VAMBOA Joins Forces with the National Veteran Business Development Council (NVBDC) to Advance Vet Owned Businesses

The Veteran and Military Business Owners Association (VAMBOA), a 501(c)6 non-profit trade association, is proud to join forces with the National Veteran Business Development Council (NVBDC), the leading third party certification organization for veteran owned businesses. Together, the two organizations are working towards advancing certification for service disabled and veteran owned businesses (SD/VOBs).

VAMBOA founder Debbie Gregory said, “Our nation owes a debt of gratitude to the brave men and women who have worn our country’s uniform. In the private sector, veterans are 45 percent more likely than those with no active-duty military experience to be self-employed. Moreover, with nearly one in ten small businesses being veteran-owned, it is up to all of us to support them and contribute to their successes.”

The NVBDC, a 501(c)3 non-profit, is also committed to growing veteran owned businesses, and to that end has created a nationally recognized certification program via an easy and intuitive web based interface to complete the certification process.

Keith King, NVBDC president said, “We set out to build the ‘Gold Standard’ certification program for our fellow SD/VOBs, and we have done that. With the support and endorsement of GM, AT&T, Kellogg’s, Ford, Magna International, 3M, CPI, Consumers Energy and many more corporations, we are proud to provide an opportunity for VAMBOA members and our certified SD/VOBs to work with America’s leading corporations.

About VAMBOA
VAMBOA’s mission is to ensure the development, growth and prosperity of veteran owned businesses of all sizes. VAMBOA’s “Vet Owned” seal symbolizes the talent, dedication, leadership and courage of these special Americans who currently serve or have served in our nation’s Armed Forces. Membership is in the 501(c) 6 trade association is free. If you would like to sign up for membership, please visit https://vamboa.org. VAMBOA relies on corporate sponsorship. If you are interested in becoming a sponsor, please call Debbie Gregory at (877) 850-9800.

About NVBDC
The NVBDC’s principal goals are to promote business opportunities for SD/VOBs within commercial and government markets; to support the interests of all Veteran Owned Businesses; to facilitate interaction between VOBs, government, and all other businesses in support of business initiatives for Veterans; and to provide a forum for the exchange of ideas and information between its members, government agencies and industry through networking, committees, meetings, conferences and visits to government and industry facilities. The NVBDC is the certification body for SD/VOB’s that ensures that credible documentation exists of a business’ veteran status, ownership and control.

Historically the Industry Supplier Diversity programs have relied on non-government organizations to provide them with independent third party certification. The Government controlled Center for Veteran Enterprise does not verify MEDIUM or LARGE companies, thereby denying them a formal veteran business recognition. The NVBDC certifies all sizes of veteran businesses. Industry can be positive that a SD/VOB certified by the NVBDC is in fact an owned, operated and controlled veteran business.

The Veterans Business Outreach Center (VBOC) Program is designed to provide entrepreneurial development services such as business training, counseling and mentoring, and referrals for eligible veterans owning or considering starting a small business. The SBA has 15 organizations participating in this cooperative agreement and serving as Veterans Business Outreach Centers (VBOC).

Services Provided by the Centers

Pre-Business Plan Workshops

VBOCs conduct entrepreneurial development workshops dealing specifically with the major issues of self-employment. An important segment of these workshops entails the usage of the Internet as a tool for developing and expanding businesses. Each client is afforded the opportunity to work directly with a business counselor.

Concept Assessments

VBOCs assist clients in assessing their entrepreneurial needs and requirements.

Business Plan Preparations

VBOCs assist clients in developing and maintaining a five-year business plan. The business plan includes such elements as the legal form if the business, equipment requirements and cost, organizational structure, a strategic plan, market analysis, and a financial plan. Financial plans include financial projections, budget projections, and funding requirements.

Comprehensive Feasibility Analysis

VBOCs provide assistance in identifying and analyzing the strengths and weaknesses of the business plan to increase the probability of success. The results of the analysis are utilized to revise the strategic planning portion of the business plan.

Entrepreneurial Training and Counseling

VBOCs, working with other SBA resource partners, target entrepreneurial training projects and counseling sessions tailored specifically to address the needs and concerns of the service-disabled veteran entrepreneur.

Mentorship

VBOCs conduct, as appropriate, on-site visits with clients to ensure adherence to their business plans. Additionally, VBOCs review monthly financial statements to determine whether a revision of the business plan is warranted or that desired results are being attained.

Other Business Developmental Related Services

VBOCs also provide assistance and training in such areas as international trade, franchising, Internet marketing, accounting, etc.

