Last month I reported on the Small Business Toolkit produced by the IFC and IBM being used in Africa. The same toolkit is now in use in Florida.  This free small business toolkit specifically for women, Black, Hispanic, Native American, and Asian entrepreneurs in the U.S., and small business owners in emerging markets to receive highly developed business information, tools, and training services usually reserved for Fortune 1000 companies.

The heart of Florida’s economy is comprised of small business with employer firms up 3.3 percent from the previous year and 7.6 percent in the non-employer category. While small businesses generated between 60 to 80 percent of the new jobs annually in the U.S. over the past decade, they can be disadvantaged by the lack of access to resources such as skills, knowledge and information that larger businesses routinely use to grow and succeed. The same applies to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the developing world who also find that access to best practice and business management tools is a significant barrier to their growth and sustainability.

The SME Toolkit is a free program that enables entrepreneurs and small businesses to learn how to implement the sustainable business management practices needed for growth in areas such as finance, accounting, international business, marketing, human resources or legal.

In the U.S., the SME Toolkit will focus largely on women and constituent-owned businesses. Globally, the IFC has joined with local partners to launch the Toolkit in more than 13 languages in 24 countries, all of which can now take advantage of the new enhanced version.

Among the specially designed free tools are:

• an online calculator that helps small businesses determine their readiness for financing,
• free software to build a web site,
• free business forms used for employee performance evaluations,
• community tools such as online conferencing, blog capability, group calendars,
• survey and quiz builders to help small businesses make decisions, and
• a multilingual business directory to help small businesses link locally, regionally and globally.
  

Small businesses can also receive business training delivered via classroom workshops and partnerships with local support providers. The Toolkit can also help small businesses go global by providing detailed market access, investment and trade information for the 64 countries most exported to countries. In the U.S., an Advisory Group will review the more than 500 pieces of content, tools and resources and identify new tools specifically for Black, Hispanic, Native American, Asian, and women-owned businesses.

“This truly is one stop shopping for small businesses and it levels the playing field. We know the tools that large businesses use and we know the role technology can play in leading to growth. Now, every business can have the same chance to succeed. It’s vitally important that we help small businesses who are the major employers and growth engines in developing markets,” said Stanley Litow, IBM Vice President of Corporate Citizenship and Corporate Affairs. “These are just the kind of tools that can help underserved markets be successful.”

The Toolkit was launched by IFC in 2002. IBM has dedicated more than $1.6 million to transform the Toolkit and rebuild it on an innovative open source platform using top talent in IBM research. The Toolkit now includes new Web 2.0 features such as live chat, online forums, business directories and survey capabilities to create a community where small and medium sized business can collaborate – anywhere around the world. For example, a group of small businesses could gather in an online forum to devise a strategy to bid on a large supply contract rather than as separate bids. The community tools also create an opportunity for peer learning.

In the future, the Toolkit will add new partners, markets and languages and is planned to allow users to connect to it using wireless devices, such as cell phones. In developing markets, mobile devices are increasingly becoming the way users connect to the Internet, and sometimes the only way.

The Toolkit is expanding to reach the massive small business market in India, South Africa and Brazil. The Toolkit is available in English and Spanish and translated in 14 other languages including, Nepali, Vietnamese and Urdu, with Hindi and Arabic set for release in 2007.

You can register to use the Small Business Toolkit by Clicking Here

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