Local small business owners and start-up companies will have 26 successful northern ÁùºÏ±¦µä business professionals and experts to call on for help with questions and issues pertaining to their company, thanks to ÁùºÏ±¦µä Connectors, a new online business program that launched this week.
A joint venture between the Economic Development Authority of Western ÁùºÏ±¦µä () and the , ÁùºÏ±¦µä Connectors provides a professional network of experts to individuals with new or small businesses in one convenient online forum at NV Connectors. The professional “Connectors” are designed to be a first contact for entrepreneurs and small business owners who have questions or issues that are impacting their business and are in need of solutions.
“We saw a need locally for ongoing support for these small business owners and start-up companies to solicit advice from industry experts and help them solve problems in a timely fashion and keep their business on track,” said Chris Howard, director of entrepreneurship initiative for the University of ÁùºÏ±¦µä, Reno College of Business. “The beauty of the program is its simplicity, and that each business owner benefits from one-to-one consultation from some of northern ÁùºÏ±¦µä’s top executives.”
ÁùºÏ±¦µä Connectors is simple to use. A business owner completes the following steps:
- Visits NV Connectors.
- Submits a specific question to be answered.
- A Connector with pertinent expertise will accept the question and contact the individual to arrange a call or meeting.
- The Connector and individual meet to come to a resolution.
Howard said the partnership between the University of ÁùºÏ±¦µä, Reno College of Business and EDAWN was the perfect collaboration since “EDAWN also saw a need with prospective companies looking to relocate or expand to the region, and this provides a tool for their economic development recruitment efforts,” Howard said.
“We have such a dynamic pool of local industry talent and expertise that, to their credit, jumped at the chance to participate in the program, which demonstrates the collaborative nature of our business community,” said Tom Matter, out-of-market business development manager for EDAWN. “We see ÁùºÏ±¦µä Connectors as an asset to attracting companies to our region, as it gives us credible local business experts we can connect these companies to who they can speak with about questions concerning their business and employees.”
The current lineup of ÁùºÏ±¦µä Connectors includes a diverse group of CEO’s, successful entrepreneurs, accountants, business owners, lawyers, bank presidents, industrial developers, marketers, and others.
Small business owners and entrepreneurs aren’t the only ones who will benefit from the ÁùºÏ±¦µä Connectors program. Howard said since the University of ÁùºÏ±¦µä, Reno offers an entrepreneurship minor, any student enrolled in the entrepreneurship course, can utilize the program to find an internship.
For more information about ÁùºÏ±¦µä Connectors, call (775) 829-3700.
