The Washington County Local Development Corp., Warren County LDC and the SUNY Adirondack Continuing Education Department will conduct the spring 2014 series of the Microenterprise Assistance Small Business Program beginning March, 17 at Washington Hall on the SUNY Adirondack campus.
The course is held 6-8 p.m. Mondays for 10 weeks. It is open to any prospective entrepreneur as well as existing small businesses with 10 or fewer employees in the region.
The program provides attendees with the resources to build or re-structure an effective business plan and covers other critical topics such as advertising, budgeting and bookkeeping, and legal issues, insurance requirements, taxes, permits, and financing strategies. It is designed to provide candidates with in-depth coverage of the business planning and operational process.
Officials said each session offers information relevant to building and utilizing an effective business plan. SCORE kicks the course off by providing an overview of building a business plan and how to use that plan to succeed, grow and thrive. Every session brings an area professional to the classroom to discuss best practices from their respective field.
Professional presentations for this course include: Joyce Miller, SUNY Adirondack; Gail Hamel, Hamel Resources LLC; Melissa Lescault, McPhillips, Fitzgerald & Cullum LLP; John O’Brien, R.J. O’Brien Insurance Agency Inc; Carl Cedrone, Edward Jones; Mike Laney, Gore and Laney CPAs; Mark Galough, Glens Falls National Bank & Trust Co.; and George Normandin, Normandin Marketing. There will also be a panel discussion involving regional business owners and class participants.
The fee is $150 for each participant. In addition to learning valuable start up and expansion information, completing this course qualifies candidates to apply for funding a startup or expanding business in Washington or Warren counties.
Contact SUNY Adirondack at 743-2238 to register. Additional loan programs are available for existing businesses. Visit www.wcldc.org or www.warrenldc.org for more details about other loan programs available.