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LADOTD: Government Contracting 101 + DBE Certification

For small, women, minority, and disadvantaged businesses seeking government contracts and understanding the basics of how local, state and federal agencies procure products and services are critical. Understanding the bidding, award, performance, and contract management processes that support government procurement activities can be a game-changer and time-saver for your business. During this session, small business owners will obtain key information on the procurement processes of local, state, and federal government agencies and insights on how to best position the business for successful bids and subsequent awards. All current and aspiring DBE contractors are welcomed to attend. There is no cost to participate, however, registration is required. Register today to reserve your seat! There is no cost to attend this informational webinar; however, you must be registered on GoToWebinar to participate. Please secure your spot today by visiting https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/7797723687260311565. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.

Marketing Your Business in the New Normal

Even with the world slowly opening back up, many small businesses are still struggling to successfully rebuild. This panel discussion, led by Courvoisier Curators and moderated by ULLA's CEI VP Klassi Duncan and National Urban League, will provide marketing strategies and social media guidance to help Black small business owners and entrepreneurs re-engage with their community and their customers post-COVID-19. As part of the session, Courvoisier will host a live pitch competition for pre-selected small business finalists. Attendees will be able to watch the pitch competition live and learn the ins-and-outs of successfully presenting a business plan to an esteemed judging panel made up of industry leaders. You must be 21 years or older to attend this session.

COVID-19 Perspectives: Session 1 – Respond, Rethink, Reimagine

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted small businesses. Many businesses have had to close or limit operations, lost revenue, and terminate or furlough employees. While these are challenging times, small businesses have an opportunity to deliberately pivot their business to meet the needs of a changing world. What You Will Learn: • How to assess the impact of COVID-19 and other disasters on your businesses • Gain insights on new market opportunities that exist for your business • How to assess the feasibility, profitability, and scalability of new business opportunities During this session, participants will explore and evaluate what they have learned during the Covid-19 pandemic and other disasters. Participants will then identify and assess the new opportunities that exist for their business within their market and industry. Participants will also identify at least three opportunities to pivot towards that create a more profitable, scalable, and resilient business. The facilitator for this series will be Malaika Moran, Owner and Lead Strategist of SocialStep Marketing and Consulting. There is no cost to attend this informational webinar; however, you must be registered on GoToWebinar to participate. Please secure your spot today by visiting https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/6525343543303863312 . After registering, you will […]

COVID-19 Perspectives: Session 2 – Reposition, Restructure, Recalibrate

Pivoting one's business to meet the changing needs of the market can require an operational overhaul. During this session, participants will learn: 1) how to reorganize one’s business support model, including employees, suppliers, consultants, mentors, accountability partners, and others, with risk management in mind, and 2) how to assess and pivot the business’ structure, operations, staff, and 3) the tools being used to create efficiency, increase productivity and meet the needs of its customers. The session will include how entrepreneurs can recharge their mindsets and become energized about their pivot towards resilience. What You Will Learn • How to evaluate the needs, opportunities, and gaps within the new business model • How to map the new business support model, training, and counseling needs • How to determine the tools and operational supports needed to ensure success There is no cost to attend this session, however, registration is required. Reserve your spot today! https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/4752129255352283408

COVID-19 Perspectives: Session 3 – Reorganize, Retool, Recharge

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted small businesses. Many businesses have had to close or limit operations, lost revenue, and terminate or furlough employees. While these are challenging times, small businesses have an opportunity to deliberately pivot their business to meet the needs of a changing world. What You Will Learn: • How to evaluate the needs, opportunities, and gaps within the new business model • How to map the new business support model, training, and counseling needs • How to determine the tools and operational supports needed to ensure success Pivoting ones business to meet the changing needs of the market can require an operational overhaul. During this session, participants will learn: 1) how to reorganize one’s business support model, including employees, suppliers, consultants, mentors, accountability partners, and others, with risk management in mind, and 2) how to assess and pivot the business’ structure, operations, staff, and 3) the tools being used to create efficiency, increase productivity and meet the needs of its customers. The session will include how entrepreneurs can recharge their mindsets and become energized about their pivot towards resilience. The facilitator for this series will be Malaika Moran, Owner and Lead Strategist of […]

LADOTD: Leveraging Small Business Certifications for Contractors

There are a number of business certifications that can assist small businesses with gaining access to public and private contracting opportunities. Understanding which certifications are right for your construction firm is essential to leveraging these resources to support your business growth and capacity-building. During this session, contractors will learn about the various business certifications that are available and gain valuable insights on how they can be best leveraged. Certifications covered include: SEBD, WBE, MBE, DBE, LAUCP, SLDBE, WSOB, EDWSOB, VSOB, SDVSOB, SBA 8(a) Program, HubZone, Hudson Initiative. All current and aspiring DBE contractors are welcomed to attend. There is no cost to participate, however, registration is required. Register today to reserve your seat! There is no cost to attend this informational webinar; however, you must be registered on GoToWebinar to participate. Please secure your spot today by visiting https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/5386018599012812045. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.

