SBA Launches Small Business Week Web site

From the SBA Press Office:

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Small Business Administration launched a new Web site, www.NationalSmallBusinessWeek.com, for National Small Business Week 2008, featuring information about the agency’s premier annual event. The celebration of National Small Business Week is April 21-25, with events in Washington, D.C., April 21-23 and in New York City April 24-25.

Among the featured speakers confirmed are Secretary Mike Leavitt, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; Ambassador Susan C. Schwab, United States Trade Representative; Newt Gingrich, former House Speaker; David Latimore of the Initiative for a Competitive Inner City; John Bryant of Operation HOPE, and other prominent business leaders, CEOs and politicos.

Visitors to the site will find it richer, deeper, and easier to navigate, with a look and feel that conveys the spirit of excitement surrounding this year’s Small Business Week events.

Up-to-the-minute highlights, multimedia content and information will be updated to the Web site during Small Business Week events in real-time. An added interactive feature will allow visitors to www.NationalSmallBusinessWeek.com to upload photos of the events directly to the site.

Created with the user in mind, one of the newest features of the new Web site is an interactive blog that will allow sponsors, award winners, and the public to post content about Small Business Week events.

The new Web site provides detailed information about the National Small Business Week schedule, including day-to-day-events, featured sessions, events locations, award winners’ biographies and detailed sponsor information.
In addition, information for Small Business Week award winners will be accessible on member-only sections of the Web site.

"National Small Business Week.com is a leap forward for the SBA, and represents a new platform for how the agency can engage in a dialogue with small businesses online," said Anoop Prakash, SBA Associate Administrator for Entrepreneurial Development.

A full updated schedule of events appears below, and online at http://www.NationalSmallBusinessWeek.com/Schedule/.

After Small Business Week 2008 events have ended, the Web site will continue to serve as a nucleus for dialogue and communication, with archived events from 2008 accessible at the click of a mouse button. Small business community members can receive updates on future SBA events, including a post-event discussion of National Small Business Week 2008 activities.

The small business community is invited to join the SBA for a week of valuable executive panel forums that will feature an exceptional lineup of notable speakers, expert panelists, and business industry leaders discussing best business practices and the latest developments in the business world. The small business community nationwide can also take part in the forums, and view other Small Business Week events that will be webcast live.

Comments

Anonymous said…
Thank you for the information. I am sure with the economy small businesses will be relying on this resource more and more.
Release Date: April 17, 2008
Release Number: MA08-16
Contacts: Cecelia Taylor (202) 401-3059
Dennis Byrne (202) 205 6567
Internet Address: http://www.sba.gov/news

Live Webcast of SBA’s National Small Business Week Policy Forums Scheduled

Issue Forums to Focus on Healthcare, Trade and the Economy

WASHINGTON – Small business and advocacy groups, bloggers and think tanks
can take part in National Small Business Week 2008, featuring national awards
and issue forums at the agency’s premier annual event.

These public policy forums will feature leading experts discussing key issues
that impact small business and the economy:

WHO:
Secretary Michael Leavitt, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Ambassador Susan C. Schwab, United States Trade Representative
Newt Gingrich, Chairman, American Solutions and former House Speaker
Clarence “Bud” Albright Jr., Under Secretary of Energy
Paul A. Schneider, Deputy Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security
Michael E. Porter, Chairman, Initiative for a Competitive Inner City
John Hope Bryant, Founder of Operation HOPE
Other prominent business leaders, CEOs and politicos

WHAT:
Continuous Live Webcasting of Executive Policy Forums
Healthcare: Cost and Coverage: Healthcare Chicken and Egg Trade
Going Global: Accessing New Markets Energy
Meeting the Energy Challenge: Impacts & Opportunities for Small Business
Procurement: Secrets of Building Alliance Partnerships with Prime Contractors
Financial: Investing in the Future: Financing Inner City Businesses (in NYC)

WHERE:
Go online to www.NationalSmallBusinessWeek.com
All Forums will be Webcast Live across the Nation. Award events also will be
Webcast live.
Sponsored by Cisco; Event times and dates subject to change.
Please check the Web site for most current information.

WHEN:
April 22, 2008 – Mandarin Oriental Hotel and Conference Center, Wash., D.C.
9:30 am – 10:40 am,
Healthcare: Cost and Coverage: Healthcare Chicken and Egg

10:45 am – 11:30 am
Keynote Remarks by Newt Gingrich

11:35 pm – 12:20 pm
Keynote Remarks by Michael Levitt

12:30 pm – 3:00 pm
Keynote Remarks by SBA Administrator Steve Preston & the National Awards
Honoring State Small Business Winners

3:30 pm – 5:00 pm
Trade: Going Global: Accessing New Markets

April 23, 2008 – Mandarin Oriental Hotel and Conference Center, Wash., D.C.
8:00 am – 10:00 am
Keynote Remarks by Secretary Stephen Moret, Louisiana
Economic Development & the Phoenix Awards

