National Small Business Week runs from April 28th until May 4th this year and there is no shortage of resources and events available to small business owners looking to increase their knowledge, boost their operations, or expand their network. There are more than a few ways small business owners can celebrate NSBW on their own, but the SBA, SCORE, NFIB, and other organizations are using this time to touch base with America’s small business owners through several events this week.
What is National Small Business Week
Since 1963, the federal government has recognized National Small Business Week as a moment to celebrate and reflect on the accomplishments of America’s small businesses. Every NSBW the SBA recognizes one small business from each US state and territory with awards for excellence, innovation, disaster recovery, among others. In addition to awards, the SBA and its partners use small business week to boost their outreach to small business owners across the country through great educational and networking events.
Small Business Week Events & Resources
From virtual summits, training programs, to even special podcast episodes, there is no shortage of ways for you to sharpen your business mindset throughout National Small Business Week. Most of the events listed here are only available during NSBW itself, so act fast!
SBA Virtual Summit
Without a doubt, the biggest event happening during this National Small Business Week is the SBA’s 2-day virtual summit for small business owners. Both days of the event are filled with virtual panels and presentations put on by the SBA, SCORE, and several of their partners including Visa and Amazon.
The summit is fully free to attend but you have to register online. In between the webinars and presentations, small business owners can take advantage of exclusive virtual Exhibit Halls and Inspiration Halls where you can hear real stories from successful small business owners and chat with or pick up free resources directly from the major cosponsors of the summit.
If you can cut time out of your busy schedule during this year’s NSBW, this virtual summit is one of the best ways to connect with other small business owners and find out about new resources.
NFIB Small Business Rundown Podcast
If you aren’t a listener already, there is no better time than now to check out the NFIB’s Small Business Rundown podcast. This is a podcast built for small business owners and tuned to their interests. Episodes tend to discuss government developments and how they could possibly trickle down to affect small business owners. But for this National Small Business Week, the NFIB took on a great human-interest story about how one small business owner met with her local and state representatives and eventually made a lasting impact.
If you’re looking to get more in tune with today’s small business interests and learn more about the finer points of policy, there is no better place to start than the Small Business Rundown podcast. The podcast is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, iHeartRadio, and the NFIB website.
SCORE Mentor Virtual Networking
In collaboration with the SBA, SCORE is offering extended virtual mentoring services from April 30th until May 1st. You can sign up for the SCORE mentoring services through the same link as the SBA’s virtual summit. The purpose of these services is essentially to give small business owners a “first consultation” that will eventually link them up with their local SCORE office or more relevant SCORE services.
There is no better time than now to get connected with a small business mentor. SCORE and the SBA are using National Small Business Week to make it easier than ever to get connected with a mentor even if you have never used the service before. SCORE mentoring rooms are available in between each webinar and presentation during the SBA virtual summit.
The SBA T.H.R.I.V.E. Program
The SBA is using National Small Business Week to make one last push for applications for their T.H.R.I.V.E. Emerging Leaders Reimagined program. The SBA has overhauled the T.HR.I.V.E. program, making it one of the most comprehensive mentoring, networking, and education programs for small business owners today. The T.H.R.I.V.E. program is built to take existing small business owners and make them experts in their industries as well as resources to fellow small business owners in their area.
The T.H.R.I.V.E. curriculum takes place both online and in-person meaning that you can genuinely get to know your local area through its business owners in class with you as well as through your professors who are already experts through the SBA, SCORE, or university training. And on top of that, the program is completely free. Since the program is partially in-person, take a look and find out if your small business falls into one of the 68 locations that T.HR.I.V.E. runs.
Applications for the T.HR.I.V.E. Emerging Leaders Reimagined program closes on April 28th, 2024, and the program is due to kick off on June 18th. You can apply directly from the T.H.R.I.V.E. website. If you attend the SBA virtual summit, you’re likely to hear more about the benefits of the T.HR.I.V.E. program, as there are multiple webinars dedicated to explaining the inner workings of the program.
U.S. Census Academy Data Training
The Census Bureau is also taking part in the festivities this year by making a major outreach push for its data training program. In coordination with the SBA and SCORE, the Census Bureau is welcoming small business owners to learn more about how they can use Census data to help grow their businesses and better understand the makeup of their local area.
Some of the most useful training courses include an in-depth tutorial on how to build a statistical snapshot of your community using American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates, how to pull up useful statistics with the Census QuickFacts tool, and even how to locate and analyze your local customer market the Census Business Builder tool.
The U.S. Census Academy is completely free and open to the public with no need to register. You can access all of the Census Academy’s courses directly from their website. In addition to their data training courses, the Census Academy also has a massive collection of saved webinars from past events that small business owners are more than likely to find useful.
Happy National Small Business Week
From us at Kaptius to all the small business owners who make our country fresh and dynamic, we wish you a happy and productive National Small Business Week. As much as this is a time to celebrate the accomplishments of our small business owners, this is also a key time for small business owners to regroup and take a second look at their plans and strategies for the upcoming year. Either through the SBA virtual summit, SCORE mentoring, or one of the several other resources available this week, there is no better time than now to invest time and thought into the future of your small business