DATE: June 3, 2024
TO: Council Economic Development Committee
FROM: Chief Economic Development Officer
SUBJECT
Title
Introduction to East Bay Small Business Development Center’s Small Business Finance Assistance Program (Oral Report Only)
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RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
That the Council Economic Development Committee receives the presentation from Dr. Nancy Mangold, Executive Director of the East Bay Small Business Development Center (SBDC). Dr. Mangold will provide an overview of the SBDC and the center’s Small Business Finance Assistance Program.
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SUMMARY
The East Bay Small Business Development Center (SBDC), located at Cal State East Bay and funded by the US Small Business Administration (SBA), is part of the greater NorCal SBDC network. This network provides entrepreneurs and small businesses with the tools and support needed to start and grow their businesses. The East Bay SBDC focuses on providing free advisement to clients located in the Alameda and Contra Costa County.
Access to capital is the most common challenge for entrepreneurs. Most entrepreneurs obtain funding through a range of sources including private banks, investment groups and the US SBA. To help businesses secure financing, the East Bay SBDC created a series of free training workshops entitled, “Raising Capital for Small Business”. The Center also offers free advisors to assist businesses secure different types of financing. Combined, this training and one-on-one technical assistance connects entrepreneurs with investors and banks. In April, the East Bay SBDC held a “Capital Summit” in Hayward, which brought together East Bay’s leading lenders and taught valuable insights on securing capital and funding.
At the June CEDC meeting, Dr. Nancy Mangold, Executive Director for the East Bay SBDC will provide an overview of the Center’s suite of services with an emphasis on programming available to help entrepreneurs access capital. These services and financial expertise far outweigh the financial technical assistance, grants, and loan funds that local public agencies can provide. The East Bay SBDC partners with Economic Development staff, who often refer entrepreneurs to the SBDC to obtain support with financing and other resources. In 2023, the East Bay SBDC has assisted 1,700 small businesses. The center assisted East Bay small business raise debt or equity financing totaling $137 million in 2022, $35 million in 2023, and $44 million in the first half of 2024.
Dr. Mangold served as a professor at Cal State East Bay for 38 years and Interim Dean for the College of Business and Economics in 2021 and 2022. She was appointed by the World Bank as a Special Consultant to China’s Central Bank (People’s Bank of China) in 2001-2002 and conducted Senior Bankers’ Training for Chinese bank executives for over 10 years. She was appointed an Academic Fellow at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that oversee all publicly listed companies in the U.S. in 2009-2010.