Welcome! Thursday, March 28, 2024 | Login | Register
   
Certified Entrepreneurial Community Progress Report announced

After a year of planning and strategy development, Cleveland County business leaders are continuing to make progress with the Certified Entrepreneurial Community (CEC) program, an aggressive economic development program aimed at advancing entrepreneurial ecosystems on a local level. The process is moving forward and has now reached the action steps stage.
The two CEC projects being developed are: 1) Service Provider Network; and 2) Business Resource Guide. These projects will involve many areas of the county and will include input and participation from a variety of businesses and resource providers.
The first meeting of the Service Provider Network [SPN] was held June 2 at the Don Gibson Theater in Shelby. This meeting began the process of creating a culture of 'No Wrong Door' in Cleveland County by providing area service providers the opportunity to connect, share resources and become more knowledgeable of the local business landscape. This will be an ongoing information event for service providers (non-profit, government, education, and business) to network and learn about available resources. The SPN meetings will have revolving topics, speakers, panels, and a focus on entrepreneurship and small business support.
The Business Resource Guide [BRG] will be a tool to better direct service providers and entrepreneurs how to navigate the Cleveland County Entrepreneurial Ecosystem and process for successfully launching a small business. This succinct BRG will be available in both printed and online format to help simplify and streamline the steps entrepreneurs should take to launch and grow their business. It will offer helpful points of contact with important organizations and agencies as well as some high-level information on specific steps and tips. The BRG is designed to be manageable and easy to navigate.
For more information about the Certified Entrepreneurial Community program, you may contact Steve Padgett, Director of the Small Business Center at Cleveland Community College. Phone 704-669-4146 or email padgetts@clevelandcc.edu.
Submitted by Steve Padgett


Printer-friendly format