If your business is ready for growth, SBDC GrowSmart gives you the tools and strategies to reach your goals. GrowSmart was developed by the UGA SBDC to meet the needs of growing businesses. Combining the latest ideas with timeless principles, GrowSmart will propel your business forward! UGA SBDC training has helped thousands of business owners build a foundation for growth. GrowSmart is the product of our experience and commitment to Georgia?s small businesses.
This program gets results! In full or half day weekly sessions, learn to analyze and manage your business like a seasoned CEO.
35 hours of class time covering all areas of business operation Evaluate your business, competition, and target markets
Hands-on, interactive program promotes sharing of best practices Expert speakers add insights to the topic of the day
Step-by-step development of your company?s strategies for growth
Combined with long term one-on-one consulting with SBDC professionals, learn to apply course principles and build a business for today?s challenging times. SBDC GrowSmart is a dynamic program for owners and senior managers of growing businesses.
Course Outline
Module 1: Planning for Growth
Making strategic decisions requires careful consideration of internal and external factors. You will examine your operating environment, document company vision and goals, and develop growth strategies based on a thorough assessment of your company?s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.
Module 2: Marketing: Research, Planning and Implementation
Thoroughly analyze your core competencies and competitive advantages?matching them to needs in the marketplace. Learn to protect your business from competition and develop strategies for effective, profitable pricing. Connect with customers using the latest marketing and communication tools.
Module 3: Leadership & Management
Focus on your changing role as the leader of your company. Identify people resources and leadership strategies that will be necessary to achieve your growth plan. Explore proven methods for hiring, compensating, and motivating your team.
Module 4: Financial Analysis, Tools & Resources
Learn how to analyze your company?s financial condition and develop strategies to improve profits and cash flow. Create a financial plan that quantifies the results of your marketing and management strategies. Determine how much money it will take to grow the business as well as how to fund it.
Module 5: Operations & Implementing Your Plan
Documented, consistent processes are a key to building a scalable, well managed company that has lasting, transferrable value. Assess your current operations and learn methods to document and streamline processes. The program concludes with a short presentation of your one page plan?and a challenge to put the program?s lessons to work in your business!
Learner Outcomes
Whether you?ve been in business for twenty years or two years, SBDC GrowSmart? can align your vision for your business with the steps to get you there. Create a framework to improve the performance of your business and shape the success of your business for years to come. Work ON your business, not just IN your business!
A step-by-step evaluation of your business and markets.
A hands-on, interactive forum that promotes sharing of best practices. Tools to build your business, both now and for the future.
SBDC GrowSmart? graduates gain:
A strategic business plan with a long-term vision and strategies. A mastery of key business concepts.
A network of entrepreneurial peers and professional resources.
Learn to analyze, plan and manage your business like a seasoned CEO. SBDC StartSmart was developed by the University of Georgia Small Business Development Center. This year?s program is tailored to being held virtually to facilitate virtual discussion, class engagement, & mastery of content. Participation in StartSmart will also allow access to online business planning software. The program is facilitated by specially trained SBDC consultants and a long-term relationship with the SBDC and follow-up consulting is available and encouraged.
Whether you are a new business (in business 2 years or less), or are still in the planning phase, building a business takes the right tools?and a lot of hard work. SBDC StartSmart will equip you to be successful!
SBDC StartSmart helps attendees to:
Evaluate & refine your business concept
Improve your knowledge of business concepts
Research markets and competition
Develop a financial forecast to improve chances of success
Develop a thorough, practical business plan
Course Outline
Eight modules cover critical issues for new businesses:
MODULE 1: Business Success ? How do we get there?
MODULE 2: Opportunity & Solutions
MODULE 3: Marketing for Success
MODULE 4: Digital Marketing & Online Strategies
MODULE 5: Navigating Human Resources
MODULE 6: Operations & Managing by the Numbers
MODULE 7: Management with a Plan
MODULE 8: Plan, Run, Review, Revise
Learner Outcomes
Owning your own business is the American dream. Building it to withstand the test of time requires a unique set of tools. SBDC StartSmart? provides the resources, support, and motivation to put your dream within reach.
SBDC StartSmart provides the tools to:
Evaluate your concept and develop plans to move forward.
Improve knowledge of business fundamentals.
Build an infrastructure for business operations and processes.
SBDC StartSmart graduates acquire:
An actionable business plan and access to business planning software
Access to financial and business resources.
A network of entrepreneurial peers and professionals. Businesses, both large and small, need more than great products or services to be successful. Success also requires adaptability, resilience, and the ability to attract and retain loyal customers. The most successful organizations are those that form strong emotional bonds with their customers and offer consistently great customer service experiences.
As a small business, how can you scale and grow your business in a sustainable way? The answer lies with first placing customer service at the heart of business growth plans and then creating a strong customer service culture across the organization. Learn how you can incorporate effective customer service strategies to earn a reputation for service excellence and stay on the radar for future business by wowing your customers. Customer service, when done right, can be the most important, intelligent, and rewarding function for your customers and business.
Course Outline
Before delivering excellent and consistent experiences you need to start investing in customer service early and ensuring that you have the foundational pillars in place. How can you achieve this? Begin by listening to understand your customer?s needs and expectations and identifying any source of friction on their customer journey. In this session you learn how you can identity and acquire the ?right? customer upfront and uncover their preferences by asking thoughtful questions. The aim of the session it help you attract the ?right? customer and build lasting customer relationships that increase customer satisfaction, brand loyalty, and business growth.
Learner Outcomes
? Identifying the foundational pillars for creating customer service excellence
? Identifying and acquiring the ?right? customer
? Identifying and addressing customer needs, expectations, and desired outcomes
? Adopting the customer?s perspective for business growth
? Anticipating evolving customer trends and mindsets Do you want to learn how to use LinkedIn as a launching pad for your success? This program will teach you a unique, three-pronged strategy ? the Three C?s of LinkedIn Success ? you can use to do just that!
This training will include:
Instruction by UGA Small Business Development Center expert
Live demonstrations on LinkedIn of the key parts of the strategy
Explanations of why the strategy works and recommendations for how you can implement it
A template you can use to create your personal LinkedIn Success Action Plan
Q&A
Course Outline
Introduction
The all important first step
The 1st C ? Using advanced search techniques to find and add the right Connections
The 2nd C ? How to project Credibility using your LinkedIn profile
The 3rd C ? How to use Conversations to build your reputation and your business
Learner Outcomes
The most important elements in building a compelling LinkedIn profile
Techniques to locate the right new connections on LinkedIn
How to generate targeted lists of your perfect prospects ? and what to do next
How to transform your LinkedIn profile into a landing page ? for you!
What to say on LinkedIn to create profitable conversations
GrowSmart DeKalb
StartSmart DeKalb
Webinar - Customer Service: Mission-Critical for Small Business Success
Webinar - You Want to Succeed on LinkedIn? What You Need to Know