This video is Tim Norman’s testimony before the House of Representatives Small Business Committee on Wednesday, May26, 2010. Mr. Norman was invited by Congresswoman Debbie Halvorson to speak as a “small business hero” representing the 11th District in Illinois in honor of National Small Business Week. He is the CEO of STL Technology Partners in Bloomington (an EDC investor, as well as a participant in the EDC’s 2010 One Voice trip). Congratulations to Tim for this great honor!
Congresswoman Halvorson and Tim and Katie Norman were also featured on the EDC’s BNBiz Show on Tuesday, May 25 to discuss their expectations about this hearing. Click here to listen to the podcast of the interview.
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Press release from Congresswoman Halvorson’s office:
Local Small Business Owner Testifies in DC on Access to Capital, SBA Assistance
Tim Norman, Bloomington, IL: “The SBA 504 loan program, with the re-finance option, allowed us to re-capitalize our business.”
WASHINGTON, DC – Highlighting ways the Small Business Administration is able to assist small business owners looking to expand their business, Rep. Debbie Halvorson invited Tim Norman, a Bloomington small business owner to testify before the House Committee on Small Business yesterday on how the SBA helped his small business grow during the recession.
Tim Norman and his wife Katie own and operate a small business called STL Technology Partners, which specializes in computer repair and information technology services. Norman offered testimony about his work with SBA financing. Halvorson followed Norman’s testimony with a question and answer session regarding making the SBA more user-friendly to small business owners.
“Over the 19 years STL has been in business, we have seen two recessions, and undergone a number of corporate changes in order to remain aligned with our clients’ goals and needs,” said Tim Norman in his testimony. “At first, we were not pursuing the use of the loan through the SBA, but as the economy started to turn, it became more and more essential for us to secure the government financing. As we grow, we will definitely be looking at additional SBA loan programs we can leverage to create more jobs and expand our business.”
“We have seen progress in putting our economy back on track so far this year, but if we are going to keep that progress going, we need to give our small businesses the resources they need to create jobs, and that means increasing access to capital,” said Halvorson. “But we also want to make sure small business owners understand the resources that are already available to them, which is why I invited Tim and Katie to DC, to talk about their company and their interaction with the Small Business Administration during National Small Business Week. They’re truly small business heroes, and their story gives me great encouragement that we’re on a path towards economic recovery.”
During his testimony at the House Small Business Committee’s “Small Business Heroes” hearing, Norman spoke about STL’s recent period of growth. “We’ve put to work over 150 people in the last two and a half months, throughout the Midwest… So we are trying to use it [SBA financing] as an advantage to get moving and get growing because now is the time to grow.”
Norman also told a story of a friend who serves in the military and who was leaving to serve overseas. Norman said that he told his friend, “I feel we need to do something. I respect you for what you’re doing in the services you’re offering our nation.” Norman continued, “And he looked at me and he said, Tim I want to tell you something – we’ll defend this country, you create jobs. And that’s what we’re doing.”
As a member of the House Committee on Small Business, Halvorson has worked to introduce and pass legislation to increase access to capital for small businesses. Fighting to increase SBA loan sizes and extend short-term business stabilization loans, Halvorson introduced HR 3723, the Small Business Credit Expansion and Loan Markets Stabilization Act, and has worked to pass HR 4311, the Bonus Depreciation and Enhanced Expensing for Small Businesses Extension Act, which increases incentives for businesses to make new capital investments.
For more information about Congresswoman Halvorson’s efforts to empower small businesses and create jobs, visit the Congresswoman’s website by clicking here. To view small business assistance available though the Congresswoman’s office, click here.
Video of the question and answer panel including Halvorson and Norman can be found at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lIFUC-I6RTI
Photo Credit: Kristie Baxter, US House of Representatives Photographer. 
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Tomorrow Marty and I will be traveling to Wentzville, Mo. to meet with some local city government staff to discuss how we use social media to market the EDC. We’ve had our hands in the social media waters since April of last year, and since then, we’ve become quite well-known in the economic development world as an example of a “best practice.”
The EDC has:
- a main Web site (www.bnbiz.org)
- a blog (www.bnbizmore.com)
- a CEO blog (www.martyvanags.com)
- a YouTube channel (www.youtube.com/bnbizmore)
- a Facebook page (www.facebook.com/bnbiz)
- and a Twitter account (Marty’s – www.twitter.com/bnedguy)
Many organizations and businesses aren’t using this free, yet powerful, method of marketing themselves. Many have “fear of the unknown” – not understanding just what social media is or how they can use it. Others see it as just a passing fad that the younger generations use and don’t want to bother with it. To those people, I say yes, certain social media outlets may, in fact, be a passing fad. Outlets such as Facebook or Twitter may fade in popularity. But, they will give rise to the next evolution of social media networks. The general method of communication garnered by social media outlets (one-to-many or many-to-many) is here to stay.
Communication methods are ever-changing. How many businesses still use a fax machine? When we moved to our new office in 2007, we didn’t even purchase one. It’s just as easy to scan a document and email it (without the expense of an extra phone line!). How many businesses dismissed email as a passing fad or “not necessary for business”? Today, I challenge you to do business without an email address. Does your organization have a Web site? Nowadays, many people who are looking for information, service or a product do their initial search on the Web (I know I do). Those businesses who don’t have a Web site (which today, are few and far between) are missing out on potential new customers. Methods of doing business are constantly evolving, and if you don’t adapt with the changes, you will eventually fall behind.
If you’re not yet involved with social media but want to learn more, check out www.mashable.com. This Web site has TONS of information and tip sheets. If you’d like to know more about what the Economic Development Council is doing, give me a call at 309-452-8437, send me an email or look us up on Facebook! You can even leave a comment below – try it, test the waters and see how social media can help you and your business.
The Economic Development Council of the Bloomington-Normal Area is proud to be a partner in a new program offered by Heartland Community College. Entrepreneur Essentials is a vocational training program that seeks to prepare people for the reasonable expectations, issues and responsibilities related to business ownership, with the end result being a complete, ready-to-implement business plan.
Each student will attend five hours of class a week for 16 weeks, with independent projects assigned between classes. Community volunteers, such as the EDC and SCORE, will provide support to the program through experiential learning opportunities and business mentoring.
This program is unique in that it specifically targets the unemployed and underemployed populations of Heartland Community College District #540. All applicants must possess a high school diploma or GED. Base funding for the program is provided by American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds from the federal government through Mid Central Community Action. There are no out-of-pocket expenses for those who meet eligibility requirements.
An advisory board has been developed to address the specific details and curriculum for the program, comprised of representatives from Heartland Community College, the Economic Development Council, SCORE, Mid Central Community Action, Illinois State University’s Stevenson Center for Community and Economic Development and Commerce Bank.
The program is set to begin in June. For more information or to register, contact Sandy Hoffmann in HCC’s Workforce Services department at (309) 268-8048 or sandra.hoffmann@heartland.edu.
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