Sean C. Morgan
Linn-Benton Community College’s Small Business Development Center has a special deal for veterans who own businesses: classes specially tailored to address their needs at a cut rate.
The class costs $199, said Brian Egan, business adviser. Normally it costs $995.
“We have decided to offer this course exclusively for veterans,” Egan said. The program secured funding through the Veterans Assistance Program to cover the cost of the class. The program is also seeking scholarships to assist interested business owners from local banks and organizations.
It is specifically intended to help veterans and active duty soldiers who own businesses, Egan said. It is also aimed at the families of veterans, who often must keep businesses going while soldiers are serving on active duty.
Those attending must have spent at least a year in business, Egan said. “We want the existing businesses to be better, faster, more professional and also to hire new employees.”
The class is a combination of in-class lectures and discussion along with excellent course material to help business owners decide what they’re doing well and what they’re not, Egan said. In between the nine monthly lectures, every business involved will work with its own adviser, generally working for an hour or two weekly, depending on the needs of the business.
The program also brings in experts in specific areas, such as hospitality, online business and manufacturing, along with many generalists.
All instructors are veterans who own small businesses, and some advisers are veterans.
Egan is a Vietnam era veteran. While he is not a combat veteran, several co-instructors are Vietnam combat veterans.
Egan operates a mediation and organizational change consulting business. He mediates just about any kind of dispute, from marriage to business.
This program is different from other small business programs, Egan said. This one combines the military culture, the camaraderie, self-help, discipline, following processes and looking out for the other guy with good business culture, good hiring, good management, pricing at the right point and excellent service.
The program was developed by Thomas Jones at the Clackamas Business Center specifically to combine the two cultures, Egan said. “It’s unlike anything I’ve ever heard before.”
It provides a chance for a lot of counseling and networking help, he said. “It’s just one more way we help make things better.”
The class is held from 6 to 9 p.m. on the first Thursday of the month at Linn-Benton Community College in Albany. Orientation is on Jan. 26, and the first class begins in February.
Program officials don’t want to turn anyone away, Egan said, but 25 is the maximum the program can handle logistically. If it’s successful, “we’d be delighted to run it again.”
“Times are tough,” Egan said. “This economy is turning down. Unemployment is very high. Competition is getting fierce.”
Small businesses face competition from big box stores and from overseas, Egan said. The business owners aren’t rich. They need the income from their businesses to live.
Veterans who are business owners don’t face challenges that other types of business owners don’t face also, Egan said. “They’re a group of typical business owners, but in gratitude for their service to their country, we’re able to grant them this special price. It’s a chance of a lifetime to make things better, and I certainly hope veterans take advantage of it.”
For more information, call (541) 917-4923.