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Developing Your Three-Year Vision: The Sky's the Limit

As a business owner you fight small fires every day. But outside of your day-to-day efforts, do you have a vision of your future? This four-hour, hands-on workshop will guide you through a four-step evaluation and action process to grow your business—and your profits—now and into the future.

How Will You Benefit:

Learn critical evaluation tools to grow your business
Create a plan to achieve your business vision

Presented by John Green, Johnson & Wales University

John Green is an accomplished organizational, business and professional development mentor with a demonstrated ability for helping people identify, utilize and grow their talents, strengths and abilities. He has developed and cultivated personal and professional growth in hundreds of clients, business owners and professionals. He is an effective program designer, implementer and presenter, recognized for improving individual, workplace and entrepreneur performance. Greene has provided one-on-one counseling and workshop delivery to displaced professionals from technology, telecom, manufacturing, marketing and distribution environments. He has successfully transitioned these experiences and skill sets to a variety of programs including Career Continuation, Resume Creation, interviewing Skills, Change Management, Best Hiring Practices, Successful Goal Planning, Business Planning and Implementation workshops, as well as personal development experiences.

Experience Dubai Info Session

This Dubai info session will be exploring the Dubai trip in more detail and hearing about the day to day activities offered. We will view pictures from the trip and answer any trip related questions you may have.

Experience Cuba July 12-20, 2012

Start-Up Basics

Do you understand the nitty gritty of what it takes to start your business?
This helpful overview seminar covers the necessary steps to successfully launch your new business venture. Bring your questions about launching your business and meet others who are doing the same!

How will you benefit?

Learn about legal structures, licenses and forms, and tax requirements
Uncover potential financing considerations

Presented by Jayne Reiter, Denver Metro SBDC

Jayne Reiter is our business consultant at the West Metro Satellite SBDC. In her role as a business counselor, she guides SBDC clients through start-up issues, marketing, alternative financing and business plan development. Reiter has more than 20 years experience in sales and marketing. In her career, she has owned and operated her own retail and sales business. She is dedicated to helping small business owners achieve their goals in growth and expansion. Reiter holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration and a master’s degree in adult education.

Experience Dubai May 1-8, 2012

Join the Chamber on our seven-day excursion to astounding Dubai. Members and non-members are invited to join us for a memorable and highly cost-effective experience.

Intro to QuickBooks

Avoid bringing your accountant a shoebox full of disorganized receipts. In this hands-on Introduction to QuickBooks, you will learn how accurate bookkeeping and the right software will make your life easier come tax season.

How Will You Benefit:

Learn QuickBooks’s basic features
Understand what information to track
Practice entering that information to ensure accurate bookkeeping

Presented by EKS&H

Laptops and QuickBooks software sponsored by the Colorado Enterprise Fund

Business Tax 101: Avoiding Pitfalls and Mistakes

The idea of navigating your taxes can make a small business owner nervous—how do you keep it all straight? In Business Tax 101, you will learn the basics of business taxes and specific Colorado Department of Revenue tax requirements. This is a great opportunity to get answers to all your tax questions in one place!

How Will You Benefit:

Understand the differences in filing for different business entities;
Know how to claim your home, car, health insurance, and retirement for business
Discover which records to track
Understanding Schedules C, SE, and ES Form 1040

Presented by Vonnie Hergett, EKSH
Vonnie Hergett is a principal in the tax service area of EKS&H and has been involved in public accounting since 1987. She has extensive experience in all areas of taxation providing tax consulting and compliance services to individuals, corporations, trusts, partnerships and retirement plans. She services closely held businesses, professional service corporations and privately held companies in a variety of industries. Hergett has a bachelor's degree in business administration with an emphasis in accounting from the Montana University System - Billings. Hergett's professional affiliations include membership in the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Colorado Society of Certified Public Accountants.

Conceptos Básicos para Empezar un Negocio

Durante este seminario, usted aprenderá procesos acerca de cómo empezar su proprio negocio en el estado de Colorado, incluyendo diferentes estructuras legales, licencias y formatos necesarios, impuestos, opciones de financiamiento, y más. Aliste sus preguntas para empezar un negocio y prepárese para conocer a otros empresarios.

Instructura: Rosy Aburto McDonough, Denver Metro SBDC

NxLeveL for Veterans

Are you an entrepreneur who wishes to start a new business or expand your current venture and take it to the next level?

NxLeveL for Entrepreneurs is the premier training program in the U.S. for small business planning. It is an intensive 12-week business planning course designed for business owners who would like to revist their business plan or entrepreneurs who are starting a new venture.

The course will help you ask the questions and get the answers that every entrepreneur needs to know before starting or growing a business venture. NxLeveL provides a practical, hands-on and commonsense approach to business management.

Please visit www.denversbdc.org/programs/nxlevel for more information about this program.

Sales Basics: How to Close the Deal

You know what your business is great at, but how do you sell that to your customers? This two-part, interactive seminar will take you through the steps of creating a solid sales strategy. Most importantly, you’ll learn how to close the deal!

How Will You Benefit:

Develop a prospecting plan
Learn how to qualify your prospects
Gain an audience with the right decision makers
Learn how to close the deal!

Part II is March 14 from 9-11 am

Presented by Steve Parry, Sales Productivity Consultants

Steve Parry is president of Sales Productivity Consultants Inc., a sales development consulting firm working with both successful, established companies that wish to raise the bar and growing companies striving to achieve sales goals. Sales Productivity Consultants specializes in increasing revenues, sales efficiency and effectiveness through evaluations of sales processes, systems and people, business development strategies, and sales management training and consulting. Parry is an affiliate of Sandler Training and leverages his considerable education, business ownership and sales experience to practice the supportive, accepting and nurturing Sandler coaching alternative. He began developing his training and communications skills as a public school teacher. He has spent the past 27 years as a business owner and in industrial relations, operations, training, sales and management. His various roles have provided him the opportunity to speak before diverse groups across this country, as well as in Mexico, Canada, Great Britain, Norway and Japan. He has expertise in areas ranging from sales and sales management strategies to human relations and communication skills.

