Calling Women Veterans

Presented by Business & Professional Women of  Pennsylvania and Seton Hill University's E-Magnify. 

November 9, 2012 (8:00 a.m. - 3:30 p.m)
Hilton Garden Inn Pittsburgh/Southpointe

Below is an overview of the sessions and presenters for this special event. Learn more about the presenters here and see the full agenda here.

Registration is now open.

• Morning Speaker: Mary Moorhouse, Director, Special Projects, BPW Foundation
• Morning Breakout Sessions
• "Presenting Your Best Foot Forward" (presented by Renee Starek, Director, CareerWorks, Seton Hill University; and Gina Jones, Instructor, Coordinator, Career Services and Internship Center, Penn State University, Fayette) 
• "Arming Up for Entrepreneurship" (presented by Debra L. Mason, Education and Training Manager, Seton Hill University E-Magnify)
• Luncheon and Keynote Speaker: Ana Recio Harvey, Assistant Administrator, U.S. Small Business Administration's Office of Women's Business Ownership
• Panel Session: "Clear and Present Strategies" (A panel of women veteran business owners will speak about their experience in business. Panelists include Katherine Daskivich, Lisa Beard, and LCDR Regina Koetters, USNR.)

Women veterans are natural entrepreneurs who possess the training, experience, and leadership skills to start businesses that will create U.S. jobs. Attend "Women Veterans Marching Forward: Call to Entrepreneurship" to explore entrepreneurship as a next step, to secure available business resources and tools, and to meet other women veterans who are business owners.

Registration fee: $50.00
Student registration: $35.00 (valid ID required)

Register online.

This event is sponsored in part by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), Huntington, Prudential, First Commonwealth, and Pittsburgh Business Times.

Heinz Negotiation Academy for Women

The Heinz Negotiation Academy for Women will accept 30 women this fall. This program, presented by Carnegie Mellon University Heinz College, is tailored for the working woman who wants to expand her reach. The academy covers the following topics: 

• Excelling at negotiating smarter for you and your organization;
• Mastering a new paradigm for solving problems;
• Closing the gender gap;
• Asking for what you need to succeed;
• Negotiating to enhance relationship;
• Leveraging your talents and claiming your value; and
• Expanding your influence: Making a difference

The program begins in January 2013. Apply now and pay in full by November 1 to receive a $750 discount on the program cost. Learn more and apply online here.

Procurement Opportunities Fair (Oct. 24)

Visit the E-Magnify exhibit table at the 25th Annual Procurement Opportunities Fair on Oct. 24 in Washington, PA.

California University of Pennsylvania and Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania are sponsoring GACO’s 25th Annual Procurement Opportunities Fair to assist businesses interested in pursuing government contracts and subcontracts. The fair provides an excellent chance for businesses to meet with government agencies and prime contractors seeking to identify potential vendors and suppliers. A number of government agencies, major corporations and local purchasing representatives will participate in the fair, offering a tremendous marketing opportunity for businesses.

Date: Wednesday, October 24, 2012
Time: 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Location: DoubleTree by Hilton 340 Racetrack Road Washington, PA 15301

More information is available here.

Business Growth Expo in Pittsburgh (Oct. 22)

The 2012 Business Growth Expo, presented by the Pittsburgh Business Times, in collaboration with the Pittsburgh Impact Initiative, will focus on "The New Local," how small and mid-size companies form -- and maintain -- long-term, profitable relationships with large regional companies.

Date: October 22, 2012
Time: 8:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.
Location: DoubleTree Pittsburgh, 1 Bigelow Square, Pittsburgh, PA

Agenda

• 8:00 a.m. Registration, tradeshow, and networking
• 9:00 a.m. - 9:45 a.m. Ray Newhouse, CFO: How LANXESS is leveraging local relationships to support global
• 9:45 a.m. - 10:30 a.m. McGinnis Sisters local marketing approach and social networking strategies
• 10:30 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. Break, tradeshow, and networking
• 11:00 a.m. - 11:45 a.m. Jack Martis, APICS, panel discussion: Supply chain solutions for small businesses
• 11:45 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. Tradeshow and networking
• 2:30 p.m. - 2:00 p.m. VIP Lunch with luncheon keynote Rich Fitzgerald, Allegheny County Executive

Who should attend? Business Owners, Managers, Directors, Sales & Marketing Professionals, Meeting Planners, and HR Professionals

Why attend? Discover new ideas. Find growth insights and strategies. Network with decision makers. Find business-building products and services. Get motivated.

Learn more and register online here.
 
