Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses Program at SLCC yields success

A new national impact study from Babson College shows that the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses program administered in Utah through Salt Lake Community College is among the more successful business education and training programs in the country.

Within 6 months of graduation, Salt Lake business owners who have completed the program outpace the national averages for revenue increases and job growth for their companies.   Program research showed that 70.2 percent of participating businesses in Utah reported an increase in revenue within six months of starting the program, compared to 68% nationally. In that same time period, the report showed that 47.9 percent of business owners added jobs, compared to 46.2% nationally.  In addition, the national impact study shows that 18 months after graduation, 76% of participants reported an increase in their revenues and 57% reported creating net new jobs. Finally, the program has a 99% graduation rate and 84% of graduates are doing some form of business with each other.

“Salt Lake Community College is fortunate to be part of such an impactful program as 10,000 Small Businesses,” said SLCC President Deneece G. Huftalin. “The success of the program is evident in the numbers – a quantifiable portrait of a return on investment that reflects well on the local economy and on the state as a whole.”

“Utah's performance numbers reflect the dedication of the local Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses program team and key stakeholder partners in our state to providing one of the best environments in the country for growing small businesses,” said Karen Gunn, executive director of the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses program at SLCC.

Nationally, the 10,000 Small Businesses program started in 2009 and, with more than 125 partners and affiliate organizations, has helped nearly 5,000 small business owners through 25 in the United States and Great Britain sites and a national blended learning program. A $500 million investment by Goldman Sachs and the Goldman Sachs Foundation supports the project in partnership with Babson College and the Initiative for A Competitive Inner City.  Local partners in Utah include the State of Utah Governor’s Office of Economic Development, SLCC, Mountain West Small Business Finance, and the Salt Lake and Utah State Hispanic Chambers of Commerce.

SLUG Magazine editor and publisher Angela Brown

Since the program began in Utah in 2013, seven cohorts representing 215 business owners have successfully completed the program.  Recent graduate Angela Brown, editor and publisher of Utah-based SLUG Magazine, said she knew immediately after being accepted as a 10,000 Small Businesses scholar into Cohort 5 that she would “never be the same.” And results soon followed. “Since completing the program, I have overcome my fear of asking for money,” she said at graduation in June. “I’ve taken out a line of credit. I have hired four new fulltime employees and identified a revenue stream that will triple SLUG’s annual revenue over the next three years.”

Brown was one of 93 scholars in three cohorts to graduate from the program in Utah in 2015. Combined, those businesses employ 1,611 people and represent a total of $145 million dollars in annual revenue. Recent graduate Amelia Wilcox, founder and CEO of Incorporate Massage,  has also commented on the program’s ability to help her create strategy to increase her monthly revenue,  hire additional employees, and look at national expansion of her company.  

Incorporate Massage founder and CEO Amelia Wilcox

Local program graduate Jeremy Conder, owner of the Salt Lake City-based screen-printing and design company Spilt Ink, said the program pushed his limits to be able to grow his business and increase revenue. “Since starting the program, Spilt Ink has enjoyed many successes,” Conder said. “We’ve doubled in employee count, now up to eight. To date our revenues are up over 50 percent – that’s over $140,000 in additional sales so far this year. We’ve been able to scale production by creating departments with specific purposes and responsibilities. And we’re currently working on an employee ownership plan to incentivize and secure our future leaders.”

Jeremy Conder, owner of the Salt Lake City-based screen-printing and design company Spilt Ink

Prospective applicants to the program should have between $150,000 and $4 million in revenues, have been in business for at least two years, and have at least four full-time employees.  For more information about the 10,000 Small Businesses program and required qualifications, visit www.slcc10ksb.com or www.10ksbapply.com.