I recently had the pleasure of meeting and interviewing Jonathan Groner, Esq., a PR Consultant for SCORE DC. I thoroughly enjoyed our meeting and learning a great deal of information about SCORE that I could hardly wait to share with my column readers.
As a DC Business Consulting writer, I work hard to keep my finger on the pulse of all the new developments in business and always bring to my readers and clients fresh and useful information. Many of you may have probably already heard of SCORE, but for those of you who haven’t, SCORE is the premier source for advice and mentoring to small businesses nationwide.
When SCORE was established in 1964 by SBA Administrator, Eugene P. Foley the acronyms stood for Service Corps of Retired Executives, but it now uses simply the name SCORE. Its descriptive subtitle is "Counselors to America's Small Business." SCORE staff need not be retired. Both retired and working professionals are welcome in SCORE.
What I love about SCORE is that all of the employees are volunteers!!! These volunteers are people who are currently or have owned and operated businesses. Their goal is to mentor and counsel small businesses to help them grow.
A few of the services offered are:
How to start a business;
Writing a winning business plan;
Recordkeeping and accounting;
Small business tax tips;
Low-cost, no-cost marketing tactics;
Social networking for business;
Business development in the federal sector;
How to obtain a small business loan; and a host of other services (Note: SCORE DC is currently working on a new initiative, Speed Coaching which is planned for fall of this year). These classes are held at a SCORE site and some of offered via their online workshops. To find a SCORE chapter near you, please visit them on the web at www.score.org.
The beauty of all of this is that all counseling assistance is FREE of charge. So are the house calls to businesses to conduct business reviews. However, the full-day workshops cost $60 and the half-day workshops cost $40. There is a $10 discount for online registration. In addition, there is no limit to the number of sessions that one can attend. In fact, SCORE encourages its volunteers to create long-term relationships with the entrepreneurs they work with.
Last month, SCORE recognized a local business, Strategic Growth Partners as Client of the Year. This company received the award at the SCORE chapter’s annual luncheon reception. SCORE was very instrumental in assisting this company in developing a comprehensive business plan. As a result of SCORE’s assistance, the company recently signed two multi-year contracts.
For those of you who would like to work as a SCORE volunteer, you can. The process is simple. A volunteer must fill out an application and must be interviewed by volunteers who are already active in the SCORE chapter. SCORE believes that although many business people have exceptional skills, there's a whole other set of skills involved in successful counseling and mentoring. Accordingly, SCORE uses an interview process.
In addition, all new SCORE volunteers participate in an orientation and in a business counseling training program, so that they understand SCORE's mission, services and the opportunities for volunteer participation. The orientation also provides guidance on how to be a business counselor and apply new listening, interviewing and problem-solving skills.
If you would like more information about the SCORE DC Chapter, please feel free to contact them directly at www.scoredc.org or call (202) 272-0390. To speak with Jonathan Groner, please call (202) 246-5516 or email jonathangroner@gmail.com.
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Patrice Washington is a business consultant in the Washington DC area. She works with aspiring entrepreneurs and small business owners to help them grow their business. For more information or to schedule a free consultation, please email her at preneewashington@yahoo.com. For business tips, advice and to view features of local small business owners, please click here for a FREE subscription to her column where you will receive updates directly in your inbox.
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