Small Business Intensive
Growing Your Business
The Small Business Intensive is a three-month, cohort-based program designed for growth-minded entrepreneurs, who still want to remain a small business or stay local. These ‘non-scalable’ businesses need a different type of support than what traditional entrepreneurship programs, like incubators or accelerators, can offer. Small Business Intensive will coach you through the tools and skills you need to grow your small business.
Small business owners need to know how to grow their business SMARTLY. They need to understand how to hire the right people, create systems and processes to maximize their time, use their finances to project into the future and help develop a company culture that will attract and retain strong workers. The Small Business Intensive will cover these topics that are more pertinent to business owners actively running a business, and looking for sustainable growth or expansion.
Each month will consist of one 3-hour in-person work session facilitated by a topic expert. Throughout the month, participants are expected to take what they've learned during the work session and begin applying their new tools/skills to their business. To support you through this process, we will have virtual meetings with the cohort, office hours with our topic experts, and accountability checks from the SCCF team. Participants should expect to spend about seven hours a month in "class time" with the cohort, in addition to working on their business challenges outside of class.
Program Topics:
Financial Projections and Sustainable Growth
Operations, Systems, and Delegation
Human Resources, Hiring and Leading a Team
Program Schedule:
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September 8th: Financial Projections and Sustainable Growth (9 am - 12 pm, Harrisonburg)
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September 15th: SCCF Check-in (9 am - 10 am, Virtual)
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September 22nd: Office Hours with Facilitator (9 am - 11 am, Virtual)
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October 13th: Operations, Systems, and Delegation (9 am - 12 pm, Harrisonburg)
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October 20th: SCCF Check-in (9 am - 10 am, Virtual)
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October 27th: Office Hours with Facilitator (9 am - 11 am, Virtual)
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November 10th: Financial Projections and Sustainable Growth (9 am - 12 pm, Harrisonburg)
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November 17th: SCCF Check-in (9 am - 10 am, Virtual)
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November 24th: Office Hours with Facilitator (9 am - 11 am, Virtual)
The Small Business Intensive Cohort 2 is made possible by the support of Rural LISC.
WHO is this program for?
The Small Business Intensive is for Shenandoah Valley business owners who have launched their small businesses and are looking for additional support as their business continues to grow.
Cohort 2 is open to businesses located anywhere in the Shenandoah Valley (Please note that in-person sessions will be held in Harrisonburg, and participants will be expected to attend regardless of their business location).
The best-fit businesses are those that are established, running, and earning revenue. We suggest they be at least 3-5 years old, but younger businesses will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
There will be a maximum of 8 businesses admitted to the program.
HOW much does Small Business Intensive cost?
Small Business Intensive has a value of $750 ($250/month investment into your business). Thanks to a grant from Rural LISC, we can offer this program to participants for just $200 TOTAL.
Payment plans are available with 50% due before the start of the program and 50% due at the midpoint of the program.
WHEN does Small Business Intensive happen?
Applications for SBI Cohort 2 will open from August 12th-26th.
The cohort will meet on the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th Monday morning of each month beginning September 8th and ending November 24th.
