2018 Certificate in Small Business Management for the Skilled Trades

A specially designed workshop series for contractors, plumbers, electricians, landscapers or any other skilled tradesperson. If business ownership / management is in your future or you want to improve your existing operation then register today for this seven session certificate program to prepare you to take the next step in your career.  Sponsored by SCORE Cape Cod and The Cooperative Bank of Cape Cod you will come away with a well-grounded foundation in the management of your business.  Sessions will be conducted at Cape Cod Beer in Hyannis from 5:30-7:30pm, with a light dinner and beverage provided.  You will learn:

Session 1 (November 5) - Positioning Your Business To Ensure You Stand Out. Where does your business fit amongst competitors in your field.  You will take away an understanding of how to define and communicate your position in the marketplace. 

Session 2 (November 19) - Finding and Reaching New Customers.  We'll dig into various ways that you can identify and target new customers and importantly, discuss the role of effective networking to expand your customer base.  

Session 3 (November 26) - Effective Selling and Customer Retention. After this session, you will be able to communicate who you are, what you do and what is your offering via a well constructed elevator pitch.  You will learn closing techniques that really work. Successful businesses have a strong core of returning customers, typically generated with effective customer service.  Learn how to provide excellent customer service that will generate results. 

Session 4 (December 10) - Determining the Right Business Structure, Managing Risk and Hiring the Best Employees. Discover what is the best legal structure for your business and understand the various tax and risk implications of each structure.  We will also focus on what other kinds of risk management tools are available to you via insurance.  A discussion on how to recruit, hire and retain employees will be included, recognizing the difficulty of finding well trained, effective employees. 

Session 5 (December 17) - Managing Your Finances. With any business it's critical that owners understand and know how to use the basic financial reports, primarily a cash flow analysis. At the end of this session, you will know what financial tools you need to manage your enterprise including cash management, accounts receivables, as well as how to secure capital for launch or acquisition.

Session 6 (January 7) - Estimating and Pricing Your Jobs. Every small business in the construction and landscaping trades bids jobs. How well you do that can make or break your business. This session will focus on techniques for effective estimating, job costing, and budgeting.

Session 7 (January 14) - Applying These Tools. The real benefit comes with knowing how to effectively apply all that was learned. This session will afford a final opportunity to clarify any questions about the material and will feature feature actual business challenges that utilize these tools so participants see the value in action. 

This program has been developed by SCORE Cape Cod & the Islands in tandem with the Cooperative Bank of Cape Cod.  We thank the following organizations for contributing input to this program: Home Builders & Remodelers Association of Cape Cod, the Cape Cod Plumbers and Gasfitters Association, the Cape Cod Landscape Association, Cape Cod Chamber of Commerce and the Center for Corporate and Professional Education.  We also thank for Cape Cod Beer for generously providing classroom space for the workshop.