Center Locations and Areas of Coverage

Region I

• Syracuse University – Falcone Center for Entrepreneurship
  • States Covered: Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, Rhode Island, Connecticut
  • Address: 721 University Avenue, Syracuse, NY 13244
  • Website: http://whitman.syr.edu/programs-and-academics/centers-and-institutes/falcone/
  • Telephone Number: 315-443-0286
  • Email Address: tlbrow04@syr.edu

Region II

• The Research Foundation for the State University of New York at Albany
  • States Covered: New York, New Jersey
  • Address: 6 Executive Park Drive, Entrance B, Albany, NY 12203
  • Website: http://www.nyvetbiz.com/
  • Telephone Number: 518-380-5069
  • Email Address: aamoroso@albany.edu

Region III

• Hampton Roads Veterans Business Outreach Center at Old Dominion University
  • States Covered: Virginia, Delaware, Pennsylvania, West Virginia
  • Address: 4111 Monarch Way, Suite 103, Norfolk, VA 23508
  • Website: www.hrvboc.org
  • Telephone Number: 757-683-4793
  • Email Address: csagaste@odu.edu
• Community Business Partnership
  • States/Territories Covered: District of Columbia, Maryland, Northern Virginia, Puerto Rico & Virgin Islands
  • Address: 7001 Loisdale Road Suite C, Springfield, VA 22150
  • Website: http://www.cbponline.org/
  • Telephone Number: 703-768-1440
  • Email Address: charles@cbponline.org

Region IV

• Veterans Business Outreach Center at Gulf Coast State College
  • States Covered: Florida, Georgia, South Carolina
  • Address: 5230 West Highway 98, Panama City, FL 32401
  • Website: http://vboc.org/
  • Telephone Number: 1-800-542-7232 or 805-769-1551, ext. 3327
  • Email Address: bpeacock@vboc.org
• The Veterans Business Outreach Center at Fayetteville State University
  • States Covered: North Carolina, South Carolina, Kentucky
  • Address: School of Business & Economics, 1200 Murchison Road, Newbold Station, Fayetteville, NC 28301
  • Website: http://www.fsuvboc.com/
  • Telephone Number: 910-672-2683
  • Email Address: rrehder@uncfusu.edu
• The Veterans Business Outreach Center at Mississippi State University
  • States Covered: Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, Louisiana
  • Address: 60 Technology Blvd, Suite 105 D Starkville, MS 39759
  • Website: http://vboc.msstate.edu/~vboc/index.php
  • Telephone Number: 662-325-4990
  • Email Address: mscott@business.msstate.edu

Region V

• VetBiz Central, Inc
  • States Covered: Michigan, Ohio, Indiana
  • Address: 501 South Averill Avenue, Flint, MI 48508
  • Website: http://vetbizcentral.org/
  • Telephone Number: 810-767-8387
  • Email Address: matt@vetbizcentral.org
• Veterans Business Outreach Center at Women’s Business Development Center
  • States/Territories Covered: Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Hawaii & Guam
  • Address: 8 S. Michigan Avenue, 4th Floor, Chicago, IL 60603
  • Website: http://www.vbocwbdc.org/
  • Telephone Number: 312-853-3477 ext.670
  • Email Address: hbeck@wbdc.org

Region VI

• Veterans Business Outreach Center – University of Texas Rio Grande Valley
  • States Covered: Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas
  • Address: CESS Building, 1407 East Freddy Gonzalez Drive, Edinburg, TX 78539
  • Website: http://portal.utpa.edu/utpa_main/ce_home/bdi_home/vboc_2012_home
  • Telephone Number: 956-665-8931
  • Email Address: david.elizondo@utrgv.edu
• New Mexico Veterans Business Outreach Center
  • States Covered: New Mexico, Colorado, Texas, Oklahoma
  • Address: 5201 Eagle Rock Avenue, NE, Suite 2A, Albuquerque, NM 87113
  • Website: http://nmvboc.org/
  • Telephone Number: 505-383-2403
  • Email Address: joseph.long@state.nm.us

Region VII

• Veterans Advocacy Foundation, Inc.
  • States Covered: Missouri, Nebraska, Kansas, Iowa
  • Address: 315 Lamay Ferry Road, #114, St Louis, MO 63125
  • Website: http://www.vetbiz.com/
  • Telephone Number: 314-531-8387 or 8386
  • Email: Info@vetbiz.com

Region VIII

• Big Sky Economic Development Authority
  • States Covered: Montana, Colorado, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming, Utah
  • Address: 222 North 32nd Street Suite 200, Billings, MT 59101
  • Website: http://www.bigskyeconomicdevelopment.org/
  • Telephone Number: 406-254-6871
  • Email Address: hudson@bigskyeda.org

Region IX

• Veterans Business Outreach Center IX
  • States Covered: California, Nevada, Arizona
  • Address: 4608 Duckhorn, Drive, Sacramento, CA 95834
  • Website: http://www.vbocix.org/
  • Telephone Number: 916-527-8400
  • Email address: admin@vbocix.org
• VBOC IX Sub-Center
  • Address: 300 Booth Street, Suite 3065, Reno, NV 89509
  • Website: http://www.vbocix.org/
  • Email: admin@vbocix.org

Region X

• Seattle Business Assistance Center
  • States Covered: Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Alaska
  • Address: 1437 South Jackson Street, Seattle, WA 98144
  • Website: http://seattleccd.com/
  • Telephone Number: 206-324-4330
  • Email Address: juliannad@seattleccd.com

Annual Event to Increase Contract Opportunities for Veteran-Owned Small Businesses

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) will sponsor the 5th annual National Veterans Small Business Engagement (NVSBE), November 17–19, 2015, at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center in Pittsburgh, PA.

