NOTE: Stephanie Williams has since retired from the North Central Missouri Business Facilitation. NCMBF is still going strong. You can check them out here.
Listen to the full episode here:
Today on the show I have Stephanie Williams with the North Central Missouri Business Facilitation.
Brandon: Give me a brief background of who you are and your experiences?
Stephanie: Absolutely, I was born and raised in DeKalb and Clinton County, so I’ve been around this area forever. My husband and I raised our children and now we’re grandparents of 3 and have 2 more on the way.
I earned an Associates and a Bachelors in Business from Missouri Western. My Associates is in Marketing and Management and my Bachelors is in Business Education.
And then I have a Masters from Northwest Missouri State in Vocational Business Education.
I just retired from 26 years of Secondary and Post Secondary. I was a business and marketing teacher and I was a DECA advisor for 16 years.
I had wonderful students who are now lighting the business world on fire.
Prior to becoming a teacher I worked in finance and credit and a short time in retail.
I truly have a passion for business and believe we have a lot of talent in our area.
READ MORE: The Legal Side of Entrepreneurship
Brandon: What is the North Central Missouri Business Facilitation?
Stephanie: NCMBF is basically a very dedicated group of business leaders, community leaders, and interested citizens who have a mission. And our mission is to provide local enterprise with development by nurturing local entrepreneurs and assisting them with financial guidance and practical experience from these local individuals and businsses.
We have free, confidential business coaching. And we are economic and community based focused on revitalizing and capturing the passion and interests of local entrepreneurs.
When I’m invited by an entrepreneur, in my role as the facilitator, I’ll meet with them and help them discuss and understand the needs to operate a successful business. Then I try to connect them with their needed resources.
Our basic purpose are those connections. Helping entrepreneurs build that network of connections where they can get information when and as they need it.
I think it’s really important to know, we are a grass roots organization. We’re not a government organization. We’re truly organized by individuals in the area and we use an innovative approach to economic development. We don’t tell anyone what to do and we don’t pass judgement on their ideas. Instead we listen to them and assist them in gathering the information and resources they need so they can make their own decision.
Brandon: How did the NCMBF get started?
Stephanie: Well that is a really good question. It took a really long time. It’s a lengthy process.
More than 5 years ago a group of people who were concerned with the economic viatility of our area met and began a dialogue of what could be done through a grass roots effort or through people who were concerned and wanted to help.
The purpose was to see if more opportunities could be created. So along that line we understood the importance that small business has on our region. And from there the group continued to meet, plan, organize, and raise funds to get the project off and running.
Within the last 2 – 3 years its really taken off in bigger steps. It takes a very long time because you have to be very careful as you’re moving along to make sure that it is needed and wanted.
I was hired as the facilitator March 1st of this year and we hit the ground running.
Brandon: What counties do you serve?
Stephanie: Can I back up just a minute?
Brandon: Absolutely!
Stephanie: We haven’t done this on our own. I want to state how important our sister groups Northwest Missouri Enterprise Facilitation and Missouri Western State University Center for Entrepreneurship that’s in the Craig School of Business – how important they’ve been to our progress and being able to get started.
They are serving as mentors for us to help us make sure we follow this model and then we all work together. So as a result of our 3 organizations we actually have 13 counties in Northwest and North Central Missouri.
Our 6 counties are Caldwell, Clinton, Daviess, DeKalb, Grundy, and Harrison.
In addition, if there is a business outside those counties I can meet with them on an individual basis and we can assess whether or not it’s something our organization can then help with.
Brandon: So really bringing a lot of energy and new life into these rural communities?
Stephanie: I agree with you. You’re right. Energy is a good word.
Afer having several resource meetings with our team, I would also use the word passion, because the people who are a part of our team they truly have a dedication and a passion to see our rural areas thrive. Not just survive, but thrive.
Brandon: What kind of services do you offer?
Stephanie: There’s no one right answer to that, but one of the big things is you look at each business, each person individually and assess with that business person what is needed for them.
Some of the things we can help with: Resources from our area. Maybe someone doesn’t know what steps are involved with starting a business. I can help with those resources. I don’t want to use the word checklists, but basically what needs to be done to get a business launched.