10:30 am – 12:00 pm
Energy: Impacts & Opportunities for Small Business

12:00 pm – 2:00 pm
Keynote Remarks by Minority Business Development Agency Director Ronald
Langston & the National Awards Honoring Procurement Winners

3:00 pm – 4:30 pm
Procurement: Secrets of Building Alliance Partnerships with Prime Contractors

7:30 pm – 11:00 pm
Champion Awards

April 25, 2008 – The Westin New York at Times Square, New York
11:00 am – 2:00 pm
Financial: Investing in the Future: Financing Inner City Businesses;
Keynote Remarks by Michael Porter & the Lender Awards

(Video on Demand of events and forums will be available 24 hours after the
event. Visit www.nationalsmallbusinessweek.com for schedule and details.)
Release Date: April 16, 2008
Contact: Cecelia Taylor (202) 401-3059
Release Number: 08-34
Internet Address: http://www.sba.gov/news

State Small Business Award Winners Heading to Washington To Vie for National
Small Business of the Year Award

WASHINGTON – State Small Business Person of the Year winners from across
the country are heading to Washington, D.C., next week to see which of them
will be named National Small Business Person of the Year at the U.S. Small
Business Administration’s National Small Business Week celebration, April 21-
25.

The National Small Business Person of the Year and runners-up will be selected
from among the 53 state small business winners, including the District of
Columbia, Puerto Rico and Guam. Small businesses being honored reflect a
wide range of businesses, from locomotive repair to an employment search
Web site; from a music box manufacturer to a hardware store.

In fact, the public can “attend” Small Business Week events virtually, via the
SBA’s streaming video. All events will be available on SBA’s free continuous
streaming Web video at http://www.nationalsmallbusinessweek.com/.

National Small Business Week 2008 will begin with three days of events in
Washington, D.C., at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel, where more than 100
outstanding business owners from across the country will be recognized. In
addition to the State Small Business Persons of the Year, men and women
involved in disaster recovery, government contracting, small business
champions as well as SBA partners in financial and entrepreneurial development
will be honored.

A focal point this year will be a session with President Bush at the White
House on Wednesday.

The event also features a series of executive panel forums on Health Care,
International Trade, Energy, and Finance. In addition, there will be a
procurement session with corporate buyers and prime contractors who will
discuss small business partnering and mentoring opportunities for small
businesses seeking government contracts. The small business community
nationwide can also take part in the forums, and view other Small Business
Week events that will be Webcast live at
www.NationalSmallBusinessWeek.com.

On April 24, Small Business Week moves to New York, where SBA will
participate in the closing bell ceremony at NASDAQ to commemorate the 20th
anniversary of the Women’s Business Center program, which has served more
than 650,000 new and growing small business owners in the past five years
alone. An awards event celebrating the top small business lenders and a
financial forum on community investment, cosponsored with the Initiative for a
Competitive Inner City, will culminate activities in New York City.

For more information about National Small Business Week, including a detailed
schedule, visit online at www.NationalSmallBusinessWeek.com. Media outlets
are encouraged to cover National Small Business Week events, and can also
register online.

Editor’s note: All award winners are listed on the Web at
http://www.nationalsmallbusinessweek.com/awards/

The 2008 National Small Business Week award events will include the following
individuals and groups:
• The National Small Business Person of the Year, selected from the 53 State
Small Business Persons of the Year.
• The Champion Awards, recognizing both individuals and organizations for
their achievements on behalf of small business, including minority, women and
veteran-owned small businesses.
• The Phoenix Awards, recognizing a public official, two business owners and a
volunteer whose efforts have helped their businesses or communities recover
successfully from a disaster.
• The Lender of the Year, honoring financial institutions, including those that
provide financing for small business exporters and inner city businesses.
• The Entrepreneurial Development Awards honoring Small Business
Development Centers, Women’s Business Centers and SCORE for their
innovation and excellence in assistance to entrepreneurs and small businesses.
• The Dwight D. Eisenhower Award for Excellence, recognizing large prime
contractors who have excelled in their utilization of small businesses as
suppliers and subcontractors.
• The Gold Star Award, recognizing exemplary performance of federal staff who
manage the aggressive goals and strategic initiatives that help ensure a role
for small business in the federal marketplace.
• The Frances Perkins Vanguard Award, honoring government and industry for
excellence in the use of women-owned small businesses as prime contractors
and subcontractors.
• The Small Business Prime Contractor and Small Business Subcontractor of the
Year, honoring small businesses that have provided government and industry
with outstanding goods and services as prime or sub contractors.

Small Business Week award winners will meet with top agency officials,
congressional representatives and national business leaders. The State Small
Business Award Winners and recipients of the Champion and other
Entrepreneurial awards are nominated by local trade associations, chambers of
commerce and business organizations and government agencies.
- - -
The U.S. Small Business Administration thanks the cosponsors of National Small
Business Week and related events: SCORE, Cisco, Sam’s Club, Lockheed
Martin, Raytheon, Chevron, Administaff, IBM, Dun & Bradstreet, The Ewing
Marion Kauffman Foundation, Federal Allies Institute, MyBizHomepage, Lowes,
NFIB, Consumer Energy Alliance, National Small Business Association (NSBA),
Direct Selling Education Foundation, National Association of Development
Companies, FedSources, Association of Small Business Development Centers,
Banco Popular, and the Initiative for a Competitive Inner City.

