SCL Biz: Everything Business in Sonoma County

The Silicon Valley and San Francisco chapters of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA), and Golden Gate University present the 2007 North Pacific District Conference in San Francisco. John Diaz, Editorial Page Editor, San Francisco Chronicle, is the keynote speaker, and there are workshops about “Working in a Global Village and Avoiding Cultural Faux Pas” and “It’s Not Easy Being Green and The Greening of Silicon Valley” and more.

May 17 and May 18
Golden Gate University (Professional development sessions); California Historical Society (Welcome Reception/networking event)

For more information and online registration.

Incorporating a business can be a confusing, but LLC or Corporation?: how to choose the right form for your business, by Anthony Mancuso, Nolo Press, 2006, can help guide you through the choice and the procedure.

Check out the SCL Biz Guide to Starting a Business for more help.

Nominate your company for the North Bay Journal‘s list of Best Companies to Work For in the North Bay. “Winning companies will be featured in a special section devoted to the best companies to work for and will be recognized at the awards celebration in August.”

Nominate by April 30th online – for more information and nomination form.

The San Francisco Bay Area Chapter of the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO) presents the Women Entrepreneurs of the Year in their 23rd Annual Leaders & Legends Luncheon and the NAWBO-SF� University. Workshops include “Pitching Your Business to a Corporation” and “Breaking Through the Barriers of Self-Promotion.”

Friday, May 4, 2007
Palace Hotel, San Francisco

For more information and to register online.

“The U.S. Small Business Administration will mark Small Business Week 2007, with events to be held on April 23-24, 2007, at the Ronald Reagan International Trade Center in Washington, D.C. For more than 40 years, the SBA has recognized outstanding small business owners for their contributions to the nation’s economy and for their personal achievements during small business week. Since 1963, every President has declared National Small Business Week to formally recognize the important role of America’s small business community.”

For more information, including President’s Bush’s Proclamation and the list of 2007 State Small Business winners, visit the SBA Small Business Week website.

This is the title of the April 23, 2007 Business Week cover story, by Michael Orey, and it examines the difficulties many employers are finding in dealing with problem employees, including the high cost of litigation about dismissals.

Here are some ways the Library can help managers with this difficult problem:

• Read the print copy of Business Week in any Sonoma County Library.
• Read the article in our online periodical database (you’ll need your library card).
• Check out our books on hiring the best employees, and legally firing when you have to.

Sponsored by the City of Santa Rosa and the Santa Rosa Chamber of Commerce, this event is the “Entrepreneurs’ Guide to Angling for Angels and VCs.” Includes speakers [e.g., "Finding the Right Investor for Your Company: The Importance of Market Segmentation" and "Golden Rules for Maximizing Your Fundraising Efforts"], a regional experts’ panel, an investor panel, and company presentations. For more information and to register to attend or to do a company presentation.

May 12, 2007, 11:30 am to 6:30 pm
Flamingo Hotel, Santa Rosa

The San Francisco Business Times reported this story in the April 13-19 issue. You may not have $100 million to get your business online, but if you are ready to expand your existing business with a website or an online store, or you’re interested in starting a new online business, let the Library help you with our books on electronic commerce, business enterprises on computer networks, and web site design, such as:

• 101 Internet businesses you can start from home : how to choose and build your own successful e-business, by Susan Sweeney. Maximum Press, 2007
• Starting an online business: all-in-one desk reference for dummies, by Shannon Belew. Wiley Publishing, 2006
• How to use the Internet to advertise, promote and market your business or Web site– with little or no money, by Bruce C. Brown. Atlantic Publications, 2006

The Redwood Empire Chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council, in partnership with the Cities of Petaluma, Sebastopol, Windsor, and San Rafael are offering three workshops, each presented one time in each city.

