The Missouri Small Business Development Center (SBDC) hosted at Missouri Southern State University (MSSU) will be holding several trainings throughout this month. Sign up for one today!
Thank you for Celebrating 35 Years with Us!
Celebrate National Small Business Week May 2–5, 2022
Learn more about National Small Business Week, it’s history, and it’s significance here.
Business Financials: The Basics
Tuesday, May 3, 2022 | 10:30 to 11:45 am CDT | Free event
This workshop is designed for business owners, managers, and those who want to learn how to turn financial statements into useful management tools. Participants will learn how to capture information from an income statement and balance sheet, how to calculate several useful ratios, and how to make business decisions from this information.
This is a free, virtual webinar that will be hosted on Zoom. Please register to receive the Zoom link.
QuickBooks Desktop: Utilization, Tips, and Tricks
Wednesday, May 4, 2022 | 10:30 to 11:45 am CDT | Free event
This training will be a demonstration of QuickBooks Desktop and how to best utilize the program and its features.
This is a free, virtual webinar. Click here to learn more and to register so you can receive your Zoom link.
Starting a Small Business: The First Steps
Wednesday, May 11, 2022 | 10:30 am to 11:45 am CDT | Free event
In this workshop, participants will learn about discovering their target markets and gaining a better appreciation of why businesses need to understand their customers. Participants will also learn about registering their business with the federal, state, and local agencies. They will also learn the basics of understanding cash flow projections and various funding alternatives as well as their importance.
To learn more about this free, virtual webinar, click here.
Value Proposition Canvas
Thursday, May 12, 2022 | 10:30 to 11:45 am CDT | Free event
A business model is the foundation upon which an organization’s strategy is constructed. In our dynamic economy, companies must review their business model on a regular basis to maximize their performance and increase their profits. The Value Proposition Canvas is a tool designed to analyze a company and to more clearly understand its customers, create better products, and grow business.
Find out more and learn how to register for this Zoom webinar here.
Wellness for Business Part Two: Building Your Employee Wellness Program
Tuesday, June 21, 2022 | 7:00 am to 10:00 am CDT | Costs covered by Freeman Health System
During this second session, attendees will be guided through a crash course in workplace wellness, directed by the WorkWell Missouri Toolkit. Developed to assist businesses in starting, adding to, or maintaining a wellness program, this is a step-by-step guide for employers to use in assessing, planning, implementing, and evaluating a workplace wellness program.
If you did not attend the first part of this series, you can register for both part two and part three. There are no prerequisites to join!
The schedule of events is as follows:
- 7:00 to 8:00 am – Freeman Health System’s Screen Team will host a health fair. For best results for the screening, avoid food or drink (except water and routine medications) eight hours prior to the lab. Screening is covered by Freeman Health System.
- 7:30 am – Event check-in begins.
- 8:00 to 9:00 am – Main Event, Wellness for Business Part Two: Building Your Employee Wellness Program. Virtual viewing is available.
- 9:00 to 10:00 am – Freeman Vendor Fair highlighting Freeman’s services.
The event will be held in the Freeman Health System Business Center, Business Center Conference room at 3220 McClelland Blvd in Joplin. There is also an option to tune in virtually via Zoom.
The third part of this series Growing Your Employee Wellness Program will take place on August 23.
To register to attend the event in-person, click here. For a virtual option, click here.
Keep Your Business Safe from Cybersecurity Threats
The current Russian invasion of Ukraine has caused anxiety, financial impacts, and political actions around the globe. Loss of life and property have been confined to Ukraine so far, but the impacts are being felt around the world economically and logistically in companies large and small.
In addition to the economic impact in the U.S., there is a high level of concern regarding cyberattacks. State-sponsored attacks on Ukraine are being used to disrupt everything from utilities to banking and communications. The tools being used to cause these disruptions are not always under the full control of the attacker. Many of the threats being released on Ukraine are capable of making their way around the world via the internet. It is also a distinct possibility that the U.S. and its allies could see an increase in targeted cyberattacks should Russia decide to retaliate against those countries imposing sanctions.
The cybersecurity community is taking this threat seriously and we would ask the small business community to do the same. There is a real possibility that any small business could become the victim of a cyberattack either directly or indirectly. To minimize the risk, small business owners should, at minimum, do the following:
- Be more diligent about checking for unusual activity or performance issues on your devices and networks. This should include website traffic monitoring.
- Make a plan to incorporate regular backups if you have not done so already.
- Test a recent backup to make sure it works.
- Check anti-virus and all software, including website plugins, for needed updates and patches.
- Incorporate a firewall or security monitoring software in your website and online store.
- Use a password manager with complex passphrases (16+ with random numbers, letters, and symbols)
- Use multifactor authentication.
- Turn on or incorporate virtual private networks (VPN) when online.
- Familiarize yourself with your website/online store providers’ data breach policy to full understand who is responsible for reporting any breaches that may incur as well as who is liable in the event your site becomes infected.
While it cannot be guaranteed that you will not be impacted by a cyberattack, you can dramatically reduce your chances of becoming a victim and substantially increase the speed of your recovery by following the above steps.
Should you need more details or resources to assist with preparations, please contact your local SBDC offices and learn more about America’s SBDC cybersecurity resources here.
Looking for something different?
Webinars are being offered by all Missouri SBDC centers located across the state. Check out our events page to find more training that fits your business needs.
Visit the Missouri SBDC website, sbdc.missouri.edu, for more about their centers and training offerings.
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