Northwest Herald - Business Representatives Gain "Invaluable" Resource Information
PUBLISHED: June 08, 2010
Less than a week after area businesses got the chance to meet with top officials from the Boeing supply chain, about 75 local business officials gathered at McHenry County College to connect with state and federal representatives on a variety of topics.
The Small Business Federal Resources Seminar hosted by U.S. Rep. Melissa Bean, D-Barrington, brought together officials from more than a dozen agencies to answer questions and present information and resources to businesses.
One business representative, Associated Electric Project Manager Tony Schnulle, said he found the most help in a breakout session on Small Business Administration tools.
"There was definitely information that applied more than the rest," Schnulle said.
Schnulle and a group of 17 others attended the final breakout session, with Small Business Development Center Director Mary Margaret Maule talking about the counseling resources offered by the group, as well as its connection with area banks and the SBA over a trio of business-related loans.
Similar information was distributed through breakout sessions with the Illinois Department of Insurance, the Energy Department, the Defense Department, the IRS, and the Commerce Department on exports.
Bean hosted a similar seminar in Hoffman Estates at the end of March. She said this time around, there were things she and her staff improved on after lessons learne.
"One was that we added more information on government contracting," Bean said. "It's good for me to audit the breakout meetings and find out what information we're providing. I think it's improving. What I saw was that people did stay for all three individual breakout sessions, which means we made good use of their time."
One conversation of the many Bean struck up with business officials in the lobby or the halls of MCC's Conference Center stuck in her mind.
"One gentleman said, ‘I got to see a lot of good things that my taxpayer dollars go to,'" she said. "It's good feedback. They found these to be substantive."
Officials from the Energy Department discussed energy-efficient tax benefits, including credits available for businesses undergoing efficient retrofittings to existing buildings. The Department of Insurance discussed changes through the health care bill - a session that Bean said was heavily attended a little more than two months ago, but saw fewer participants this time.
"If you have a business with 50 or fewer employees - and that was basically every business here - nothing changes for that business," she said. "I asked if anyone provided insurance now, and a percentage raised their hands, and I said that you may be eligible for a tax credit for that. ... They're usually pleasantly surprised to hear that."
As the information sessions turned into casual conversations between business representatives in the lobby, Schnulle said the contacts and resources would be useful at the office long after the event was over.
"It's very important," he said. "It's invaluable, really."
Other groups featured at the event included the Service Corps of Retired Executives, the USDA Rural Development agency, and the Illinois Procurement Technical Assistance Center. The event was put together by MCC in about two or three weeks, Conference Center official Amy Carzoli said, helped by the college's experience in hosting similar events.
"We have a lot of workshops and conferences at the college, and we can help guide people to the breakout rooms and the exhibition areas like these," she said.