Green Building 101: What is Green Building? What are the financial benefits? local and national Green Building adoptions & programs [Presented 5/7, 7/18, 9/12]

Residential Green Building: For builders and homeowners this introduces Green Points Checklist (the current standard in most North Bay municipalities) and LEED for Homes (the national program) . [Presented 5/14, 7/25, 9/19]

Commercial Green Building: For business owners, school administrators,
facilities managers, developers, and others to understand the overwhelming financial benefits of LEED Green Buildings and simple money-saving strategies that have huge environmental benefits and make our workplaces healthier and more productive. [Presented 5/21, 8/1, 9/26]

For a detailed schedule of locations and times and more information: Redwood Empire Chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council

The North Bay Business Journal is hosting “Building the North Bay” with a ‘dynamic panel of industry experts providing an insider’s view of projects and pressing issues for 2007 and 2008.’ Keith Woods, CEO of the North Coast Builders Exchange, will moderate.

MAY 2, 2007
8:00 A.M. TO 11:30 A.M.
HYATT VINEYARD CREEK HOTEL SPA, SANTA ROSA

For more information and to register online.

Franchises are one of the most popular ways to go into business, but they are rife with risk and scams. Books such as The Franchise Fraud: How to Protect Yourself Before and After You Invest, by Robert L. Purvin, Jr., John Wiley & Sons, 2007, will help you to make the right decision before investing.

The Library has many books about franchises, including directories and how to choose a franchise and make it a financial success. Check out the SCL Biz Guide to Starting a Business for more resources on all aspects of launching your own business venture.

Bo Simons, the Sonoma County Wine Librarian, sent SCL Biz this:
This morning, in The Press Democrat, Columnist Chris Smith talked about a rather nasty article in the Conde Nast Traveler about celebrities and wine, by Alan Richman, who takes swipes at Santa Rosa and the Smothers Brothers, among others. That article that Chris was so vexed about is now indexed in Winefiles.org, and you can read “Drunk With Power“, as well dozens of other, less caustic articles about celebrities and wine, and thousands of articles about the more serious business and technology and history of wine, both here on the North Coast, and throughout the world.

The Sonoma County Wine Library is a special service and collection of the Sonoma County Library, the collection comprising 5,000 books on wine and related subjects, subscriptions and backfiles to over 80 wine-related periodicals. For a list of the Wine Library periodicals and all of our business-related magazines & newspapers, visit the SCL Biz Guide to Newspapers & Periodicals.

“The Redwood Empire Small Business Development Center is hosted by the Santa Rosa Junior College and funded by the U.S. Small Business Administration, Humboldt State University, and the Chancellor’s Office of the California Community Colleges, to provide quality management and technical assistance for existing and potential small businesses. This includes one-on-one professional business counseling, workshops and seminars, and special programs designed for business owners in Marin, Sonoma, and Mendocino counties.”

Ongoing workshops:

Pre-Venture Training:

• Module 1 includes “Planning and What to Consider When Starting a Business” and “Marketing Your Business” [Next dates: 4/23, 5/07, 5/21]li>
• Module 2 includes “Financing Your Business” and “Legal Aspects of Starting a Business” [Next dates: 4/30/4/14]li>

Workshops are free, but you must reserve your space. Go to RESBDC Workshops for a schedule, more information, and online registration.

WorkingSOLO.com is a great resource for those who are self-employed, freelance, independent professionals, or working from home rather than in a traditional office setting. SOHO refers to Small Office & Home Office settings with twenty or fewer employees. The site is loaded with good articles: “Solo Metrics: 7 Ways to Benchmark Your Business”, “Networking for the Terminally Shy” and advice “How can I tell if I’ve got what it takes to be a solo entrepreneur?”, “What are the biggest mistakes new business owners make?”

“Working Solo, Inc. (WSI) was founded by Terri Lonier in 1991 as an outgrowth of her experience as an independent professional since 1978.”

The Sonoma State University School of Business was one of only nine schools internationally to earn “initial accreditation in business from AACSB International—The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business. Founded in 1916, AACSB is the longest serving and largest global accrediting body for business schools that offer undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral degrees in business and accounting. Earning accreditation is a three to seven-year process where a business school undergoes meticulous internal review, evaluation, and adjustment. During this period, schools develop and implement a plan to help it meet the 21 AACSB standards that require highly qualified faculty, as well as a commitment to continuous improvement and keeping curricula responsive to the needs of business.”

They are joining the ranks of acclaimed business schools such as the University of California, Berkeley, Harvard, Stanford, Boston College, and Rutgers. Congratulations to the Faculty and Students of SSU/SBE.