We try to help them with resources. Finding what is needed.
One-on-one assistance.
I’ll listen to them and we meet.
I met with some people recently who literally just needed to talk out loud on what they’re wanting to do and then devise a plan on how to get there.
Sometimes it’s just that listening process.
One-on-one assitance: Sometimes it’s education. Try to get them to balance their product or service that they have with their marketing technique 0r what they do or don’t do for marketing.
Also their financial management; can they pay the bills? Are they paying the bills?
And then we have our resource team which is amazing! It’s people from the 6 counties. We meet once a month. Understanding not everyone can make every meeting, but poll our talent each month. We rotate county-to-county where we meet and with permission by the business owner I would present information and then ask for resources or suggestions that I can then take back to the business owner.
Then we help them celebrate! If they want us to, we will help them celebrate milestones that they’ve achieved if they’re an existing business. Or if it’s a brand new business we’ll assist the chamber of commerce with a grand opening. If there is no chamber we’ll organize it completely for them.
Brandon: Do you only work with start-ups or do you work with established businesses too?
Stephanie: We absolutely work with established businesses. We assist business owners with existing businesses who may just want to expand their business, add a new market to their mix, maybe impove or increase their product mix and/or research possible solutions if they have an existing issue.
It doesn’t matter if it’s a big issue or a small issue. Sometimes it’s just somebody else reaching out gathering resource ideas and they’re like, “I can do that“. And they do.
In addition, we can offer assistance to business owners who would like to transition to a new owner (business succession).
Maybe they don’t want to close their business, but they’re ready to retire. If they reach out we can try to reach out ot some of our resources and see if we can help them locate anyone who might be interested in purchasing their business.
Brandon: I know within the insurance industry we’re seeing a slow turnover with that right now where business succession is a bigger deal. Are you seeing that more in these counties?
Stephanie: Yeah, especially in our rural areas. You have a lot of long, established businesses. It’s part of our landscape. We expect them to be there. But the business owners have worked hard and they’re ready to have some relaxation and let somebody else take over the reins and there may not be family interested in taking over the business. You’re right Brandon. Let’s face it, I’m a baby boomer. Us baby boomers are getting a little older and we had such a big chunk of buy-in in our area.
I think it’s an opportunity for younger people in our area as some of our local businesses want to retire.
Brandon: What is the cost of your services?
Stephanie: We are free! I know there is no such thing as a free lunch, but our service really is free.
Brandon: No catch?
Stephanie: No catch.
Brandon: How is the NCMBF able to offer this service for free and how is the organization funded?
Stephanie: That’s a really good question. In all honesty, my job is not to worry about where the money comes from. I love that!
We are a non-profit 501(c)3 organization. And we accept donations from individuals, businesses, foundations, people just wishing to assist us in our mission to encourage and assist in free enterprise in our area.
Our executive board and our resource team members research grant opportunities, which can also assist in funding our organization.
If you remember back at the beginning I said it took a while to get the funding to be able to launch the organization because we wanted to make sure that we had the funding to sustain it before we actually put it in gear.
Brandon: What are some of the challenges you see entrepreneurs and business owners face today?
Stephanie: Really? How much time do we have? No seriously that is a really big question. I think it’s one that can be as varied as there are types of businesses. Obviously you have regulations that must be adhered to.
I think one of our challenges is to educate our local citizens of the wonderful businesses that are in our area and help them understand the neat stuff that they can buy right here in our area and they don’t necessarily have to shop outside of our area.
There are many challenges, but again with our team approach of trying to assist in locating ideas and resources, my goal is to help find suggestions or possible solutions to various roadblocks or hurdles.
Brandon: Where or what opportunities do you see for start-ups or seasoned business owners in these 6 counties? What will the NCMBF be able to offer them?
Stephanie: I really think, from traveling…I haven’t been to all of the communities in our 6 counties. Obviously I’ve only been at this for a few months, but I have been to all of the counties. The talent that I’ve seen out there and the ideas of people I’ve met with, I really believe that our opportunities are limited only to what our passion and dedication would be as a talented people. And their determination to own their own business.
