MANAGEMENT ASSISTANCE

CEF provides Management Assistance to entrepreneurs who qualify for loans under our program. Once an applicant becomes a borrower, he/she will have further access to one-on-one consulting focusing on cash flow management, marketing, profitability analysis, technology issues, etc. This is provided by both our Loan Officers and by our Manager of Consulting Services. The latter can provide extra help for more serious, in-depth issues.

Management Assistance with CEF also includes outsourcing to pro bono professional services. Legal, accounting, investment banking, and public relations questions can be answered free of charge. The firms that donate their services to CEF borrowers provide a very valuable benefit to small business owners.

RESOURCES

Here are some other resources for small business assistance:

• Small Business Hotline - 303-592-5920
• Department of Revenue, Sales Tax & Trade Name 303-238-3278
• State Minority Business Office 303-892-3840
• Denver Business Associates - 303-455-3099
• Service Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE) - 303-844-3985

The above resources provide services at no charge or minimal cost.

WEB PAGE ADDRESSES FOR SMALL BUSINESS

Some links to other web sites that you may find useful to help you start your small business:

• http://www.sba.gov The U.S. Small business Administration's home page location of SBA offices, activities, points of contact, business cards registry, files (downloadable shareware and freeware). SBA also has a Women's Business Center at http://www.onlinewbc.gov.
• http://www.bplans.com This web site offers a wealth of information about operating a small business including articles from real small business owners.
• http://business.gov Also called the US Business Advisor, this web site is a one-stop link to all information and services the federal government provides for business.
• http://www.export.gov Export portal for USDOC and eventually other Federal agencies. It is designed to be a one-stop information source for everything an exporter will need in order to export.
• http://www.state.co.us/oed/sbdc The Colorado Small Business Development Center (SBDC) home page. A good site for finding the Center closest to you. They provide free business counseling.
• http://www.americanexpress.com/smallbusiness Great site for general small business advice.
• http://www.state.co.us/business_dir/businessmenu.html#state The State of Colorado's home page includes state agencies, state tax questions, employer forms, small business start up guide, and statistics on Colorado. Order the free business resource guide.
• http://www.officedepot.com Office Depot has a form for almost any business need, e.g. employment forms, marketing, invoices, business plans, and many more. Look for "Free Downloadable Forms".
• http://www.fedbizopps.gov/ GSA web site on federal business opportunities.
• http://www.count-me-in.org/ A website with resources to help women get started in business.
• http://www.irs.gov/ The IRS website is a great source for those pesky tax questions and it has links to general business information.
• Service Corps of Retired Executives - This organization has a wealth of resources. You can learn from successful business people who operated businesses in your specific industry. This is good place to go when starting a business or to seek free counsel for existing businesses.