An innovative partnership between The Independence
Economic Development Council and the Missouri Small Business and Technology
Development Center will be announced at the Friday, May 11 EDC Investor
luncheon.
Tom Lesnak, President of the Independence EDC, said the
new partnership opens a new chapter for the EDC. “The new partnership with SBTDC puts a vast
array of new services on the table to help grow small business in
Independence,” Lesnak said. “In joining
forces with SBTDC we are now consultants with new sources of revenue through
Federal stimulus funding to aid in our efforts.”
Carmen Dehart, director of the Missouri Small Business
and Technology Development Center, and her staff will speak at the luncheon.
“The University of Missouri-Kansas City Small Business
& Technology Development Center (UMKC SBTDC) is committed to broadening our
regional support and access to the statewide network of business development
and commercialization resources and expertise,” DeHart said. “ We are
thrilled to partner with the Independence EDC and align our resources to meet
the business needs of the Independence and Eastern Jackson County area small
business owners and entrepreneurs.”
The SBTDC is at the University of Missouri-Kansas City
and is an affiliate of the UMKC Office of Research and Development Center and
is part of a nationwide network.
It was founded to provide small business and technology
venture firms in the Kansas City Region with the analysis, consultation and
training support they need to develop and grow.
SBTDC counselors understand the needs of business owners as they are
also current and former business owners, executives and coaches who aid in the
shaping of emerging small business.
Dehart and her staff assist small business owners,
executives and entrepreneurial CEOs in the region by integrating public,
private and educational outreach services and developing programs that promote
growth, expansion, increased productivity and management improvement.
Dehart, an Independence resident and an entrepreneur for
more than 20 years, has co-owned and managed several successful businesses
including Ward & Garrison, Co., Inc. In Sugar Creek, which is an industry
leader in machinery rebuilding, design and fabrication for metal manufacturing
which earned the Boeing Eagle Award for Outstanding Performance. She is an alumnus of the Henry W. Bloch
School of Business and Public Administration at UMKC.
The presenting sponsor for the May 11 luncheon is
Graceland University, which has recently formed of the Institute for
Professional Development.
UMKC Small Business & Technology Development Center
is designed to give entrepreneurs the confidence they need to successfully
start, manage, and grow their businesses and innovative technologies. The
UMKC SBTDC offers confidential one-on-one business coaching, access to
expertise, and professional and business development education programs.
Clients of UMKC’s Small Business & Technology
Development Center demonstrate outstanding innovation and accomplishments that
have resulted in a positive impact on the community, workforce, Missouri
economy, and the company’s own bottom line.
SBTDC was founded to provide small businesses and
technology venture firms in the Kansas City region with the analysis,
consultation and training support they need to develop and grow. Members are current and former business
owners, executives and coaches that aid in the shaping of emerging small
businesses.
Barbara Weathers, director for the Institute for
Professional Development, will speak at the luncheon. Weathers described the
online certificate program as convenient and relevant for today’s increasingly
complex marketplace.
“Successful organizations stay financially viable by
investing in their most important asset - the knowledge and expertise of their
employees,” Weathers explained. “Graceland University has created this division
to partner with businesses providing online programs fulfilling workforce
continuing education needs.”
The Institute launches its programming in June with a
four-week online certificate Leadership: Looking Toward the Future. This
course begins Monday, June 18 and runs through Monday, July 16. Each course is
limited to 18 participants to ensure the highest level of interaction. For more
information call (816) 423-4708 or visit us online at www.graceland.edu/professionaldevelopment
The luncheon will be hosted at the Independence Regional
Ennovation Center, 201 N. Forest Ave., Independence, is a mixed use business
incubator which focuses on three core areas for the development of new
businesses: kitchen/culinary, bio-tech and business and technology.
The Ennovation Center offers the largest kitchen
incubator facility in the Kansas City metro area dedicated to early-stage
catering, retail and wholesale food businesses. The facility has five
individual kitchens and an assortment of shared commercial equipment which
allow for food preparation, packaging and distribution of finished products in
an environment that offers the top level of food safety. All equipment is
typical of that found in commercial kitchen operations.
For information about the Ennovation Center contact
Stephanie Zamora, Director of Entrepreneurship and Small Business, at szamora@inedc.biz or 816-463-3515.
