Southeastern CT Score® Seminars

SCORE Small Business Workshops

The Southeastern CT SCORE® Chapter offers business workshops and seminars for both start-up and in-business entrepreneurs. Workshops also offer a chance to network with other small business owners.

All workshops are approximately 45-60 minutes with open discussion of the topics. Attendees will have the opportunity to ask questions and discuss specific examples. SCORE counselors are available for individual counseling on any of these business topics. Each presentation will include a section on how to talk to your banker.

Please reference our calendar for dates, locations, and times of our upcoming workshops and seminars. Below are detailed descriptions of the information to be covered at each event.

Click here to signup for our upcoming seminars online!

Managing Your Business — Introduction to accounting tools that can help you manage your business more effectively. Topics covered include are you suited to be an entrepreneur, create a Sales Forecast Model, how to do a Break Even Calculation, Elements of a Cash Flow Plan, Importance of Actual performance To Plan. Success will require financial controls that assure you are able to measure your businesses progress to your plan. Author and presenter is Dennis Peoples.

Managing your Business Finance — Discussion of the key elements of a business plan, preparation of a financial plan, P&L, Balance Sheet, cash management, how these financial statements interact, and the value to your banker,. Discussion can lead to additional topics such as resource or capacity planning. Authors and presenters are Larry Flick and Nazz Paciotti.

Marketing Your Business — Detailed explanation of what is in a marketing plan and how to prepare one, differentiate your business from competitors, understand who the end user is, define the served markets, tools to reach target customers, importance of pricing, measure customer satisfaction, obtain referrals, and strategic partnering. Author and presenter is Eric Steinmetz.

Internet Marketing — Every business should consider an internet strategy. The internet plan could be as simple as listing in an internet directory for local customers (branding) to driving sales to your web site. What are the major components of a web site (email, newsletter, blogs, web site, search engines). This is an opportunity to ask questions of a person that has tried them all. Author and presenter is Tom Burland.

Solopreneur — This workshop will help the small business person gain an understanding of what characteristics are needed to survive as a solo business owner. Topics covered include survivors guide, what’s in it for me, due diligence, risk taking, are you ready to quit your day job (financially and emotionally), biggest mistakes, how to pay for jelly beans, and critical success factors. Author and presenter is Jim Lamb.

Preparing a Business Plan — Define a Business Plan process that works for you, Pick the right level – Set Your Priorities, Research Resources, What are the components of a Plan? What are lenders looking for in a Plan, How to Avoid some of the pitfalls, examples of business plans. Author and Presenter Joe Beerbower.

How to Build Customer Loyalty — Beyond customer satisfaction is Loyalty. Workshop illustrates a process to build loyalty, develop a unique service proposition, keep in touch and discussion of what can work for the small business person. Author and presenter is Tom Burland.

Risk Management — Are you prepared for unexpected contingencies? The presentation will help you consider your "what ifs," both favorable and unfavorable. It will describe how to set up a plan to describe your assets, tangible (buildings) and intangible (brand name), think more intelligently about your "unexpected," measure risks, and then respond to them. Author and presenter is Felix Kloman.

Buying and Selling a Business — "If it isn't a good deal for both, it's not a good deal." We look at the very different roles of the Buyer and the Seller in the transaction and what their 'disparate', vested interests are, discuss some of the major benchmarks, review the critical information from the Financial Statements, and briefly touch on the very difficult area of business valuations. Given a little extra time, we also try to do some "role playing" between theoretical buyers and sellers. Created and presented by Ed Gottschall.

Starting your business in Connecticut — This workshop is intended for those at the starting point of going into business for themselves. If you are just thinking about it or ready to open and want to make sure everything is in place, this course will help Topics include the forms of business organization, reporting requirements, licensing and permitting, taxes, regulations, employer duties, professional services, insurance, business plan and accounting basics, record keeping, and financing the business start-up. Advance registration required and a nominal charge to cover the cost of reference booklet provided. Author and presenter Peter Pappas.

Welcome to Small Business Accounting — This two session workshop is an introduction to accounting done right, followed by a demonstration QuickBooks. So much more than bookkeeping, QuickBooks can help manage customers, vendors, assets and the reports from QuickBooks can help the business owner develop strategies and policies. Accounting will save more time than it takes! Author and Presenter—Peter Pappas.