Business Breakthrough Workshop Helps Local Entrepreneurs Share Knowledge & Network
GSA’s Office of Small Business Utilization recently completed its Business Breakthrough workshop series with a stop in Washington, breaking the attendance record with 85 small and middle-market business owners navigate the federal contracting landscape. The sold-out session generated a waiting list of 37 hopeful guests.
“We [come] here to help you seek opportunities for growth in your businesses.”
GSA NCR’s Regional Administrator Julia Hudson
GSA NCR’s Regional Administrator Julia Hudson opened the Business Breakthrough Workshop, addressing the importance of better understanding the federal process in order to increase contracting opportunities for businesses and create jobs.
“We didn't just come here to "break up" our unique and innovative programs for insuring a successful business; we came here to strengthen it,” Hudson said. “We didn't just come here to "breakdown" and distribute valuable information on the intricacies of the Federal marketplace; we came here to help you seek opportunities for growth in your businesses.”
U.S. Rep. Yvette Clarke, NCR Regional Administrator Julia Hudson, FAS Regional Commissioner Al Finley, and Deputy Assistant Regional Commissioner Thomas James presented a united front as they challenged guests to network and utilize the resources available to them during the three-day workshop. U.S. Rep. Clarke, who received several birthday well wishes from the audience, encouraged everyone to maintain relationships, so people can be acquainted with the services and products they produce.“You may be small today, but you can be corporate moguls tomorrow,” U.S. Rep. Clark said.
Other speakers suggested that small businesses identify the needs of federal agencies and see how they can fill them. Regional Commissioner Finley encouraged small businesses to uncover verifiable solutions and share them with their business colleagues, asking, “How do we respond to an agency that wants to reduce space, consolidate, and improve their technological innovations?”
