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Graduates of the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses program at HCC outperform U.S. small businesses in revenue growth and job creation

Jul 8, 2015


In a new report from Babson College released today, Small Business owners who have completed the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses program, which is offered at Houston Community College (HCC), grow their revenue and create jobs at rates that outperform the broader economy. The report surveyed approximately 2,300 of the nearly 5,000 who are now benefitting from the program.

The report, Stimulating Small Business Growth: Progress on Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses, details the progress of the thousands of small businesses that have participated in the 10,000 Small Businesses program, which helps entrepreneurs across the United States grow their businesses and create jobs.

“In just 18 months after completing the program, 76 percent of graduates increased their revenues and 57.1 percent created new jobs,” said Kerry Healey, president of Babson College, which is the academic partner of 10,000 Small Businesses. “The growth oriented, practical, peer-to-peer driven classroom experience, together with business support services, are driving participants to change their attitudes and business practices, helping them to achieve significant growth; growth that is critically important to strengthening the U.S. economy.”

“These results confirm that small businesses continue to play a central role in spurring economic growth and job creation in their communities and nationwide,” said Dina Habib Powell, president of the Goldman Sachs Foundation and head of the firm’s Impact Investing business. “We are so pleased to see how this program has contributed to their success.”

With nearly twice the sample size of the 2014 inaugural report and now including data 18 months out of the program, Babson reports that:

• 67 percent of participants have reported increasing their revenues just six months after graduating, which rises to 76 percent after 18 months.

• 46 percent of participants have reported creating net new jobs just six months after graduating, which rises to 57 percent after 18 months.

For those businesses that participated in the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses program at Houston Community College:

• 65.9 percent increased revenues within 6 months of graduating from the program.

• 52.3 percent added jobs within 6 months of graduating from the program.

“HCC is the epicenter of economic development for Houston, Harris County and the state,” said Dr. Cesar Maldonado, HCC chancellor. “It is critical that we are front and center with programs like Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses that take our students beyond graduation—beyond their start up, to get them into their growth mode.”

“Through 10,000 Small Businesses, we see businesses grow their revenues and create new jobs, while we learn more about a critical sector of the economy−small businesses that are not new or from any particular industry, but develop or flourish through models of peer learning and business collaboration,” commented Patricia G. Greene, Babson College professor, National Academic Director for Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses and lead author of the report.

Two Houston area business owners, who took part in the program, explain what contributed to their growth in revenue and jobs.

“We exceeded our first full-year business plan number, added significant volume to the company and created another way to reach customers through a revised website and social media,” said Debra Schindler-Boultingouse, owner of Genesis Telecom. “With that business plan we hired 14 new full-time employees.”

“We changed our business model from one that supports my limited scope of what I can do—to a business that can grow rapidly across the nation,” said Reid Middlebrooks, CEO of Apollo BBC. “I would recommend 10,000 Small Businesses to everyone I know. I loved every minute of it and I would do it all over again.”

For information about the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses program at HCC, visit hccs.edu/10ksb or 10KSBapply.com to apply for the program.


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