New York SBDC Research Network

In 2007, minority-owned firms numbered 5.8 million, up from 4.0 million in 2002, an increase of 45.5 percent, more than double the 17.9 percent increase for all U.S. businesses, according to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2007 Survey of Business Owners. Receipts of minority-owned firms increased 55.0 percent to $1.0 trillion over the five-year period, compared with the 32.9 percent increase for all businesses nationwide. In 2007, more than one-fifth (21.3 percent) of the nation’s 27.1 million firms were minority-owned. Of the 5.8 million minority-owned firms, 766,533 had paid employees, an increase of 21.7 percent from 2002. These firms employed 5.8 million people, a 24.4 percent increase from 2002, and their payrolls totaled $164.1 billion, an increase of 42.2 percent. Receipts of minority-owned employer firms totaled $860.5 billion, an increase of 54.3 percent from 2002. In 2007, minority firms with no paid employees (nonemployers) numbered 5.0 million, an increase of 50.0 percen

WASHINGTON – Small businesses interested in starting or expanding sales of their goods and services overseas have access to a new, free online tool that will gauge their readiness to export and help them develop an export business plan. The Export Business Planner, developed by the U.S. Small Business Administration, offers a ready-made, customizable and easily accessible document that can be updated and referenced continuously as the business grows. The Planner, located at www.sba.gov/exportbusinessplanner , allows users to: • Determine their export readiness • Learn about training and counseling opportunities • Complete worksheets for global market research • Obtain financing information and options • Customize export marketing plans, and • Access resources for exporters “Creating jobs through exporting is one of the nation’s top economic priorities, as the President indicated when he launched the National Export Initiative,” said SBA Administrator Karen G. Mills. “Giving exporters t

Dumbo Gets Free Wi-Fi; Manhattan's Paid Version to Follow - New York News - Runnin' Scared : "Dumbo Gets Free Wi-Fi; Manhattan's Paid Version to Follow" Now, this is change I'd love to see happening. I wonder if it will happen elsewhere. It seems like it's inevitable. It could be like street lights. Just another utility that we all use.

Interesting ten minute film on YouTube . Warning--for print lovers only.

"Americans work almost 200 more hours every year than we did in 1970 — that's about an extra month," Psychology Today explains. And while putting in long hours isn't necessarily problematic, "it's only when the daily grind eclipses other areas of your life that it's time to stop and rethink your schedule." More HERE .

Advocacy's Small Business Quarterly Bulletin , a brochure-style publication that contains commentary and analysis on the current employment and financing trends of small businesses, shows a positive first quarter of 2011 for small business. Small business employment and financing were turning the corner and trending up, thus joining GDP, which has been growing for seven quarters.

National Compensation Survey: Occupational Earnings in the United States, 2010 The National Compensation Survey (NCS) provides comprehensive measures of occupational earnings, compensation cost trends, the incidence of benefits, and detailed benefit provisions. This bulletin presents estimates of occupational pay for the Nation. These national estimates originate from the NCS locality survey data and are weighted to represent the Nation as a whole. The estimates include pay for workers in major sectors within the U.S. economy in 2010–the civilian, private, and State and local government sectors–and by various occupational and establishment characteristics. The civilian sector, by NCS definition, excludes Federal Government, agricultural, and household workers. National Compensation Survey: Occupational Wages by Census Division, 2010 Preliminary Multifactor Productivity Trends – 2010 [PDF]

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS, the Bureau) reports the number and frequency of work-related fatal injuries and nonfatal injuries and illnesses each year. The Bureau also provides detailed information on the circumstances of the injuries and illnesses and on the characteristics of the affected worker.

Entrepreneurship plays a vital role in the growth of the U.S. economy. As the primary source for information on the nation’s labor market, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) collects data on new businesses and job creation. The following highlights from data series produced by BLS Business Employment Dynamics (BED) program provide some insights on the contribution of new and small businesses to the number of businesses and jobs in the economy.

How to kill innovation, in five easy steps | TechRepublic Some things to keep in mind if you want to foster innovation. If you wonder at a shortage of good new ideas, these may be some issues to address.

SBA Introduces New Mobile Application for Small Business Owners, Entrepreneurs New SBA mobile application brings enhanced access to information and resources WASHINGTON – Smart phone users interested in starting or growing a small business can now find helpful resources at their fingertips via a new SBA mobile application from the U.S. Small Business Administration. “Increasingly, smart phones are the vehicle through which Americans access information. This is certainly true of many entrepreneurs and small business owners and this new application ensures they will have access to SBA’s resources and programs – literally at their fingertips,” said SBA Administrator Karen G. Mills. “Greater mobility fits with the new user-focused SBA.gov launched recently, and is another example of the steps we are taking to do a better job of connecting entrepreneurs and small business owners with the tools to help them start or grow their businesses and create jobs.” Developed and donated as a gift by

The Onondaga SBDC, in co-operation with some partners, has initiated a program called the Green Core Company certification, which "provides a blueprint for businesses working to achieve green operations through reduced environmental and social impacts, and recognizes businesses that make a substantial effort to develop a culture of sustainability within their organization; while challenging the offence of 'greenwashing' - the unregulated and improper use of the term and methodology of 'green' for marketing advantage." In other words, it is NOT a self-certification program that allows someone to pay some money to get a sticker for the store logo. The program is currently designed for businesses in the central New York (Syracuse) area, a participatory process involving SBDC clients who want to save money while doing better for the environment.

"Companies that are new to exporting and companies that have previously considered and abandoned an export strategy can use the Basics of Exporting to get up to speed on terminology, processes, common pitfalls and strategies for success." From the Southern United States Trade Association (SUSTA) , "a non-profit agricultural export trade development association comprised of the Departments of Agriculture of the 15 southern states and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. Since 1973, our programs and services have assisted exporters of high-value food and agricultural products. "SUSTA is funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) , its member states and private companies. FAS administers and executes many foreign market development activities."

In 2007, U.S. military veterans owned 2.4 million businesses, which accounted for 9.0 percent of all businesses nationwide, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. These businesses generated $1.2 trillion in receipts, or about 4.1 percent of all business receipts nationwide, and employed nearly 5.8 million people. All in all, businesses where veterans were majority owners or half-owners numbered 3.7 million, representing 13.5 percent of all businesses nationwide, accounting for more than $1.6 trillion in receipts and employing 8.2 million people. The new data come from the Survey of Business Owners (SBO): Veteran-Owned Businesses: 2007 , which provides the first-ever detailed information for all veteran-owned businesses in the United States, including number of firms, sales and receipts, number of paid employees and annual payroll. Statistics are also shown for nonveteran-owned businesses, as well as for businesses that are equally owned by both veterans and nonveterans. Nearl

We know from previous Advocacy-sponsored research and more than three decades of data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, that year in and year out veterans have a consistently higher rate of self-employment than non-veterans. Why is this? The new study by the SAG Corporation, Factors Affecting Entrepreneurship among Veterans [PDF] , investigates this question and quantifies a variety of factors observed in its analyses. The research summary can be found here [PDF] . Should you need further information, please feel free to contact Joe Sobota at (202) 205-6533 or advocacy@sba.gov.