For more information, please contact Kelli Komondor at 412-208-3845. 

SBA Web Chats for Women Entrepreneurs

The SBA is hosting a month-long series of web chats for women entrepreneurs in honor of National Women's Small Business Month. The next web chat will take place  tomorrow (Tuesday, Oct. 16), at 3:00 p.m. (ET).

The topic of tomorrow's chat is “Contracting with the Federal Government” with John Shoraka, Associate Administrator, Office of Government Contracting and Business Development. Learn more and register here.

The final web chat in the series will take place on Oct. 25 at 2 p.m. (ET). “Business Opportunities for Young Women” will be led by Ana Harvey, Assistant Administrator for the Office of Women’s Business Ownership. Information about the Oct. 25 web chat is available here.

To see archived web chats, visit http://www.sba.gov/content/monthly-web-chat.

SBA Administrator Tours Local Woman-Owned Business

Wendy Staso (left), President and CEO of Huckestein Mechanical Services, Inc., explains the workings of her company's North Side pipe fabrication facility to SBA Administrator Karen Mills. Mills was in Pittsburgh to celebrate National Women-Owned Small Business Month.

SBA Administrator Karen Mills Tours Huckestein Mechanical Services, Inc.

In honor of National Women-Owned Small Business Month, Karen Mills, administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), toured Huckestein Mechanical Services, Inc., a woman-owned small business headquartered in Duquesne, PA, on Thursday, October 11. Mills travels weekly to visit small businesses around the country and chose Huckestein based on its thriving business model and use of SBA-sponsored programs and loans.

Huckestein Mechanical Services is owned by Wendy Staso, who purchased the company more than two years ago, restructuring and redefining the business to place the 60-year-old company on solid financial ground. Staso receives business counseling services from  Seton Hill University’s E-Magnify, an SBA resource partner and women’s business center.  In addition, she is a member of the Greensburg Chapter of the Women President's Organization hosted by E-Magnify.

Huckestein is a certified woman-owned mechanical contractor serving the tri-state region’s HVAC mechanical contracting needs for the commercial, industrial, institutional, and high-end residential markets. The new business model focuses on HVAC service, design-build projects, energy management strategies, and specialized services and diagnostics. As part of this restructuring, Huckestein Mechanical Services recently utilized an SBA-backed 7(a) loan from Enterprise Bank for debt restructuring and permanent working capital, and an SBA CAPLines loan, which is a revolving line of credit that provides short-term working capital.

“Operating capital is everything to a small business,” remarked Staso. "The SBA-backed loans opened up opportunities and enabled our doors to stay open.”

Administrator Mills (in the blue gloves) is shown the ropes at Huckestein as President and CEO Wendy Staso looks on.

In Fiscal Year 2012, SBA approved 444 loans in Western Pennsylvania, supporting more than $122 million to Western Pennsylvania’s small businesses. Since President Obama took office, SBA has supported more than $12.4 billion in lending through more than 35,500 SBA loans to women-owned businesses.

Encore Entrepreneur Toolkit

If you're nearing retirement or just thinking ahead to what you'll do when that time rolls around, check out the Encore Entrepreneurs Toolkit from the U.S. Small Business Administration. This online toolkit includes a small business self-assessment, a free "starting a small business" e-course, information about business plans, and access to local resources.

E-Magnify offers no-cost, one-on-one business counseling for people (of all ages) who are thinking about starting a business, as well as for business owners who want to grow an existing business. Learn more about E-Magnify's business counseling services.

Women Veterans: Call to Entrepreneurship

Business & Professional Women of  Pennsylvania and Seton Hill University's E-Magnify invite women veterans to this special program on Friday, November 9, 2012. 

Women veterans are natural entrepreneurs who possess the training, experience, and leadership skills to start businesses that will create U.S. jobs. Attend "Women Veterans Marching Forward: Call to Entrepreneurship" to explore entrepreneurship as a next step, to secure available business resources and tools, and to meet other women veterans who are business owners.

Keynote Speaker: Ana Recio Harvey, Assistant Administrator, U.S. Small Business Administration's Office of Women's Business Ownership

Morning Speaker: Mary Moorhouse, Director, Special Projects, BPW Foundation 

Date: Nov. 9, 2012
Time: 8:00 a.m. - 3:30 p.m.
Location: Hilton Garden Inn Pittsburgh/Southpointe, 1000 Corporate Drive, Canonsburg, PA 15317

Registration fee: $50.00
Student registration: $35.00 (valid ID required)

Register online here.

This event is sponsored in part by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), Huntington, and Prudential.