PHILADELPHIA January 5, 2007 – The Pennsylvania Small Business Development Centers (SBDC) have been awarded full accreditation from the Association of Small Business Development Centers, the national accrediting body for Small Business Development Centers under contract from the U.S. Small Business Administration. The program also received supplemental accreditation for its specialized technology services. The accreditation review process, mandated by Congress, is based upon a strict set of standards guided by the Malcolm Baldrige Quality Awards to ensure that SBDC programs are operating efficiently and effectively. Failure to achieve accreditation can result in withdrawal of federal funding.

A team composed of the leaders of the SBDC programs in New York, Indiana, North Carolina and Delaware conducted the Pennsylvania SBDC review. The team assessed several areas of the program, including leadership and organizational management, the strategic planning process, client and stakeholder focus, service delivery and program performance. These standards ensure that the public investment in the program from the federal government, the state government and the host institutions results in strong returns for Pennsylvania’s economy.

“The review team was very impressed with the program and operation,” said James King of the New York SBDC program and leader of the review. “The Pennsylvania SBDC is a critical service vehicle in Pennsylvania, and the specialty programs highlight the help offered by the Pennsylvania SBDC to varied constituencies.”

The team also detailed several commendations, including:

Excellent leadership and strong team commitment of lead center and field center staff
Outstanding budgetary support levels and effective management controls and reporting
A comprehensive strategic plan, updated annually, that was “clearly put together with the participation of stakeholders and all of the centers and drives the programs of the network.”
“Enthusiastic, passionate and well qualified” staff with long tenures and diverse skill sets
A “highly successful” collaboration with the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development.

Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) Secretary Dennis Yablonsky echoed the team’s findings. “The SBDC is a tremendous resource for Pennsylvania’s small business owners and works in tandem with Governor Rendell’s economic strategy,” he noted. “Based on the SBDCs’ past performance and this recent accreditation news, I am confident this program will continue to show strong results.”

Research for the most recent year studied found that the SBDCs brought Pennsylvania 2,994 new businesses, 10,794 new jobs, $1.3 billion in new sales and over $1 billion in tax revenues.

“As a consistent advocate for Pennsylvania’s small business sector, I am pleased with the accreditation team’s findings,” stated U.S. Senator Arlen Specter. “The SBDC program provides tremendous support for all 67 counties in Pennsylvania and enables entrepreneurs and their businesses to start, grow and prosper.”

“This is the third time the Pennsylvania SBDC program has been awarded accreditation (the review process occurs every four years).” “We are thankful for the efforts of the review team and appreciate the opportunity this allows us to examine our capabilities,” commented Pennsylvania SBDC state director Gregory L. Higgins, Jr. “The recommendations we receive out of this process will enable us to better serve small businesses and continue to grow the economy of Pennsylvania.”

As the largest statewide provider of entrepreneurial services, the SBDCs play a unique and vital role in the Commonwealth's economic development initiatives as the only organization that, in utilizing the expertise and resources of 18 of the best colleges and universities in the state, assists entrepreneurs in all stages of business and all industry sectors. Funding support from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the U.S. Small Business Administration and the SBDC host institutions enables consulting services to be provided at no charge to the client. A portion of this funding is used to operate the Pennsylvania Small Business Development Center’s Technology Commercialization Assistance Program.

Since 1990 alone, the SBDCs have helped Pennsylvania entrepreneurs start thousands of new businesses, create thousands of jobs, sell millions of dollars of products and services, and generate millions in new tax revenues. For more information on the Pennsylvania Small Business Development Centers’ services and impact, visit www.pasbdc.org.

Download a PDF of this release here.