VETRN is pleased to announce thirteen veteran small business owners have graduated from its 2018 award winning Streetwise ‘MBA’ program taught at Dean College in Franklin, MA. The final class held on March 9th included the veteran small business owners presenting their three year strategic growth plan to an expert panel of judges, who provided feedback. The veteran graduates then received certificates of completion in Small Business Entrepreneurship from Lee Goldberg and Ingrid Centurion of VETRN, Bernard Johnson, Director of Programs at Interise and Bob Nelson, SBA District Director in Massachusetts.
The final class was a culmination of the veteran graduates completing a 26 week program, including 13 weeks of classroom work and 13 weeks of peer to peer mentoring. Including this class, VETRN has now graduated more than 40 veteran small business owners from this outstanding program, with many success stories to date, rave reviews and testimonials from its participants. In 2017, 91% of VETRN small business owners retained profitability, with 89% of businesses maintaining or adding new jobs. Comments about the VETRN program from some of the graduates include:
“This program that you have created is amazing, from where I was to where I am today is unrecognizable. You have introduced me to a network of resources that were unavailable to me, thank you for giving me the tools necessary to succeed as a Veteran” John Danahey, Owner NerdsToGo – Taunton, MA.
“This program literally saved my business. The VETRN program propelled me through many of my own personal and perceived barriers that hindered my progress. I have confidence in me as a business owner because I now have the right information, the right resources and the right mind set and peace of mind” Teresa Royer, Owner Service Team of Professionals – Metrowest.
“This course setup really has it nailed. It doesn’t matter what ‘learning style’ someone has, or needs for reinforcement, you have it covered!” “There are things called ‘financial metrics’ that can help run a business! Who knew? Careful attention to details, tracking and managing outcomes – this is how to reliably make money…tracking functional management heads on a weekly basis is already paying off, and it will just get better” Russ Collins, Owner Home Innovations Corp.
Small business owners in New England are invited to apply for participation in the 5th VETRN StreetWise ‘MBA’™ program, to begin in September 2019 in Portsmouth, NH. Participants will be selected from business owners operating in New Hampshire, Southern Maine and Massachusetts.
This award-winning program is taught nationally and is designed to support Veteran-owned small businesses to build operational capacity, increase revenues, and create sustainable jobs. The VETRN StreetWise ‘MBA’™ is tuition-free, and is being held exclusively for existing veteran small business owners and their family members. The 26 week program uses a peer-based learning method to provide small business owners with the business knowledge, management know-how, and relationships they need to achieve scale.
“VETRN is proud of its exclusive veteran small business classes to date and is excited to bring the next StreetWise ‘MBA’™ program to Portsmouth, NH for veteran small business owners and family members to help them grow their businesses. We look forward to continuing the expansion of our veteran classes and the successful growth from our veteran business owners,” said Lee Goldberg, VETRN President.
The September 2019 program will cover topics vital to small business success, including strategic planning, marketing and sales, human resources tactics, business strategy development, access to capital and new contracts. Participants will be assigned a Mentor at the beginning of the program and will emerge with a successful, three-year strategic growth plan and over 100 hours of combined peer-to-peer mentoring, work assignments, and classroom training in areas vital to small business success. They will also have access to the VETRN professional resource network on a pro bono basis to assist them as needed.
Customized for Veteran-owned businesses in MA, RI, NH, Maine and CT, the VETRN program accepts veteran small business owners that generate revenues of $75,000 or more annually have been in business for at least one year, and have one or more employees. Past Streetwise ‘MBA’TM alumni nationwide have secured almost $3 billion in government and institutional contracts. Please check out our website at vetrn.org and learn more about this award-winning program, see videos and read testimonials. You can then apply to the September 2019 program by filling out a short application right on the VETRN website.