October 1998
October 1998
"I know I earned $1 million in sales last year, but I don't know where the money went," is a complaint many small business owners might dream one day would issue from their lips. Helping small business owners answer this and other questions is at the heart of the Minority Business Assistance Center's (MBAC) mission: to provide start-up and growth assistance to minority entrepreneurs in the Commonwealth.Counseling business owners and helping them develop business plans, marketing plans, and cash flow analyses are just some of the services that the MBAC offers. Although the Center targets and markets to minorities, its services are available to anyone who walks in their door or calls for an appointment.
"All the centers do free one-on-one counseling for anyone who wants to start or grow a business," says Henry Turner director of the MBAC, "but our expertise lies in assisting minority entrepreneurs, especially in the Boston area." He and management counselor Linda Johnson provided 1700 hours of counseling services last year, which translates into approximately 300 clients served. Support staff at the Center include Sheila Jones, administrative assistant, and work-study student Jaime Mendez
In addition to one-on-one counseling, the Center also offers low-cost workshops and seminars. These fall into two basic categories. "Getting Started in Business" is a free, three-hour seminar offered twice a month for aspiring entrepreneurs. This seminar offers practical information, such as how to determine what licenses, taxes and fees apply to a new business, the forms of business organizations, the significance of business plans, and a guide to writing one. It is co-sponsored by Fleet Bank.
Twice a year, the MBAC also offers a twelve-week training program, "NxLeveL for Business Start-ups"(offered in the Fall) or "NxLeveL for Entrepreneurs" (offered in the Spring)" designed for individuals thinking about starting a business who need to develop a start-up business plan which test the feasability of their ideas, and acts as a blueprint for a start-up venture.
"Our philosophy is that people who succeed in business are people who write business plans," says Turner. "Across the nation, people who write business plans create more jobs, pay more taxes, and have lower closure rates for their businesses," he adds. The next session of NxLeveL training begins October 22.
In addition to counseling and workshops, Turner and his staff work collaboratively with others in the University. Turner will be assisting Paul Camacho, director of special projects at the Joiner Center, in a study of ways to increase small business opportunities for disabled veterans. The MBAC also recruits the services of College of Management faculty and students in the service of client needs. For example, Profs. Mary Ann Machanic of the Management and Marketing Department and Thomas Hogan of the Accounting and Finance Department have assisted clients of the Center.
The MBAC is a regional office of the Massachusetts Small Business Development Centers Network, which is headquartered at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Other centers in the network are located at UMass Dartmouth, Boston College, Salem State College, and Clark University. Federal and state support for the centers come from a partnership of the U.S. Small Business Administration and Massachusetts' Executive Office of Economic Affairs.
Turner's own experience as an entrepreneur began in the early 80s when he left the teaching profession to become part-owner of a telecommuncations company, CAR-TED Industries, Inc. He sold his interest in the company in 1985, and planned to play racketball and spend time with his children. However, an acquaintance at the Massachusetts Small Business Development Center at UMass Lowell recruited Turner as a counselor. From 1991-94, he directed Boston University's small business development center while he earned an MBA from BU. The MBAC relocated to UMass Boston from the Boston Bank of Commerce in 1994, the same year that Turner was appointed director.
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