will not be advised of any of their assessment scores.

Second Round of Assessment:

Selected applicants will move into a second round of review completed by an internal TD North American Judging Panel, selected by TD in its sole discretion and consisting of members of the TD Sustainability & Corporate Citizenship team, internal TD colleagues from both Canada and the United States and external subject matter experts from both Canada and the United States. This Judging Panel will review applications and assess them against the same criteria used for the First Round of Assessment set out above. This Panel will select applications to move into the final round of reviews and all applicants, whether successful or not, will be notified of their application status by email.

Final Round of Assessment:

Selected applicants who move into the final round of review will have their applications assessed by our TD North American Executive Judging Panel, consisting of TD executives and external subject matter experts from both Canada and the United States.

This Judging Panel will review these applications and assess them against the same criteria used for the First Round Assessment set out above plus one additional component involving a TD Employee Voting exercise which will have a 10% weighting.

TD Employee Voting exercise

For this TD Employee Voting exercise, applications will be anonymized, summarized and displayed internally so that TD Employees across North America can vote for the application of their choice. The TD Employee Voting exercise will have a 10% weighting, however this weighting will only be applied provided a minimum of 100 votes are received and the votes demonstrate a thoughtful review of the application in question. If the TD Employee Voting component is activated, the results of this voting will be provided to the Judging Panel and the weighting of the remaining criteria to be used by the Judging Panel will be adjusted as set out below. If the TD Employee Voting component is not activated, then the Judging Panel will review applications and assess them against the same criteria used for the First Round of Assessment set out above.

Selected applicants may be asked to prepare supplementary materials for review by the Judging Panel as part of the Final Round of Assessment. Successful applicants will be contacted by email by the end of January 2025.

Assessment Criteria Weight
Strategic alignment

The need or opportunity described by the applicant aligns with the 2024 Problem Statement.		 27.5%
Feasibility of the proposed plan

The intended outcomes or results of the 2024 application proposal are feasible considering the activities, resources, and minimum 12-month funding window. The applicant will be in a reasonable position to expand the impact of the 2024 application proposal within 12-36 months.		 27.5%
Well-positioned team

The mission and/or core activities of the applicant aligns with the 2024 TD Ready Challenge Problem Statement. The applicant is well-positioned to deliver on intended results and objectives, which includes that the applicant has current established ties with the community in which they are working and/or has the ability to create new ties with communities they may be intending to reach.		 17.5%
Value for money

The budget is reasonable considering the activities, outputs and scale of the application proposal.		 17.5%
TD Employee Voting Component 10%

IMPORTANT: Applicants will not be advised of any of their assessment scores. In addition, a financial analysis of the organization may be conducted to measure the financial health of the organization.

Final funding decisions will be made by the TD North American Executive Judging Panel. Successful recipients will be announced in Early 2025.

There will be 3 rounds of assessment as follows:

First Round of Assessment:

Following the Submission Deadline Date, an internal TD North American Judging Panel, selected by TD in its sole discretion and consisting of members of the TD Sustainability & Corporate Citizenship team and internal TD employees from both Canada and the United States, will review applications and assess them against the below criteria. This Panel will select applications to move into the next round of reviews and all applicants, whether successful or not, will be notified of their application status by email.

Assessment Criteria Weight
Strategic alignment

The need or opportunity described by the applicant aligns with the 2024 Problem Statement.		 30%
Feasibility of the proposed plan

The intended outcomes or results of the 2024 application proposal are feasible considering the activities, resources, and minimum 12-month funding window. The applicant will be in a reasonable position to expand the impact of the 2024 application proposal within 12-36 months.		 30%
Well-positioned team

The mission and/or core activities of the applicant aligns with the 2024 TD Ready Challenge Problem Statement. The applicant is well-positioned to deliver on intended results and objectives, which includes that the applicant has current established ties with the community in which they are working and/or has the ability to create new ties with communities they may be intending to reach.		 20%
Value for money

The budget is reasonable considering the activities, outputs and scale of the application proposal.		 20%

IMPORTANT: Applicants will not be advised of any of their assessment scores.

Second Round of Assessment:

Selected applicants will move into a second round of review completed by an internal TD North American Judging Panel, selected by TD in its sole discretion and consisting of members of the TD Sustainability & Corporate Citizenship team, internal TD colleagues from both Canada and the United States and external subject matter experts from both Canada and the United States. This Judging Panel will review applications and assess them against the same criteria used for the First Round of Assessment set out above. This Panel will select applications to move into the final round of reviews and all applicants, whether successful or not, will be notified of their application status by email.

Final Round of Assessment:

Selected applicants who move into the final round of review will have their applications assessed by our TD North American Executive Judging Panel, consisting of TD executives and external subject matter experts from both Canada and the United States.

