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Home > About > About the SBDC

The Small Business Development Center of Hampton Roads, Inc. (SBDC) was established in 1990 as a non-profit organization under a partnership agreement with the Hampton Roads Chamber of Commerce and Thomas Nelson Community College. Working in partnership with the Mason Enterprise Center and George Mason University and the U.S. Small Business Administration, it is tasked with providing technical assistance services to the Hampton Roads small business community.

Since its inception, the number of local municipalities and organizations that provide either direct or in-kind financial support has grown to include, among others: the cities of Chesapeake, Franklin, Hampton, Newport News, Norfolk, Poquoson, Portsmouth, Suffolk and Virginia Beach; the counties of Isle of Wight, James City, Southampton and York and the Chamber of Commerce from Hampton Roads, Franklin-Southampton County, Isle of Wight, Windsor and Smithfield, Virginia Peninsula, York County and the Greater Williamsburg Chamber and Tourism Alliance.

The eighteen cities and counties of the Greater Hampton Roads Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) constitute the largest concentration of populations of small businesses in the state. The SBDC works hand-in-glove with its sponsors and other supporters to provide a wide variety of services to either new of existing small businesses. These services include:

• Business planning assistance through ongoing counseling services and training programs such as NxLeveL and other professional seminars.
• Providing business information through research, access to databases and through lectures and programs designed to provide information on a wide array of topics.
• Management skill counseling to enable business owners to become more efficient and effective in the marketplace.
• Partnering with the Virginia Philpot Manufacturing Extension Program, provide productions process and plant management productivity improvement.
• Networking assistance that enables business owners to have access to a wide range or services and assistance for which they may not have had any knowledge.
• Gaining access to capital through conventional or SBA guaranteed loans or through equity investment from outside sources.
• Financial analysis and modeling for existing businesses to help identify weaknesses in the operation.
• Marketing assistance and analysis
• Partnering with the Virginia Economic Development Partnership in providing preliminary export assistance.

Since the SBDC is supported through local, state and federal funding, the majority of the services that it provides are offered at no cost to the client. While there may be some charges associated with some training programs, classes or workshops; all counseling is provided at no cost.

The SBDC staff consists of highly trained individuals, each of whom have had significant experience in the private sector and who usually hold an advanced degree in one area of business studies. Some have extensive management and financial consulting backgrounds; some are skilled at compiling and interpreting specific data and financial modeling; others have significant experience in international business practices and exporting. In addition to its paid staff, the SBDC utilizes the advice and services of business owners, corporate executives, business school faculty and MBA students in providing advice and guidance to small business owners. The SBDC's goal is to provide the best possible assistance and advice to its clients.

Confidentiality in one of the hallmarks for the SBDC. Since the most practical advice can only be given when the counselor knows all the details of a situation, it is imperative for the client to provide a complete description of his/her situation to the counselor. To encourage the free and frank exchange of information, the client is assured that any and all information provided to the counselor will not be disclosed outside the meeting unless so directed in writing by the client. Each counselor, on an annual basis, executes a Conflict of Interest and Confidentiality Agreement with the state SBDC office that reinforces this guideline.

The goal of the SBDC is to assist small business owners in establishing or maintaining their success in the marketplace. The performance metrics upon which the Center is judged include:

• Number of jobs created or saved
• The amount of funding that is invested in a business through either debt or equity financing
• The amount of increase in sales experienced by the client
• The number of training programs conducted and the people participating in these programs
• The number of clients seen and counseling hours provided

In addition to those listed above, there are other requirements that may be required by outside agencies or its partners. The bottom line is that the Small Business Development Center of Hampton Roads is fully committed to its mission to improve the economic condition of the entire Hampton Roads region by supporting its most important economic engine, the small business community.