National Small Business Week

National Small Business Week is a national recognition event to honor the United States' top entrepreneurs each year. The distinguished group of small business owners are hailed each year by the U.S. Small Business Administration and a collection of event co-hosts. The 2008 event marks the 55th anniversary of the agency, and the 45th annual Presidential proclamation of National Small Business Week.

Honors

Annual honors include:

The National Small Business Person of the Year, selected from the 53 State Small Business Persons of the Year (see additional information below). The Champion Awards, recognizing both individuals and organizations for their achievements on behalf of small business, including minority, women and veteran-owned small businesses. The Phoenix Awards, recognizing a public official, a business owner and a volunteer whose efforts have helped their businesses or communities recover successfully from a disaster. The Lender of the Year, honoring financial institutions, including those that provide financing for small business exporters and inner city businesses. The Entrepreneurial Development Awards honoring Small Business Development Centers, Women's Business Centers and SCORE for their innovation and excellence in assistance to entrepreneurs and small businesses. The Dwight D. Eisenhower Award for Excellence, recognizing large prime contractors who have excelled in their utilization of small businesses as suppliers and subcontractors. The Gold Star Award, recognizing exemplary performance of federal staff who manage the aggressive goals and strategic initiatives that help ensure a role for small business in the federal marketplace. The Frances Perkins Vanguard Award, honoring government and industry for excellence in the use of women-owned small businesses as prime contractors and subcontractors. The Small Business Prime Contractor and Small Business Subcontractor of the Year, honoring small businesses that have provided government and industry with outstanding goods and services as prime or sub contractors. Small business owners from across the country will be honored for their accomplishments as the nation's leading small businesses. The highlight of events will be the announcement of the National Small Business Person of the Year.

State Small Business Person of the Year winners from across the country head to Washington, D.C., to see which of them will be named National Small Business Person of the Year. The National Small Business Person of the Year and runners-up will be selected from among the 53 state small business winners, including the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and Guam. Small businesses being honored reflect a wide range of businesses, from locomotive repair to an employment search Web site; from a music box manufacturer to a hardware store.

National Small Business Week 2008 will begin with three days of events in Washington, D.C., at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel, where more than 100 outstanding business owners from across the country will be recognized. In addition to the State Small Business Persons of the Year, men and women involved in disaster recovery, government procurement, small business champions as well as SBA partners in financial and entrepreneurial development will be honored. A focal point this year will be a series of executive panel forums on Health Care, International Trade, Energy, and Finance. In addition, there will be a procurement session with corporate buyers and prime contractors who will discuss small business partnering and mentoring opportunities for small businesses seeking government contracts. On April 24, Small Business Week moves to New York, where SBA will participate in the closing bell ceremony at NASDAQ to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Women's Business Center program. The program has served more than 650,000 new and growing small business owners in the past five years alone. An awards event celebrating the top small business lenders and a financial forum on community investment, cosponsored with the Initiative for a Competitive Inner City, will culminate activities in New York.

The 2008 event also features a series of executive panel forums on Health Care, International Trade, Energy, and Finance. In addition, there will be a procurement session with corporate buyers and prime contractors who will discuss small business partnering and mentoring opportunities for small businesses seeking government contracts. The small business community nationwide can also take part in the forums, and view other Small Business Week events that will be Webcast live at http://www.NationalSmallBusinessWeek.com.

On April 24, Small Business Week moves to New York, where SBA will participate in the closing bell ceremony at NASDAQ to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Women’s Business Center program, which has served more than 650,000 new and growing small business owners in the past five years alone. An awards event celebrating the top small business lenders and a financial forum on community investment, cosponsored with the Initiative for a Competitive Inner City, will culminate activities in New York City.

External links

More information about National Small Business Week can be found online at http://www.NationalSmallBusinessWeek.com. The site includes information on small business honorees, event co-sponsors, schedule of events, press materials and access to webcasts.

More information about the U.S. Small Business Administration can be found online at http://www.SBA.gov.

• Small Business Week at the Small Business Development Center at the University of South Florida

Links National Small Business Week Website: http://www.NationalSmallBusinessWeek.com SBA Website: http://www.SBA.gov