November 2001

BDC Hosts Symposium:
"The Roadmap For Growth"

With a recent cloudy economic forecast, the Cortland County BDC is sponsoring a free community workshop featuring national, state and local speakers on November 7 to assess the state of the economy and offer advice to local businesses. The workshop, called "The Roadmap for Growth," will be held in the Community Assembly Room at Cortland Regional Medical Center from 9:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.

The 9:00 a.m. keynote address, "Reading The Roadmap," by John O. Myers, CEO of HSBC Asset Management (Americas) Inc., will explore some of the economic forces shaping the global, national and state scene, and provide a helpful context for better planning business decisions. Mr. Myers is responsible for the US Asset Management activities of HSBC's global asset management organization, which manages $132 billion worldwide. His experience prior to HSBC includes the management of new business development at Transamerica Life Companies, the CEO role at Bank of America's broker/dealer, and 10 years with the Colonial group of mutual funds.

Beginning at 9:45 a.m., a panel presentation will focus on technical and financial resources available to businesses. Speakers and topics will include:

• Finding Help -- Linda Hartsock, Executive Director, Cortland County BDC/IDA
• Creating A Plan -- Ken Homer, Business Advisor, US Small Business Development Center
• The Role Of The SBA -- Brian Qualey, Commercial Loan Officer, US Small Business Administration
• The New York Business Development Corporation -- James Conroy III, Assistant Vice President
• The Role of The State -- Thomas Gillson, Regional Director, Empire State Development
• Regional Resources -- David Bottar, Central New York Regional Planning and Development Board
• Local Resources -- Bernard Thoma, President, Thoma Development

"The Cortland County BDC helps businesses with technical assistance and access to capital by working with federal, state, regional and local partners," noted Linda Hartsock, BDC/IDA director. "We are often the conduit for companies to the SBDC, SBA, NYBDC, ESD, HUD and USDA, as well as regional loan programs and local financial institutions. Very often we'll bring together a number of funding sources to make a project work. Our goal is to help entrepreneurs develop or refine their business plans, understand cash flow, deal with credit enhancement and collateral, identify equity, and link businesses up with appropriate lenders. The goal of this workshop is to help present this broad spectrum of services to companies who may have questions, or special needs, especially given the uncertain climate of the past few months."

The free workshop also includes a continental breakfast. Reservations are requested and may be made by calling the BDC at (607) 756-5005. The event is cosponsored by the Cortland County Chamber of Commerce and HSBC.