x
  
  
Posted: 5/26/11

TAMIU-SBDC Offers Diverse Business Workshops

 

TAMIU Logo
 

The Texas A&M International University Small Business Development Center (TAMIU-SBDC) will sponsor several workshops during the month of June.

Wednesday, June 1: Access to Capital: Solution Stop for Small Businesses from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. Classroom location will be provided with registration confirmation. Lender Relations Specialists Aixa Leath and Leo Davila of the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) in collaboration with Texas A&M International University Small Business Development Center (TAMIU SBDC) will hold a free-of-charge financing seminar in Laredo, Texas. Learn how to access capital to start, build or grow your small business through the many SBA loan guaranty programs available tailored to your business needs. SBA resource partner, TAMIU SBDC can help you manage a successful small business.

Thursday, June 2: Developing & Marketing your Website Workshop will be offered from 5:00 to 8:30 p.m. at Student Center, room 120. Fee is $20. This hands-on workshop series spans the entire process of building a simple website from the ground up, with plenty of pointers and reference material. Alejandro Quetzeri will lead the workshop covering traditional marketing versus internet marketing; basics of internet marketing, web analytics, search engine optimization and pay per click – sponsor ads.

Wednesday, June 8: The Art of Starting a Business: Basic Business Essentials Workshop is free of charge from 5:30 to7:30 p.m. at the TAMIU Western Hemispheric Trade Center, room 126. Instructor Norma Rodriguez, SBDC certified business advisor, will present this practical workshop that helps businesses to avoid common pitfalls, evaluate strengths and weaknesses, and the skills needed to succeed. Participants will also explore initial paperwork, assessment process, legalstructures and importance of the business plan.

Friday, June 10: The Art of Customer Service will be offered from 9:00 to 11:00 a.m. at Student Center, room 120. Fee is $20. The purpose of the workshop is to learn the Art of Customer Service using the “CIVIL” framework, it will help your business and organizations experience employee empowerment, repeat business, loyal customers, and an overall satisfactory customer service strategy. Join instructor Tina Rodriguez for an interactive two-hour presentation.

Wednesday, June 15: Anatomy of a Business Plan Workshop from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. at TAMIU Western Hemispheric Trade Center, room 126. Fee for the seminar is $20, and each participant will receive Linda Pinzon’s “Anatomy of a Business Plan: a Step-by-Step Guide to Building a Business and Securing your Company’s Future,” a $50 value. Instructor Angelo Piccirillo explains that planning is the map to success in the business world. One needs to write a business plan when: starting or buying a business; financing or refinancing a business or raising debt or equity capital.

Friday, June 17: The TAMIU-SBDC, in conjunction with the Texas Rio Grande Legal Aid: Legal Assistance to Microenterprise Project (L.A.M.P.) will beproviding a seminar designed to assist potential and existing business owners with legal issues. The free of charge seminar is scheduled from 9:00 a.m. to noon at TAMIU Student Center, room 230. Amber Van Schuyver, staff attorney, will be conducting the presentation. Van Schuyver explains that micro-entrepreneurs must grapple with a wide variety of legal issues, from entity selection and formation, to employment law issues, contract issues, commercial lease issues, and tax issues. This presentation will cover these and other topics, giving participants a greater understanding of the legal issues facing their business.

Wednesday, June 22: Small Business Certifications through the U.S. Small Business Administration – Selling your goods and services to the Federal Government. The free of charge seminar is scheduled from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Classroom location will be provided with registration confirmation. The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) assists eligible entrepreneurs to gain a foothold in the government-contracting arena who are interested in selling their products or services to the federal government through the various SBA certification programs. Business Opportunity Specialists will outline the eligibility criteria and the on-line application process of all three programs. The certification programs can be essential instruments for socially and economically disadvantaged small businesses to include those businesses located in historically under-utilized areas as well as women-owned small businesses. In addition, attendees will learn about other SBA programs and services to assist small businesses through the many stages of businessgrowth, i.e., the guaranty loan programs, surety bond guarantees, counseling and training resources and the new Small Business Jobs Act.

Thursday, June 23: Managing Cash-The Small Business Owner's Guide to Financial Control Workshop is scheduled from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. at TAMIU Western Hemispheric Trade Center, room 125; a $20 fee includes Workbook. Cash flow is what comes into and goes out of a business. Gaining financial control by understanding cash flow is crucial to business success. Norma Rodriguez, certified business advisor, will review cash–the fuel that runs your business, maximizing your cash flow, tools for speeding up cash collections, overdue invoices, three tools for helpingwith accounts receivable, cash flow statements, and four short-term financing solutions.

For more information or to register for any of these workshops, call the TAMIU SBDC office at 956.326.2827 or e-mail:sbdc@tamiu.edu or register online athttp://sbdc.tamiu.edu


Journalists who need additional information or help with media requests and interviews should contact the Office of Public Relations, Marketing and Information Services at prmis@tamiu.edu