This premier event for Veteran-Owned Small Businesses provides the opportunity to learn from federal and commercial procurement decision makers the most effective ways to compete for and win federal contracts. More than 400 exhibitors and 25 government agencies will also participate in the event. The 2015 theme, ACCESS, is focused on promoting and supporting Veteran-Owned Small Businesses’ access to economic opportunities.

Featured speakers include: VA Secretary Robert A. McDonald, General Dennis L. Via, Administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration Maria Contreras-Sweet, and Lockheed Martin’s Vice President of the Health & Life Sciences, Horace Blackman.

For details about the 5th annual NVSBE, visit www.nvsbe.com.

Richard Masoner / Cyclelicious via photopin cc

Looking to start a business?

Or would you rather have a J-O-B… maybe that hobby would be fun, perhaps you can profit with that?

To clarify, hobbies, jobs, and startups are great ideas. Just be sure to approach them in the right way.

Webster’s Definitions:

Hobby – an interest outside one’s general occupation, particularly for unwinding.

JOB – routine work that someone does to earn a paycheck.

Business – a venture of making, purchasing, or offering products/services in return for money.

Can I turn my hobby into a business?

You can. But it won’t be your hobby any more. We all ought to have a diversion in life…something you do on special occasion or to relax.

I love awesome BBQ (like I’m the only one, right?). I love cooking it, hanging around the smoker and seeing it reach perfection.

However, imagine a scenario where I needed to get up each morning at 3am to put meat on the smoker and get everything prepared for my customers. Would I like it as much? Would it transform my enthusiasm into drudgery? Possibly.

Owning a BBQ smokehouse has around 22,418 more “jobs” to it than simply smoking some brisket from a lawn chair. I would need to have a full comprehension of the restaurant business before making my BBQ pastime into a business.

At that point I would need to get another hobby!

What if I make a business out of my current job?

Ok. Suppose you have killer welding abilities at the place you work at presently. Why not open a welding shop in your town and satisfy all their welding needs?

But your welding skills were just one part of your previous employers company. How did they attract customers? Who purchased the supplies? Who did the bookwork…managed the utilities?

You might need to trade in your welder’s helmet for the various business hats you’ll end up wearing. At that point, are you doing more jobs than the just the welding, at which you excelled?

But won’t I be more relaxed if I great my business like a hobby?

Sure…if by “relaxed” you mean “failed”. You just can’t run your business the same way you treat your hobby.

I took up biking and it cost me $300 for a used mountain bike. Fishing is fun and got a fly rod for Christmas last year. I purchase a few flies each time I go to Bass Pro.

However, I can stop fly fishing for a time and not have any effect on my salary, employment or business.

That’s the reason it’s a hobby… you don’t HAVE to do it.

And, in the event that you switch or stop a hobby,

you likely won’t miss a car payment.

You can start and stop hobbies often. Nobody will mind. Well maybe if you have 28 fly rods and only use them once every 4 years, your wife might comment on it! But that topic is for another day.

Run your business with intention. Create SMART goals (specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, time-bound). Define the jobs within the business and the people that should be doing them.

Organizations ought to be run diligently (with the proper time off for those hobbies). Try not to “wish” or “hope” things get completed… dole out every one of the tasks BEFORE you open for business. You’ll have enough surprises without making them yourself.

Brian Richardson runs VetLaunched.com. He helps veterans start their own business through coaching, training, classes and trusted resources. Pick up a copy of his unique resource list at www.VetLaunched.com.

On Tuesday, October 13, 2015, from 10 am – 12 pm attend the Veterans Small Business Forum hosted by US Agency for International Development (USAID) Office of Small Business Programs, Washington, DC

The agenda includes: Doing Business through USAID, New Veterans Small Business Coalition, VA Veterans National Small Business Conference – Pittsburgh, Doing Business with WMATA, and Kingdomware at the Supreme Court.

Network with new and experienced business owners. You MUST Pre-Register at http://conta.cc/1j0Zsbp to attend. If you can’t make it in person, you can participate by phone: (641) 715-3605, Code 877589# (Call lines will open up at 9:55 am)