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    Answering the Question “Is Entrepreneurship for Me?” The SBA’s Boots to Business Program Offers Support and Resources

    Answering the Question “Is Entrepreneurship for Me?” The SBA’s Boots to Business Program Offers Support and Resources

    Courtesy Photo | Boots to Business (B2B) is an entrepreneurship training program offered as an...... read more read more

    UNITED STATES

    08.22.2018

    Courtesy Story

    DoD, Military-Civilian Transition Office

    From Department of Defense Transition to Veterans Program Office

    Business ownership has been described as the 'most democratic and freedom creating' of all vocations. So who better to pursue business ownership than service members who understand what it means to fight for freedom and democracy?

    Veterans have the motivation, character, discipline and skills needed to succeed as small business owners and entrepreneurs.

    Boots to Business (B2B) is an entrepreneurship training program offered as an additional training track within the Department of Defense’s (DoD) Transition Assistance Program (TAP) Transition GPS (Goals, Plans, Success) curriculum, and is open to transitioning, and Guard and Reserve service members, and their spouses.

    Created by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) in January 2013, the course explores the entrepreneurial process, and gives an overview of what it takes to start a small business. B2B includes a two-day in-person Introduction to Entrepreneurship course, with optional online follow-up courses offered by the Institute for Veterans and Military Families (IVMF) at Syracuse University, and Mississippi State University (MSU). These courses are offered at no cost to Active Duty, National Guard and Reserve service members, veteran, and their spouses.

    The class also includes support resources, free follow-on, in-depth training, and provides transitioning service members the ability to determine if entrepreneurship is the right path for them. In addition, participants are introduced to SBA resources available to access start-up capital, technical assistance, and contracting opportunities.

    Those who attend SBA’s B2B can expect the following:

    INTRODUCTION TO ENTREPRENEURSHIP COURSE

    The Introduction to Entrepreneurship course is the initial step for those interested in learning more about the opportunities and challenges of business ownership. This course is facilitated by the SBA and its partners who are skilled business advisors. Participants learn business basics and techniques for evaluating the feasibility of their business concepts. The optional follow-on entrepreneurship courses typically take one to two hours to complete.

    OPTIONAL FOLLOW-ON ENTREPRENEURSHIP COURSES

    • Market Research: A two-part course specifically designed for individuals who are ready to launch their business immediately, and creates direct customer interactions with the primary objective of turning a business idea into a tangible reality.

    • B2B Revenue Readiness: Focuses on identifying and understanding customers, developing a business, and drafting a business plan. The six-week training program is designed to help participants take a business idea from concept to actionable plan in a short timeframe.

    • Business Fundamentals: Includes 13 on-demand courses designed for individuals to explore and build their entrepreneurial skills to ensure their success beyond the startup phase.

    In 2015, eligibility for B2B was expanded to veterans of all eras and their spouses as part of the DoD’s military life cycle model. The SBA began offering Boots to Business Reboot, a program targeted toward already transitioned Veterans, National Guard and Reservists and their spouses. Reboot uses the same curriculum as Boots to Business, but is usually held off military installations.

    The B2B and Reboot programs not only prepare service members for post-service career success as business owners - a vocation that harnesses many of their skills and traits acquired through military service - but also represents a compelling post-service benefit to help attract America's finest to serve.

    According to SBA, business ownership has been a means through which military veterans have supported the economic success of their communities, and ultimately our nation. Military service is one of the strongest predictors of who is most likely to start a business; while military veterans represent approximately 6 percent of the U.S. population, they account for almost 10 percent of all business owners.

    In 1985, the Mid-Atlantic Research Company conducted a survey on behalf of the Office of Veterans Affairs and SBA, demonstrating that historically 41.5 percent of those who served in the military have been self-employed, as compared to 24.5 percent of the non-veterans. Looking to prior post-war periods, it's clear that business ownership represented a compelling vocation for transitioning service members; nearly half (49.7 percent) of the World War II veterans went on to own or operate a business, as did 40 percent of the Korean War veterans. Today, SBA estimates that 20 percent of veterans are actively pursuing business ownership.

    SBA and their partners strive to ensure every veteran and their spouses has the resources they need in their local communities to start and operate small businesses, achieve post-service career success, and strengthen the nation’s economy.

    If you’re a transitioning service member or military spouse looking to register for a B2B course, contact the TAP office on your military installation. For more information on SBA or B2B, visit www.sba.gov/ovbd.

    For more information on TAP and the Transition GPS tracks, contact a TAP Manager on any military installation.

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    NEWS INFO

    Date Taken: 08.22.2018
    Date Posted: 08.22.2018 13:05
    Story ID: 289824
    Location: US

    Web Views: 179
    Downloads: 0

    PUBLIC DOMAIN