LSO Award

Today I attended the fourth annual AccelerateCNY event in Syracuse.  It was a half-day of workshops in the following categories: Business Growth, Manufacturing Excellence, Sustainability and the Bottom Line, and Technology Innovation.  If I had to guess, I’d say it was attended by about 200 people, max.  Given the pertinence of the topics, and the quality of the speakers, it’s hard to believe more business owners and managers weren’t there.

Most small businesses that are marginal suffer from their owners spending more  time working in the business than the time they spend working on their business.  As long as I’m using clichés, I’ll also mention that not enough business owners spend adequate time sharpening the saw.  I actually heard two instances in the past two days, of business owners who have significant budgets to provide ongoing training for their workforce, which enables them to maintain a competitive edge.  But I wonder how many business owners budget time and money to improve their own business acumen.

Getting back to today’s workshop, another great benefit was that most of the speakers shared tremendous resources, from websites to contacts in agencies and organizations throughout Central NY.

Of all the good info I gleaned, I’d like to share with you what I believe may be the most important to a company’s bottom line.  A suite of integrated electric and gas programs are available for residential, commercial, and industrial customers, complementing the work of state and local agencies, utilities, and NYSERDA.  Grants, low-interest loans, technical assistance, and tax credits are all available to businesses to make processes and buildings more energy efficient, reduce waste streams, and ultimately improve the company’s profitability.

I highly recommend every business owner take advantage of these programs.  You’ll not only be able to reduce expenses, and increase your profits, you’ll be reducing your carbon footprint.  The programs are available through NYSERDA or your local gas or electric company.  Don’t put off calling or going to their websites to learn more, or to make an appointment to start the process, which usually begins with an energy audit.  The costs you may incur will be a fraction of what you will save year in and year out.

And keep your eyes and ears open for opportunities to learn about programs and organizations in upstate New York that may enhance your business performance and profits.   The colleges and universities are excellent resources, and more and more, are partnering with state and local agencies and businesses, with federal and state funding, in an effort to create a new business and manufacturing infrastructure that will continue providing jobs, and that will stimulate economic growth.



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