I think…this is my formal school teacher coming out, but I think part of us has been raised to believe you grow up, you get an education, you get a good job working for someone else. So we’ve kind of set that mentality.
We’re going to grow up, we’re going to go away to school, and then we’re going to live somewhere else. And we’re going to work for someone else. But if you notice the theme there, it’s the term someone else.
Why not grow up. Learn a skill or get a passion for a certain area and then work for yourself.
We don’t always have to have someone else write the paycheck.
I think the opportunities are literally whatever the passions in our area are.
READ MORE: When Does Your Hobby Become a Business?
Brandon: What kind of impact could this have on these 6 counties?
Stephanie: I’m going to give you an analogy and again my poor students heard this lecture a lot! Think about it this way, if you take a big rock and you throw it into a pond, that rock hits the water and what does it do?
Brandon: Ripple
Stephanie: It ripples, yes, it ripples out and that ripple gets bigger and bigger and bigger. So I think of it this way, let’s say in one of our counties there’s 500 small businesses. Because remember there’s not just one town in a county. There’s many, many. But let’s say there’s 400 – 500 small businesses in a county. If we as citizens buy more from them rather than going outside of our area to shop…they even need to hire…even if 3/4 of them (or half of them) need to hire even one more person. Think of the economic boost that increased employement would have on the area.
Now those people have more income to spend. Not just the people with the paycheck, but the business owners. Because they have an increase in business. So they spend it. And the businesses where they spend their money now get busier. Then they need to hire more people.
You see where this can lead?
It’s like the rock. It plunks down and it just gets bigger.
But the key is people understanding the importance for doing business in their local community.
Brandon: That’s huge!
Stephanie: It is. It boggles my mind how much we take out of our region and give it to other places. No offense to those “other places“, but why would they get our money?
Brandon: What advice would you give someone who is listening to this and they have a burning desire to start a business, but scared to make that first step?
Stephanie: Take it.
Take the leap.
Have the faith that you’ve done your homework. Have the faith and have a plan.
Shoulda, coulda, woulda. That doesn’t get us very far except possibly looking back from regret, but you do have to be organized.
The dream, the passion, is the foundation of it. And then just reach out and start asking the questions.
There’s a lot of organizations that can assist. We are not the only organization out there. I compare us to a toolbox. We are another tool in the toolbox for a business owner. There’s other organizations out there that can provide assistance.
I always encourage people to join their local chamber of commerce. They are a support system. A network for businesses. Same thing with the Small Business Administration and the USDA. All these different organizations out there are specifically set up to help small business.
We’re another tool in that toolbox.
Brandon: Leaders are readers and readers are leaders. What books are you reading right now?
Stephanie: Oh wow! That’s a good one.
There is a book that our organization is a part of – our foundation. It’s called Ripples from Zambezi: Passion, Entrepreneurship, and the Rebirth of Local Economies by Ernesto Sirolli. He is the foundation of this business model. The passion and the rebirth of entrepreneurship of local economy is the focus of this book.
It’s really interesting.
My favorite story from the book is how he goes into this region in Africa (Zambezi), and he sees all this fertile farm land. He thinks, “I can help these people“. So he has them plant tomatoes and all these other things so they can feed their family. Everything is going great. Because it is fertile farm land. About the time the tomatoes are ready to harvest he gets up and goes out and all of the tomatoes are chewed off. Just stomped. The plants are nothing left.
And he looks to the people from this tribe and says, “Why didn’t you tell me? What’s happened?“
They said the hippopotamus come out of the river and they ate them.
He said to them, “Why didn’t you tell me they would do this?“
They told him, “You didn’t ask us“.
So what I learned from that is you have to ask people before you can assume what they’re wanting to do. Don’t just go in and say, “You need to do this, this, and this to make your business a sucess.“
You have at ask them, “What’s going on in their business?” and let them talk to you before you can help them gather any information that might be helpful.
Brandon: How can listeners get a hold of you?
- 816.617.6144
- Follow NCMBF on Facebook
- Website