The U.S. Small Business Administration’s participation in this cosponsored
activity does not constitute an express or implied endorsement of any
cosponsor’s, donor’s, grantee’s, contractor’s or participant’s opinions,
products, or services. All SBA programs and cosponsored programs are
extended to the public on a nondiscriminatory basis. Reasonable arrangements
for persons with disabilities will be made, if requested at least 2 weeks in
advance, by contacting sbw@sba.gov. Cosponsorship Authorization #SBW2008
Release Date: April 21, 2008
Contact: Christine Mangi (202) 205-6948
Release Number: 08-36
Internet Address: http://www.sba.gov/news

President Bush Proclaims National Small Business Week, Highlights Small Business Owners’ Hard Work

WASHINGTON – Calling small business the backbone of the nation’s economy, President George W. Bush stressed his Administration’s efforts to foster “an environment in which the entrepreneurial spirit can thrive” in his proclamation of the week of April 20-26 as National Small Business Week.

The President’s proclamation was issued on the eve of the U.S. Small Business Administration’s 45th annual observance of National Small Business Week in Washington, D.C. and New York City (April 21-25). The event honors the nation’s most outstanding entrepreneurs, and features the announcement of the National Small Business Person of the Year for 2008 from among the 53 state small business winners, including the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and Guam.

President Bush will meet with Small Business Week award winners at the White House Wednesday.

“In communities across America, small business owners are working hard to turn their dreams into enterprises,” President Bush said. “Small Business Week is a time to celebrate the many achievements of small business owners, entrepreneurs, and employees who contribute to the vitality and prosperity of our Nation and create new job opportunities for our citizens.

“Small businesses are the backbone of the American economy, and my Administration is committed to fostering an environment in which the entrepreneurial spirit can thrive. By keeping taxes low, we leave more money in the hands of Americans to save, spend, and invest. This year, we have also temporarily expanded incentives to help small businesses invest in new equipment and expand their enterprises.

“We have also expanded market access and opened new markets for American goods and services abroad, helping our small businesses compete in the global economy. To make health care more affordable and accessible, we continue to support Association Health Plans so small businesses can band together to get the same discounts that big companies receive.

“The underpinnings of our economy are strong, competitive, and resilient enough to overcome the challenges we face, and in the long run, Americans can be confident that our economy will continue to grow,” the President said. “During Small Business Week and throughout the year, we recognize the determination and ingenuity of America's workers and entrepreneurs who play a vital role in building a more prosperous future for our country.”

The full text of the President’s National Small Business Week proclamation can be found at:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2008/04/20080418.html.

National Small Business Week 2008 will begin with three days of events in Washington, D.C., at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel, where more than 100 outstanding business owners from across the country will be recognized. In addition to the State Small Business Persons of the Year, men and women involved in disaster recovery, government contracting, small business champions as well as SBA partners in financial and entrepreneurial development will be honored.

The event also features a series of executive panel forums on Health Care, International Trade, Energy, and Finance. In addition, there will be a procurement session with corporate buyers and prime contractors who will discuss small business partnering and mentoring opportunities for small businesses seeking government contracts.

Among the featured speakers confirmed are former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, Secretary Mike Leavitt, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; Ambassador Susan C. Schwab, United States Trade Representative; David Latimore of the Initiative for a Competitive Inner City; John Bryant of Operation HOPE; Michael Porter of Harvard University School of Business, other prominent business leaders, CEOs and politicos.

The public can “attend” Small Business Week events virtually, via the SBA’s streaming video. All events will be available on SBA’s free continuous streaming Web video at http://www.nationalsmallbusinessweek.com/.

On April 24, Small Business Week moves to New York, where SBA will participate in the closing bell ceremony at NASDAQ to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Women’s Business Center program, which has served more than 650,000 new and growing small business owners in the past five years alone. An awards event celebrating the top small business lenders and a financial forum on community investment, cosponsored with the Initiative for a Competitive Inner City, will culminate activities in New York City.

For more information about National Small Business Week, including a detailed schedule and information on the wide variety of awards and honorees, visit
online at www.NationalSmallBusinessWeek.com.

Editor’s note: All award winners are listed on the Web at http://www.nationalsmallbusinessweek.com/awards/

The U.S. Small Business Administration thanks the following cosponsors of National Small Business Week and related events: Sam’s Club, Administaff, Raytheon, IBM, Chevron, The Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, Cisco, Lockheed Martin, Salesforce, Lowe’s, Banco Popular, Minority Business Development Agency, General Service Administration, MyBizHomepage, Dun & Bradstreet, National Association of Development Companies, Direct Selling Education Foundation, Association of Small Business Development Centers, National Small Business Association, Federal Allies Institute, SCORE, Initiative for a Competitive Inner City, National Federation of Independent Businesses, Consumer Energy Alliance, and FedSources.

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