Business Services Unit - Business Survival Workshops

About the Program

Category: Personnel Management, Employment and Training (Best in Category)

Year: 2010

By mid-2008, the San Bernadino County Workforce Development Department’s (WWD) Business Services Unit recognized that the economy was on a sharp decline, and as a result, businesses were increasingly unable to meet their financial obligations. Sales were steadily declining, numerous businesses were closing their doors and thousands of individuals were unemployed as a result of the recession. During this time, the WDD’s Business Services Unit approached local enterprises to assess their needs. Based upon their findings, three critical problems for businesses were identified: decreased sales margins, increased costs and a lack of available financing for survival and growth. In an effort to assist businesses in these three areas and to prevent further layoffs, the WDD developed an innovative plan to prevent these business closures and job losses. WDD leveraged its numerous resources and developed a unique series of Business Survival Workshops to address these needs. These services were provided at no cost to participating businesses, providing a forum for enterprises throughout the county to connect with organizations in order to receive free consultation to assist in improving and streamlining various areas of business operation. These Business Survival Workshops provided access to 29 available resource partners. Based on the results of the assessment tool, businesses were able to identify the most appropriate resources to utilize in order to foster survival and growth, both presently and in the future.