Small Business Training Program
In 2006, the Old South Baton Rouge (OSBR) Strategic Plan identified strategies and implementation steps to generate reinvestment in the OSBR neighborhood. Following these recommendations, CPEX has begun several key revitalization programs within the community, including the Home Rehabilitation Grant Program, the Commercial Façade Improvement Grant Program, the Computer Training Class and the Small Business Training Program.
In September 2010, Capital One Bank in partnership wtih CPEX initiated the Small Business Training Program to provide training, support and capital to a group of individual small businesses located within the Old South Baton Rouge, Mid City and Scotlandville communities, some with little or no formal business training. The revitalization initiative will function as an engine for growth by supporting the expansion of existing businesses and creating new businesses, new employment opportunities, and new tax revenues reestablishing the connection between the stakeholders, the land and the financial resources.
The program consists of three parts – a training course, a mentorship system and a savings match. Structured training sessions will enhance the owners’ operational efficiency and capacity to grow their business through increased knowledge of best practices in the business world. Approximately thirteen courses will instruct the small business owners and entrepreneurs on specific business concepts, including writing business plans, marketing and advertising, accounting best practices, industry lending practices (and instruction in computer programs). In bringing together small business owners from the community, owners can engage with one another, an option often difficult when running a small business. There are opportunities for peer‐to‐peer sharing of best practices and for fostering new supportive business relationships.
To help ensure the efficacy of the coursework, the small business development program will pair a professional volunteer mentor with a small business owner throughout the program. Maintaining an active relationship with the owners during the course ensures that classroom objectives are successfully integrated into the small business and questions can be answered. By offering an accessible method to obtain continuing business advice and counseling, these owners are positioned to succeed.
In order to financially assist these small business owners with expansion, each owner will be required to open an Individual Development Account (IDA) savings account, to be matched upon the business owner’s successful completion of the program. This component helps build the business owner’s capital and ability to leverage their savings with other available financing.
For more information on the Small Business Training Program, contact Marcelle Boudreaux at 225-267-6300.
