A Team Approach to
Entrepreneurship Development

By William Amt, EDFS Manager, NADO Research Foundation

(This article is the third and final in a series that profiles the winners of the NADO Research Foundation’s Pioneer Award for Promoting Entrepreneurship in Rural America. Northeastern Pennsylvania Alliance was the second runner-up.)

Slow job growth and lower-than-average wages have led 22 percent of the northeastern Pennsylvania workforce to be self-employed. “Since our brand of entrepreneurs may be driven more by necessity than by the profit motive attributed to other entrepreneurs, we as a region need to give it far more intrinsic support and much more respect as a force behind our regional economic health,” said Cameron Moore, President/CEO of the Northeastern Pennsylvania Alliance (NEPA) in Pittston. The Alliance’s range of traditional and innovative programs support the growth of entrepreneurship in the region.

Online Support Network

NEPA coordinated the formation of the Northeast Pennsylvania Entrepreneurial Network to improve the efficiency of service delivery to entrepreneurs. To expand its scope and resource pool, NEPA and its partner organizations joined forces with adjacent regional development organization, Northern Tier Regional Planning and Development Commission (Towanda, PA) and its partners to serve a total of 13 counties.

The Web-based program, www.PABizHelp.com links small business owners with experienced business professionals, known as navigators, who provide one-on-one consulting and link clients with a variety of service providers. Providers assist with business solutions in the areas of operations, warehousing, marketing, legal, technology and other issues. The Web site includes a Business Doctor Program which has a team of providers that address problems that endanger the viability of the business, including under-capitalization, site problems and crisis planning.

Access to Markets Programs

NEPA offers several programs that link entrepreneurs to domestic and international markets. The online Entrepreneurial Network includes a function that allows clients to market to strategic partners, customers and suppliers. It also links to PA SourceNet Online Business Directory, a business-to-business partnering search engine for seekers and suppliers of goods and services. NEPA’s Procurement Technical Assistance Center provides information about government contracting opportunities and counseling on how to apply for them. The Team Pennsylvania Export Network—Northeast Region helps potential and current exporters learn more about overseas business purchasing needs through group and individual training.

Business Development Capital

Www.PABizHelp.com also contains information on most loan programs available from nonprofit public and private sector organizations throughout the 13-county area. Some of the region’s capital sources include loan funds managed by NEPA and Northern Tier; the Pennsylvania Appalachian Capital Alliance (a community development financial institution); state, county and community loan programs; microloan funds; Small Business Administration programs; and Ben Franklin Partnership financing programs. In addition, the system includes descriptions of loan programs at several regional banks and information about private investors and angel investors.

Impact

Both on its own and with its many partners, NEPA has helped build an entrepreneurial culture in rural Pennsylvania. The Entrepreneurial Network currently has 150 business assistance providers, 25 navigators, and 125 member entrepreneurs. Since 1984, NEPA’s nine funds have made loans totaling $25 million that have leveraged $100 million in private and public funding and have created and saved over 4,000 jobs. During the past fiscal year, businesses that worked with the Procurement Technical Assistance Center successfully bid on 242 government contracts worth $46.3 million, supporting 160 jobs. The Export Network helped companies in the region secure $40.4 million in export sales over the past fiscal year, which supported 489 jobs.

For details about the Entrepreneurial Network Initiative, contact Karen Ostroskie, NEPA’s Business Development Manager, at 570/655-5581 or kareno@nepa-alliance.org.

For information about NEPA’s other programs, contact Cameron Moore at 570/655-5581 or cmoore@nepa-alliance.org, or visit www.nepa-alliance.org.

For information about programs managed by Northern Tier Planning and Development Commission, contact Kevin Abrams at 570/265-9103 or Abrams@northerntier.org, or visit www.northerntier.org.

May 2003 Index | Next Page | Previous Page