This Judging Panel will review these applications and assess them against the same criteria used for the First Round Assessment set out above plus one additional component involving a TD Employee Voting exercise which will have a 10% weighting.

TD Employee Voting exercise

For this TD Employee Voting exercise, applications will be anonymized, summarized and displayed internally so that TD Employees across North America can vote for the application of their choice. The TD Employee Voting exercise will have a 10% weighting, however this weighting will only be applied provided a minimum of 100 votes are received and the votes demonstrate a thoughtful review of the application in question. If the TD Employee Voting component is activated, the results of this voting will be provided to the Judging Panel and the weighting of the remaining criteria to be used by the Judging Panel will be adjusted as set out below. If the TD Employee Voting component is not activated, then the Judging Panel will review applications and assess them against the same criteria used for the First Round of Assessment set out above.

Selected applicants may be asked to prepare supplementary materials for review by the Judging Panel as part of the Final Round of Assessment. Successful applicants will be contacted by email by the end of January 2025.

Assessment Criteria Weight
Strategic alignment

The need or opportunity described by the applicant aligns with the 2024 Problem Statement.		 27.5%
Feasibility of the proposed plan

The intended outcomes or results of the 2024 application proposal are feasible considering the activities, resources, and minimum 12-month funding window. The applicant will be in a reasonable position to expand the impact of the 2024 application proposal within 12-36 months.		 27.5%
Well-positioned team

The mission and/or core activities of the applicant aligns with the 2024 TD Ready Challenge Problem Statement. The applicant is well-positioned to deliver on intended results and objectives, which includes that the applicant has current established ties with the community in which they are working and/or has the ability to create new ties with communities they may be intending to reach.		 17.5%
Value for money

The budget is reasonable considering the activities, outputs and scale of the application proposal.		 17.5%
TD Employee Voting Component 10%

IMPORTANT: Applicants will not be advised of any of their assessment scores. In addition, a financial analysis of the organization may be conducted to measure the financial health of the organization.

For 2024, the maximum total combined number of Grants available under the TD Ready Challenge for Canada and the US together, is a total maximum of ten (10) Grants (each a "Grant" and collectively the "Grants"), based on a budgetary funding commitment by The Toronto-Dominion Bank ("TD") for each of Canada and the US as follows:

  1. A total Canadian budget maximum of CDN $10 million for a maximum of ten (10) Grants of CDN $1 million each; and
  2. A total US budget maximum of USD $10 million for a maximum of ten (10) Grants of USD $1 million each.

The foregoing budgetary funding commitment is based on the clear understanding that there will not be more than a combined total of ten (10) Grants for Canada and the US together.

In 2024, Canadian-based organizations can request CDN $1 million and US-based organizations can request USD $1 million.

In 2024, ten (10) $1 million grants are available. Successful Canadian-based organizations will receive CDN $1 million and US-based organizations will receive USD $1 million. No other grant amounts will be awarded.

After the grant is awarded

For the 2024 TD Ready Challenge, successful Grant recipients will receive their specific Grant amount in a maximum of three annual installments, and the amount of each installment to be based on the length of the project. The exact amount of each installment to be mutually agreed in writing between the Bank and each recipient. An executed agreement between the Bank and each successful recipient will be required, which will include the mutually agreed upon installment payment schedule.

Yes. If your organization is successfully selected to receive a grant award, you will be required to submit progress reports. The number of progress reports will be mutually agreed to in writing between the Bank and each recipient and the total number of reports will be based on the length of the project.

No. Unless an extraordinary circumstance is identified and discussed with the Bank in advance, grants may not be used for any other purpose than the purpose set out in the organization's original 2024 TD Ready Challenge application.

If your organization is selected to receive a 2024 TD Ready Challenge grant, the grant funds must be put to use no later than three years from the award date of the grant.

Please contact us by email at tdreadycommitment@td.com. Include "The 2024 TD Ready Challenge" in the subject line of your email.

Specific questions for US organizations

No. US organizations will be paid in USD. For more information see the FAQ: " What grant amounts are available for 2024?"

The 2023 TD Ready Challenge Recipients

In our sixth year, the 2023 TD Ready Challenge received over 350 applications from eligible non-profit and charitable organizations across our North American footprint. Each application was extensively reviewed by a TD judging panel based on alignment to the problem statement, level of innovation and potential for sustainable impact. TD colleagues also had the opportunity to vote for their preferred finalist.

Ten recipients rose to the top with strong submissions that clearly demonstrated innovative, measurable, and scalable solutions that address systemic barriers to affordable housing across the continuum from transitional to permanent homes, and to help increase access to affordable and stable housing for those who need it most.

Meet the 2023 TD Ready Challenge grant recipients. Click on the recipients to learn about their programs in their own words.

Have a question about the TD Ready Challenge?

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