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5 Ways Business Credit Cards Can Hurt Your Credit

May 29, 2018
By Jason Steele –

Credit CardsCredit cards can be an indispensable tool for small businesses. These products offer companies a secure and convenient method of payment, while providing a valuable means of financing and being more readily available than other options like a small business loan.

But with a small business credit card, its balance and payment information will be recorded on the credit histories of the primary account holder, just like a consumer credit card. This isn’t a problem when your small business cards are managed responsibly, but it causes issues when they are are not.

Here are five ways that a small business credit card can hurt your credit. (more…)

7 Time Management Tips for New Business Owners

May 22, 2018
By Jennifer Lobb –

Time ManagementRunning a business is time-consuming work, and as a new business owner, time is exceedingly hard to come by. Though you may not be able to add an extra hour (or minute, for that matter) to your day, there are ways you can capitalize on, and make the most of, the time you do have. By following the seven tips below, you’ll be able to take charge of your day and manage your time in a way that improves both your productivity and state of mind.

1. List & Define Your Tasks & Goals

When thinking about time and how to better manage it, there are two dominating categories of obligations and to-dos and your list: operational tasks and business goals. Tasks are those mundane-yet-import requirements that happen daily, weekly or monthly, without fail. (more…)

Managing Sexual Harassment in Today’s Workplace

May 16, 2018
By ComplyRight –

Today's WorkplaceThe issue of sexual harassment in the workplace continues to attract extensive media coverage, as more victims are empowered to report misconduct against them.

Since the start of 2018 alone, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has filed or settled several high-profile sexual harassment lawsuits. Beavers’ Inc., which owns several Arby’s fast-food franchises, is among the latest companies to face the courts after the EEOC filed a lawsuit against them. The federal agency charged that the company broke the law when it subjected several teenage female employees at an Arby’s in Atmore, Alabama, to sexual harassment. (more…)

Bar and Draft Line Cleaning Make a Perfect Pint

May 7, 2018
Success Story, Illinois SBDC –

Pint PerfectJosh Coclasure and Sammie Williams have been friends since childhood. They have always talked about starting a business together and finally had the chance to put their idea for bar and restaurant draft line cleaning services to the test in the Metro East Start-Up Challenge (MESC).

In 2017, Coclasure and Williams won first place in the MESC for Pint Perfect and received start-up money from local sponsors, in-kind services, mentors and more. With that support and momentum, they have been moving along in starting their venture.

The Illinois Small Business Development Center (SBDC) for the Metro East at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE) introduced the competition in 2014. The Start-Up Challenge engages multiple sponsors and business professional mentors each year for entrepreneurs to assess how their business plans stack up. (more…)

Entrepreneurs Shine During National Small Business Week

April 30, 2018
By Linda McMahon, SBA Administrator –

Linda McMahon - SBANational Small Business Week shines a spotlight on our nation’s 30 million small businesses. Through awards ceremonies, media interviews and community events, we honor entrepreneurs whose achievements stand out. As an entrepreneur myself, I know the hard work that goes into starting and building a small business – efforts that don’t often get the attention they deserve.

Honorees in this week’s spotlight do not cast a shadow that dims the efforts of others; rather they serve as a beacon – to competitors, up-and-comers and communities as a whole. They show what is possible. They are innovators and problem solvers, creating products and services that are better, smarter or more efficient than what came before. They are risk takers. And through their success, they inspire others to dream and to create small businesses of their own. (more…)