Paula: What does the Regional Director role mean to you as a woman, as a minority and an advocate for your community?

Linda : To begin I’d like to say I am extremely honored to be a regional director and my role is quite meaningful given that until the last few months I was the only female and the only Hispanic Regional Director throughout the country. I continue to be the only Hispanic. I’ve served the minority community in several ways throughout my career. This position has allowed me to bring greater resource and assistance to the minority business community.

Paula: The Minority Business Development Agency has a goal: "Enhance the growth and expansion of minority business enterprises". What resources do you have in place to support minority business?

Linda: The MBDA which is part of the Unites States Department of Commerce is the only federal agency solely dedicated to the growth of minority businesses, we provide support through various avenues but primarily the agency funds a network of 46 centers throughout the country that provide support to mid and large firms.

Those centers provide access to market, capital as well as the strategic business planning. We support the western region  which comprises 8 states including Alaska and Hawaii . We also serve as a conduit between the public and the private sectors. For startups we offer referrals in their geographical location. We maintain a cadre of business tools or startups that can be accessed through our portal.

There is a finance section that provides guidelines on how to qualify for loans and identify the types of loan programs available to them including those provided by the SBA and the USBA. There also is a business development section that provides guidelines on how to prepare a business plan and how to develop a marketing plan. Another tool is the Phoenix Database which will match a registered company to procurement opportunities in both the public and private sectors, available locally, regionally, nationally and soon globally.

Paula: How does an entrepreneur work with your agency to launch/grow his/her business?

Linda: If they go to our website www.mbda.gov they can identify a center closest to them. If they wish to become a client, they’ll sign a Client Services Agreement which outlines their needs; a fee based on sliding scale applies depending on revenues. The average cost for consulting services is about $100 per hour. However, firms that gross under $100,000 can pay a little as $10. In cases like this, the Federal Government picks up the rest of the cost.

Paula: I've met many Hispanic women who tell me they are unsure how to go about tapping into resources to start a small business. What advice would you give them?

Linda: Any person wanting to start a business needs to know as much as possible about their streigths and weaknesses. They also need to know about their industry and about their competition. And they should seek resources in the areas that need to be strengthened. A must is the development of a business plan which should be a living document. It’s also important to have proper support like an accountant, a lawyer most start-ups don’t have the strength on the onset and that becomes a hindrance in terms of growth. There are numerous organizations that can provide them guidance and can be readily identified. Some are sponsored by city, state and federal entities and others by ethnic chambers of commerce and trade associations.

A quick source is our own agencies website; we have our own resource locator which can help an MBEs find help in their geographical area. Based on their emphasis, there are also opportunities for mentorship in addition they should become members of business and trade organizations because networking is extremely useful. Also, developing strong relationships with their bankers is also a wise move.