Why Digital Literacy Is the New Small Business Skill | Do Small Business like a Big Boss

Thinking about turning your side project into a nonprofit or small business? Ian Kimble breaks down exactly what to lock in early — starting with the two moves most founders put off too long.

Ian Kimble is the co-founder and executive director of Black Tech Philly, a Philadelphia nonprofit expanding access to tech education, digital literacy, and AI literacy. What started as a conversation with a stranger coding in a coffee shop back in 2019 is now a program running in four Philadelphia schools, hosting city-wide Tech Town Halls, and building a growing community of tech professionals and aspiring entrepreneurs. Aisha and Ian talk through the free legal resources that helped him formalize the organization, the importance of building the right kind of  culture that shaped how his team hires and holds people accountable, and how storytelling — not advertising — became his biggest lead source.

💡 What You'll Learn

• How to find free legal help for 501(c)(3) formation through pro bono lawyer programs like Philly VIP
• Why culture isn't your website's mission statement — it's the worst behavior you're willing to tolerate — and how to set that standard early
• How showing up in person and telling one specific, sticky story about your business turns into inbound leads
• How to balance a full-time job with building your business in the early days without burning out

⏱️ Episode Timestamps

00:02 – Welcome & meet Ian Kimble

00:55 – The coffee shop conversation that started Black Tech Philly

02:20 – What Black Tech Philly does today

05:20 – Is the appetite really there for tech & AI literacy?

09:39 – Deepfakes, media literacy, and “trust but verify”

12:23 – Getting free legal help early through Philly VIP

16:03 – The real definition of company culture

19:39 – How a LinkedIn shoutout sparked momentum

21:15 – Turning story and “being in the field” into inbound leads

28:27 – From political science to insurance sales to code

32:23 – The moment coding became “the thing”

33:53 – Building a sales pipeline for community partnerships

35:48 – Balancing a full-time job while building the org

43:06 – Why the name “Black Tech Philly” was intentional

44:57 – What “Do Small Business Like a Big Boss” means to Ian

46:06 – Where to find Black Tech Philly

🎤 About Our Guest

Ian Kimble is the co-founder and executive director of Black Tech Philly, a Philadelphia-based educational nonprofit founded in spring 2020, focused on expanding access to technology, digital literacy, and AI literacy across the city.

Website: https://blacktechphilly.org

Ian on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/iank6

Take the free Small Business Legal Risk Self-Assessment and get clarity before a contract, a lawsuit, or a bad partnership does it for you.

👉 Grab your assessment here: www.smallbizzlegalguide.com

🔗 Stay Connected with Sedgwick Andrews:

Follow us across all platforms for legal tips, business strategy, and boss-level motivation:

👉 https://linktr.ee/Sedgwick_Andrews_LC

Podcast Mantra:

Build the dream messy, build it scared, just don't build it small.