Tech Talks Webinar: Top 10 Tax Issues for Small Business

Most small businesses miss out on deductions and over pay their taxes every year. Whether you are a new business owner or have been in business for many years, this webinar will teach you how to avoid some of the most common mistakes.

How Will You Benefit:

Understand new tax laws and how that affects you as a small business
Learn to prevent overpaying by claiming all deductions and credits
Avoid common IRS audit "traps"
Take advantage of retirement plans
Deduct your automobile whether you lease or buy

Presented by Scott Estill, Estill and Long, LLC

With over 20 years of experience, Mr. Estill specializes in advising business owners with the complexities of the business and tax law issues that they may encounter. Mr. Estill is a frequent national radio and television guest lecturer, instructor, and seminar speaker at various events and colleges across the country. He was a former senior trial attorney for the IRS. He has counseled thousands on tax techniques and is nationally recognized as one of the top tax advisors in the country. Recently, Scott’s book "Tax This! An Insider’s Guide to Standing Up to the IRS" was recognized by the Wall Street Journal as one of the five top tax books for taxpayers to own in their library.

Mr. Estill is "of counsel" to the law firm and although Mr. Estill does not currently handle cases, he maintains a close and regular relationship with the law firm as a consultant.

NxLeveL for Start-Ups

Start-Up Basics

How will you benefit?

Learn about legal structures, licenses and forms, and tax requirements
Uncover potential financing considerations

Presented by John Green, Johnson & Wales University

John Green is an accomplished organizational, business and professional development mentor with a demonstrated ability for helping people identify, utilize and grow their talents, strengths and abilities. He has developed and cultivated personal and professional growth in hundreds of clients, business owners and professionals. He is an effective program designer, implementer and presenter, recognized for improving individual, workplace and entrepreneur performance. Greene has provided one-on-one counseling and workshop delivery to displaced professionals from technology, telecom, manufacturing, marketing and distribution environments. He has successfully transitioned these experiences and skill sets to a variety of programs including Career Continuation, Resume Creation, Interviewing Skills, Change Management, Best Hiring Practices, Successful Goal Planning, Business Planning and Implementation workshops, as well as personal development experiences.

Breakfast Brown Bag: More than a Logo: Finding and Defining Your Brand

Good marketing—when done right—will increase the bottom line of any business. Good branding can elevate a business to a new level of professionalism. This seminar will teach you the fundamentals of branding, the details of how to do it right, and the impact it can have on your business’ bottom line.

How Will You Benefit:

Learn how to define and design your own brand to implement into your marketing.
Understand available branding vehicles to help spread your brand.
Choose those vehicles based on your target market.
Learn how to make designing a marketing campaign much easier and more successful.

Presented by Mike Garrison, Loudmouth Media LLC

With an education in advertising, a successful career as an investment wholesaler and now, ownership of Loudmouth Media, Mike Garrison is in a unique position to understand the challenges that business owners face in marketing. Over the past fifteen years, Mike has worked with hundreds of small business owners and has seen first-hand the successes and failures that come along with good execution of the branding process. As owner of Loudmouth Media in Denver, Mike now works with business owners regularly to help them understand the importance of branding and how to best meld a branding strategy with a well-planned marketing campaign.

Social Media and Customer Engagement: Strategies for Cultivating Brand Champions

For small businesses, there is not a more powerful business-building tool than word-of-mouth referrals. During this hands-on seminar, you will create your own online community and learn how social media can provide a space for engaging customers and unlock its potential for direct-to-consumer marketing.

How Will You Benefit?

Build a strong community of brand champions.
Take away social media best practices and tips.
Understand the social media channels commonly used by businesses for marketing.

Presented by Julie Williamson & Tamika Pumphrey, North Highland

Julie Williamson, Principal, North Highland, Denver office Julie Williamson is a principal at the Denver office of North Highland, an international management consulting firm. She is responsible for the development and implementation of consulting projects for clients that focus on new business strategies, building innovation capabilities, creating effective change management programs, and managing team building and employee training programs. Internally, Williamson is responsible for the Denver office strategy and working across accounts as a content expert to assist teams in framing deliverables, both strategically and practically. Williamson has more than 20 years of consulting experience that includes working with executive teams on strategic development, bringing innovative solutions to complex problems, helping people grow into leadership roles while creating effective teams within their companies, and managing custom development teams. She has a particular interest in how organizational design drive.

Business Brown Bag: Blogging, Facebook, Twitter, and... Lawsuits?

As social media use increases, businesses and their owners face more and more legal challenges, including anything from copyright infringement to illegal or threatening online employee behavior. This seminar will help you protect yourself from social media-based lawsuits.

How will you benefit?

Learn how to prevent copyright infringement when using social media.
Explore social media policy options for your employees.
Avoid liability from online marketing.

Presented by Elizabeth Lewis, Law Office of E.C. Lewis, P.C.

Following the advice that she has given hundreds, business attorney Elizabeth Lewis became a small business owner in January of 2010. She opened the doors to the Law Office of E.C. Lewis, P.C. that focuses in business, intellectual property, technology, and online law. Prior to attending CU Law School, Elizabeth received a Masters of Science in Computer Information Technology and as an attorney continues to be active in IT. She is a board member of the South Metro Chamber’s Women in Leadership, chair of COBAR’s Business Law Section’s New Lawyer’s Subsection, and a member of the Denver Bar Association’s Mentorship Committee.