2021 Veterans Small Business Resources Summit

The Urban League of Louisiana is pleased to host its 2021 Veterans Small Business Resources Summit in celebration of veterans entrepreneurship and as an extension of National Veterans Small Business Week (November 1-5). This year’s event will take place on Friday, November 4, 10:00am-12:00pm, and will be hosted online. During this event, we will shine a light on veteran entrepreneurship across the state of Louisiana by sharing the many resources that are available to veterans and their spouses to start and grow their businesses. This year’s event is sponsored by AARP Louisiana and hosted in association with the Small Business Administration, Louisiana District Office, the Veterans Business Outreach Center – Mississippi State University, and Louisiana Economic Development. Veterans and the general public are welcome to attend: https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/6527495288328296716

LADOTD: Access Capital for Transportation and Dev. Projects + DBE Cert.

During this workshop, existing and aspiring DBE firms will learn the principles of estimating for developing winning bids, best practices in financial statements analysis, and important steps on how to best prepare to access capital. This session will also include an overview of the LAUCP DBE Certification including eligibility requirements and the application process. All current and aspiring DBE contractors are welcomed to attend. There is no cost to participate, however, registration is required. Register today to reserve your seat! There is no cost to attend this informational webinar; however, you must be registered on GoToWebinar to participate. Please secure your spot today by visiting https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/6068667985303647501. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.

LADOTD: Contracting Requirements for LADOTD Projects + DBE Certification

Contractors doing business with the LADOTD must ensure compliance to the awarded construction contract. In addition, is also important to be aware of and understand the Construction Contract Administration Manual (CCA). The CCA Manual provides guidelines, regulations, references to standard specifications, Department Policies and Procedures, and other supporting documents that contractors should know in the bid and performance stages of the contracting process. During this session, participants will learn about the most common components of a construction contract, highlights of the CCA Manual, and a review of the following documents: CS-6AAA commitment documentation, DBE/SBE supplier’s agreement, DBE/SBE trucker’s agreement, OMF-1a & OMF-2a forms, and the CP-1A. This session will also include an overview of the LAUCP DBE Certification including eligibility requirements and the application process. All current and aspiring DBE contractors are welcomed to attend. There is no cost to participate, however, registration is required. Register today to reserve your seat! There is no cost to attend this informational webinar; however, you must be registered on GoToWebinar to participate. Please secure your spot today by visiting https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/6714183565389560589 . After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.

Chase Advancing Black Entrepreneurs – Marketing in a Digital World

Advancing Black Entrepreneurs by Chase for Business provides a collection of practical resources to help Black business owners grow and scale their businesses. In partnership with Black Enterprise, the National Urban League, the U.S. Black Chambers, the National Minority Supplier Development Council, and the Boss Network, Advancing Black Entrepreneurs is launching a new education session — Marketing in a Digital World — to bring you insights into how you can help increase your brand awareness and build your online community. In this 90-minute guided digital session, hosted by the Urban League of Louisiana, you’ll learn how to: • Position your business so it stands out in a saturated marketplace • Integrate effective strategies for targeting your core audience • Maximize your digital reach across your website, mobile apps, social media, and more • Plan, measure, and optimize the impact of your digital marketing Facilitator: Krystal Allen, Founder & CEO of K. Allen Consulting™ There is no cost to attend this session. Register today! For Informational/Educational Purposes Only: These views may differ from other employees and departments of JPMorgan Chase & Co. Views and strategies described may not be appropriate for everyone, and are not intended as specific advice/recommendation for any […]

Building a Scalable, Agile, and Resilient Small Business

COVID-19 has had a profound impact on small, minority-owned firms in our most vulnerable communities. While businesses seek to obtain critical resources such as emergency funding to survive during these crises, the need for minority-owned businesses to reconsider “what” business they should be doing and “how” they should be doing business is of the utmost importance. Now, more than ever, small businesses have an opportunity to re-imagine, re-position, and re-charge their business models and operations towards becoming more scalable, agile, and resilient. During this session, entrepreneurs will gain insights on how to develop a strategy and plan of action to build operational leverage, flexibility, and sustainability. Participants will learn: - What scalability means related to growth and operational capacity - Best practices for evaluating new business models and revenue streams that are responsive to changing market needs - Considerations for new and improved processes and technology - Insights on how to reorganize one’s business support model, including employees, suppliers, consultants, mentors, accountability partners, etc. - How to best integrate risk management and continuous improvement strategies to increase organizational resilience The session is funded by Louisiana Economic Development (LED) and the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA). Facilitator: Desiree Young, Founder, VentureWalk […]

2021-22 Women in Business Challenge

The Urban League of Louisiana is proud to host its 2021-22 Women in Business Challenge: Scale Up! on Monday, March 21, 2:00 pm - 4:30 pm CST, sponsored by Fidelity Bank, Chevron, and AARP Louisiana. This year's event is being held virtually during New Orleans Entrepreneur Week (NOEW), March 21-25, 2022. NOEW the premier event celebrating the spirit of entrepreneurship and innovation in all its forms across the great city of New Orleans. This annual pitch event is designed to prepare women-owned businesses with the education, tools, and resources needed to scale their businesses towards profitability and sustainability. The event will showcase the business potential of several of ULLA’s women-owned business clients to bankers, equity investors, and other potential resources. This year’s event will feature four finalists who will pitch their plans to grow and scale their businesses for a chance to win $10,000 in funding. Congratulations to the finalists! Sierra Dee, SugarLove Bakery Twila McGee, NOLAs Finest Pets Sherilyn Hayward, Leroy’s Lipsmack’n Lemonade AnaMaria Bech, Viva NOLA Magazine Register today to join us for this special event!