SBDC Business Consultant - SBSH

Mid Michigan College seeks individuals who: value collegiality and mutual respect; use data in decision making; are innovative; are service minded; are goal oriented; strive to continually improve themselves and their work processes; are willing to collaborate and seek to add value in every interaction.

The Michigan Small Business Development Center (SBDC) provides consulting, training, and research to assist small businesses in launching, growing, transitioning, and innovating.

The SBDC Business Consultant will provide professional, high-quality, individualized, results-driven consulting services for established and emerging small business owners. SBDC Business Consulting services include, but are not limited to, problem-solving assistance to help area businesses access capital, develop viable business plans, establish strategies for growth and survival, create practical marketing approaches, deal with unexpected challenges, and generate realistic financial goals.  SBDC Business Consultants leverage various resources to provide clients with relevant insight, including industry trends, customer demographics, competition, financial metrics, and web research.

The SBDC Business Consultant will work in partnership with federal, state, and local resources to help business owners make decisions and take action to grow and strengthen their businesses. This position will have a primary office at the Mt. Pleasant Mid Michigan College Campus but will provide SBDC services to businesses throughout Clare, Gladwin, Isabella, and Gratiot counties. This position is funded through an agreement with the Central Michigan University Research Corporation (CMURC) Small Business Support Hub (SBSH).

The Small Business Support Hub (SBSH) program aims to establish and strengthen inclusive, accessible, and effective regional ecosystems for entrepreneurs through the deployment of American Rescue Plan funding. The SBSH program will support small businesses disproportionately impacted by the pandemic.

1. Provide confidential, in-depth, one-on-one consulting assistance to pre-venture, startup, and existing business owners in areas of business planning, financing, loan packaging, marketing, human resources, and other areas of management to promote small business sustainability and growth.
2. Assist clients in accessing capital through both traditional and non-traditional funding institutions. Assists with preparing business loan proposals, structured narrative business plans, realistic financial projections, collateral documentation, and other documents as required. 
3. Participate in joint client intake sessions in conjunction with CMURC
4. Increase client awareness of regulatory and licensing requirements.
5. Increase client awareness of basic credit practices, credit requirements, and state/federal loan programs.
6. Participate in, develop, and deliver business education workshops and other presentations both online and in person.
7. Build and maintain relationships with small business support organizations, financial institutions, consultants, and other public and private sector business resource partners to serve and attract SBDC clients.
8. Manage an inclusive client portfolio and facilitate meaningful progress toward client business objectives.
9. Maintain confidentiality standards and procedures regarding client information.
10. Establish and maintain client relationships resulting in captured impact attribution.
11. Develop network and build rapport to identify and engage with underserved populations.
12. Assist in developing and maintaining positive, productive relationships with collaborative organizations and individuals. Play an ongoing role in maintenance of relationships with small business support organizations, financial institutions, and other public and private sector business resource partners (EDCs, Chambers, etc).
13. Support and serve as a role model for our mission, vision, values, and customer service initiatives while adhering to the organization’s policies & procedures and compliance guidelines.
14. Meet and exceed established metrics of consulting hours (800 hours minimum on annual basis) and economic impact goals (capital formation, business starts, jobs created, and jobs retained)
15. Partner with Mid Michigan College and other universities/colleges on class projects, as appropriate.
16. Supports and serves as a role model for our mission, vision, strategic and service initiatives. Adheres to organizational policies & procedures and compliance guidelines.
17. Other duties determined necessary to further the goals of the SBSH program.
18. Per the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act (Clery Act), a federal consumer protection law, your job position entails functions that meet the definition of a Campus Security Authority (CSA).  CSAs have a duty to report any crime to the College’s Clery Compliance Officer. This information may be disclosed to them directly, through third-party, or witnessed. As a CSA, you are required to complete annual training which is provided by the College. This training encompasses your role, responsibilities, and reporting obligations.

Knowledge, Skills, Abilities:

• Working knowledge of financial, marketing, strategic, and operational aspects of running a business. 
• Ability to work with a highly diverse client base.
• Ability to listen actively and empathically.
• Ability to prioritize competing deadlines and drive towards goals independently.
• Knowledge of how to apply open-ended needs assessment questions effectively during customer interviews.
• Analytical ability to identify and resolve various issues or challenges effectively and timely.
• Ability to summarize and translate market research data into business advancement.
• Demonstrated superior interpersonal, organization, and communication skills.
• Ability and willingness to attend business functions that occur outside of the normal work hours and locations.
• Demonstrated proficiency in task and project management.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills and networking skills.
• Demonstrated proficiency with relevant technology and applications (spreadsheets, email, social media, webinars, etc).
• Ability and willingness to learn and leverage new technology to improve productivity to enrich client experience.
• Ability to travel to/from various client locations in the 4-county service area, and periodically to other statewide locations.
• Ability to develop and sustain collaborative relationships with multiple constituencies.
• Demonstrated ability to develop creative ideas and concepts and effectively present workable solutions to meet customer business development objectives.
• Ability to effectively manage multiple customers/business plans and prioritize workload on a continuing basis.
• Ability to learn the culture of industry-specific environments and operations and work with a diverse client base.
• Ability to determine essential information needed to accomplish a customer’s business development objectives.
• Ability to synthesize the mission, vision, values, guiding principles and goals of the SBDC and the college.
• Analytical ability to identify and resolve a variety of issues or challenges in an effective and timely manner.
• Ability to handle assignment or clients independently and work autonomously within defined objectives.
• Ability to work as a member of a team to meet common goals.
• Demonstrated understanding of the industries driving the Mid-Michigan economy.
  

Education, Certification, Licensure:

• BA or BS degree in Accounting, Business, Finance, Economics, or a related field
• A valid State of Michigan Driver’s license is required.
• Completion of MI-SBDC Small Business Consultant Certification or willingness to complete within one year of hire.
  

Experience:

• Three to five years professional work experience in small business ownership, business consultation, or management in a business/organization or any equivalent combination of knowledge, skill, and experience.
• Work history showing sound organizational skills and timely achievement of quality results in a fast-paced work environment.

Working Environment:

• The job responsibilities of this position are performed in an office environment which requires a professional image and demeanor, on-time attendance and reliability. The environment has little, if any discomfort due to heat, cold or dust. There is light noise within the environment.
• There may be occasional travel to other college locations for meetings.
• There may be occasional travel for conferences/training.
• Duties are performed in an independent atmosphere without close direct supervision.
• The job has intermittent periods during which continuous physical exertion is required, such as walking, standing, sitting, stooping, bending, climbing, lifting material or equipment, some of which may be heavy or awkward (5- 45 pounds).
• Must meet reasonable and sometimes shifting deadlines, quotas, or demands for accuracy, and may be involved in some unpleasant situations.
• Typical work schedule is 8:00am – 4:30pm with flexible or extended hours as needed by department demands.

Note: This job description is intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by a person assigned to this job.  It is not to be construed as an exhaustive list of all job duties that may be performed by a person so classified.  Incumbents may be asked to perform additional duties as required by his/her supervisor.

Mid Michigan College is an equal opportunity employer and complies with all applicable federal and state laws prohibiting discrimination in employment or the provisions of services.