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Why Should I Care About the SBA? - Mash Bonigala

Guest post by: Mash Bonigala

Article Overview: Most business owners know that SBA stands for Small Business Administration, but I wonder how many of us know more than that. The SBA mission statement is to “to maintain and strengthen the nation's economy by enabling the establishment and viability of small businesses and by assisting in the economic recovery of communities after disasters." Well, that sounds all fine and good but how do they accomplish that goal and how can they help me overcome my business challenges? The SBA is organized into many different offices and each of those offices has the directive to complete the mission of the SBA as a whole. Here is a list of the different SBA offices:

Why Should I Care About the SBA? - Mash Bonigala

Most business owners know that SBA stands for Small Business Administration, but I wonder how many of us know more than that. The SBA mission statement is to “to maintain and strengthen the nation's economy by enabling the establishment and viability of small businesses and by assisting in the economic recovery of communities after disasters." Well, that sounds all fine and good but how do they accomplish that goal and how can they help me overcome my business challenges? The SBA is organized into many different offices and each of those offices has the directive to complete the mission of the SBA as a whole. Here is a list of the different SBA offices:

• Communications and Public Liaison

• Congressional and Legislative Affairs

• Disaster Assistance

• Entrepreneurial Development

• Equal Employment Opportunity and Civil Rights Compliance

• Field Operations

• Government Contracting and Business Development

• Hearings and Appeals

• Inspector General

• International Trade

• Investment

• Management and Administration

• Minority Enterprise Development

• Native American Affairs

• Size Standards

• Small Business Development Centers

• Surety Guarantees

• Technology

• Veterans Affairs

• Women's Business Ownership

While the list of services that the SBA offers is huge most businesses will never take advantage of this great resource. SBA’s main web page outlines four major ways that all small business in American should utilize their services.

Small Business Planner

The SBA offers a great deal of information about planning a new business, starting and managing your business, and how to make an effective exit strategy. If you are struggling in any phase of business this is a great free source of a wealth of knowledge.

Services

The SBA website has links to many direct services that are offered through their office. The main services include:

• Financial Assistance

• Grants

• Contracting Opportunities

• Disaster Assistance

• Online Training

• Counseling & Assistance

• Compliance Assistance

• Laws and Regulations

By making use of these services your business more financially viable as well as ready to grow in this market.

Tools

The online library offered on the SBA website can serve to educate both prospective and current business owners about almost anything they want to know about the business world. If you prefer a more interactive forum there is a monthly web chat. If you need to fill out specific forms section of the website is the place to look with direct links to dozens of different documents.

Local Resources

There is a saying that “it takes a village to raise a child.” I believe the same could be said for a small business. If you need advice or direct assistance in starting or building your business the SBA website is the place to start. District offices are located in every state in the country. In addition, and many small businesses qualify for additional resources based on where they are located or the situation of the owners.

I spend many hours online every week looking for relevant and useful business information. I can now skip the search engine step and go directly to the source. After exploring the SBA website I no longer think of the SBA simply as a loan guarantor but the first place I will go for anything to do with business.

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Article Tags: business owners, disasters, economic recovery, economy, mash, mission statement, sba offices, small business administration, small businesses, viability



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