UTPB partners to help businesses

Apr. 15—UT Permian Basin was selected to partner with The University of Texas at Austin for a new training and support program for Texas entrepreneurs.

UT Austin's IC² Institute has created Small-biz.XLR8, a 10-week course designed to meet the needs of small-business owners in Midland, Odessa, and surrounding Permian Basin communities.

The program will be offered at no cost to business owners, thanks to a generous gift from the Truist Charitable Fund.

Lead instructor, Gregory Pogue, noted that Small-biz.XLR8 will "teach essential business growth principles while helping participants form mentor relationships among peers and regional business experts and linking participants to regional funding groups." He sees this experience as particularly critical for businesses as they emerge from unprecedented pandemic-induced economic downturn. Recent studies point to the profound impact of the pandemic on small business, with 60 percent still reporting reduced revenue receipts. 60 percent have also not restored hiring to pre-pandemic levels. Further, a greater proportion of minority owned businesses report they are likely to shutter compared with white small business owners.

Taylor Novak, Blackstone Launchpad campus director, said applications are due on April 29.

"Then we'll have about two weeks to actually select the company, so they'll be notified actually during Small Business Week, which is May 2 through 8, and then coursework will actually start on May 18," Novak said.

Beginning May 18, those who sign up for the program will meet weekly online, will have access to online videos and exercises, and will submit work for review by instructors. They will also be matched with mentors in the region thanks to a partnership with the University of Texas Permian Basin Small Business Development Center, which is helping to identify appropriate local businesses, and UTPB Blackstone Launchpad to engage regional mentor participation.

To get the most out of the program, each participating business should plan to enroll two people.

Each of the 10 weekly sessions will focus on an essential business growth principle, and an optional, but recommended, 11th session in August will give the entrepreneurs a chance to practice pitching presentations.

Novak said the initiative is a business accelerator.

"It can be a new company. If someone hasn't gotten off the ground yet, this would be a great way for them to start that process, but it's also for companies that have been working at their idea. They have a customer base or they have a storefront, they can join as well so we're not excluding (anybody). ... We know that companies can plateau off after the first two years, so we want to ensure that those companies are thriving after that two years, or if they're needing some help we can provide that for them, expand their customer base, do some market research, things like that," Novak said.

Program participants can expect to gain:

* A deeper understanding of their business' current value and positioning in the marketplace.

* A methodology to design and execute market-fitted growth strategies.

* A network of peer business owners, local mentors, and regional experts.

* A framework for a plan and budgetary strategy to present to potential funders.

The Small-biz.XLR8 curricula and mentoring system are based on previously-developed workshops delivered in Austin for local businesses. Those participants described the experience as "empowering" and "invaluable."

Following the program, two workshop cohorts, composed of 60 percent women-owned and 45 percent minority owned businesses, reported:

* An addition on average of 2.5 new jobs per participating company.

* Introduction of new products by more than 70 percent of participating companies.

* Expansion of customer base by more than 90 percent of participating companies.

* Growth in annualized revenue by participating companies by more than 40 percent on average.

For more information, call 432-552-2541.