We know that small businesses are facing difficult times, and even in the best of times, it is not easy to operate a small business.  It takes an enormous amount of work, and there are many challenges in a climate of rapid change. 

Where can small businesses go for help and advice?

Whether you are a startup, currently in business, or a business that is experiencing difficulties, SBA has resource partners such as SCORE – Counselors to America’s Small Business, Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs), and Women Business Centers (WBCs) that are available and ready to help. 

SBA is extremely proud of these counseling partnerships and what they have to offer to small business clients.  They provide one-on-one professional counseling advice that can help you work through all phases of business operations. 

• If you are trying to determine whether or not to start or expand your existing small business, there are business counselors that can help guide you. 
• If you need to update business plans or retool business operations to adjust to the current economic environment to keep your business in a positive financial situation, there are expert business professionals that can help you.    
• If you need access to affordable business training, there are a variety of seminars and workshops offered by the SBA resources to educate you.  They are Marketing, Exporting, Data and Industry Research, Government Contracting, Intellectual Property Protection, Environmental Regulations, Quick Books, Web Page Design, Taxes, Pricing Your Product, Technological and Manufacturing Assistance, OSHA Recordkeeping and Compliance, and many others.     

SCORE also provides on-line counseling 24/7 to assist small business owners when it is convenient for them – business owners have to run the business and cannot always take off during normal business hours.  These volunteers are professionals that include engineers, lawyers, accountants, and CEOs of major corporations just to name a few.

The proposed budget for FY 2011 provides funding for SBA and it resource partners who offer free counseling to more than 1 million entrepreneurs and small business owners each year.  Annual impact studies show that these educational and counseling relationships contribute to the long-term success of these businesses and their ability to create jobs.  This support is even more critical as we continue to provide small businesses with the tools to drive our nation’s economic recovery.  This budget includes a total of $134 million to support SBA’s resources partners and their 14,000 SBA-affiliated counselors.

• $113 million to support about 900 SBDCs
• $14 million to support about 100 WBCs
• $7 million to support about 370 chapters of SCORE, a mentoring program involving retired executives.

The budget requests $3 million to increase the reach of a particularly effective SBA program called Emerging Leaders (formerly “Emerging 200”).  Graduates of this program – often in distressed areas – have reported significant increases in revenues, government contracts, local hires, and access to financing.

SBA has six district offices and one branch office located in Texas which works very closely with these resources.  The help is invaluable, and we encourage entrepreneurs to use them.  To find the location closest to you, visit the SBA Web page www.sba.gov/localresources.

As the result of the SBA Agency and all our SBA partners, we are helping to restore the confidence in the financial system and help assist access capital for entrepreneurs in our Texas communities.

We invite all of you to get a discussion going.  Please submit your comments at the end of this article, Thanks.

Yolanda Olivarez, SBA Regional Administrator for Region VI.  Olivarez directs and oversees SBA programs and services in Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, and Oklahoma.