Chris Byrd and Lorrie Lisek pose at the Statehouse.

Indianapolis — Lt. Governor Sue Ellspermann joined business leaders from across the state recently to present 20 companies with the Indiana Small Business Development Center’s Economic Development through Growth and Entrepreneurship (EDGE) Awards during a Statehouse ceremony.

Sponsored by the Indiana Economic Development Corporation’s Small Business Development Centers, the awards recognize clients of the agency’s 10 regional offices in two categories – emerging and established.

The Northwest ISBDC honorees include Schererville-based Circle Tool Supply owned by Chris Byrd in the Emerging Category.

As an industrial supply company, CTS provides a range of items from hand, cutting and power tools and abrasives to safety equipment and MRO (maintenance repair operations) supplies.

“Because I hadn’t owned my own business and had worked in the corporate world – where things are already established – I had taken that for granted,” Byrd said.

“(NW-ISBDC business adviser Cindy Bertram) and I discussed pitfalls and what most start-ups do wrong – the traps people fall into that are difficult to get out of and can harm the business. I got a good grasp of what not to do. The SBDC is a great resource to get a business going and once going, to take off from there.”

Legacy Environmental Services, owned by Carl and Lorrie Lisek, was honored in the Established Category. The company has grown over the years to its current location at the Purdue Technology Center of Northwest Indiana in Crown Point.

Together, the statewide honorees represent 195 full-time Indiana jobs and in total finished 2012 with more than $6 million in sales.

“Brand new ventures or seasoned businesses, these companies have made great strides for Indiana’s workforce and business landscape,” said Ellspermann in a statement. “With fresh ideas and new energy as a trademark, the Hoosier State will continue to encourage many more entrepreneurs like these to build our future. Congratulations to this year’s award recipients who have worked hard to earn this recognition.”

Student preparation

PNC offers a Bachelor of Science degree in Business (with specialization in Accounting, Economics, Management or Marketing), a Bachelor of Science degree in Organizational Leadership, a Bachelor of Science degree in Human Resources, ), and Associate degrees in OLS and Human Resources. Students can also earn certificates in leadership, human resources, and organizational administration.
The college launched its Masters of Business Administration in 2004.

“It’s on Saturdays and specifically made for working adults. We are in the process of revising it and will launch changes in the fall of 2013,” said Cynthia Roberts, PhD, interim dean of PNC’s College of Business.

The changes will provide a uniform preparation for all students, regardless of background, as well as provide the opportunity for exploring an area of interest.

Chris Byrd

Chris Byrd has rounded out his corporate experience and background with industry expertise and “mom-and-pop” customer service for his new venture, Circle Tool Supply.
As an industrial supply company, CTS provides a range of items from hand, cutting and power tools and abrasives to safety equipment and MRO (maintenance repair operations) supplies. Byrd keeps thousands of items on hand at his warehouses in Schererville as well as maintaining connections to key vendors for access to thousands of more supplies.
“We offer the consumables that keep an operation running, whether that’s janitorial supplies, ear plugs, fire extinguishers and even Gatorade as hydration is important to safety,” Byrd said.
Byrd’s background is rooted in steel and his industry’s corporate side.
“I started my career in the steel industry,” he said. “I love the manufacturing side of business and seeing the products made.”
He launched CTS in May 2011 after seeing changes in the corporate culture.
“The strategy was not as customer-centric as I would have liked it. It seemed to me we were getting further away instead of closer to the customer,” he said. “We were pushing everybody to the Web site and losing touch. You have to have personal relationships to keep a business running.
“We are going back to basics at CTS and we want to take care of customers in a way they expect to be taken care of.”
Byrd reached out to the NW-ISBDC at the beginnings of his business for some initial assistance on the start-up basics.
“When I met with Cindy (Bertram), I showed her my business plan and she helped me tweak it and guided us to a financial institution that supported us. She was just a wealth of information and any topic I wanted to talk about, she helped point me in the right direction. In the beginning, we also solidified some things such as finding an accountant and people who are experts for a smooth transition and smooth opening,” he said.
“Because I hadn’t owned my own business and had worked in the corporate world – where things are already established – I had taken that for granted. We discussed pitfalls and what most start-ups do wrong – the traps people fall into that are difficult to get out of and can harm the business. I got a good grasp of what not to do. The SBDC is a great resource to get a business going and once going, to take off from there.”
Byrd is already experiencing growth and is updating his Web site to position CTS for the future.
“To be quite honest, I didn’t expect to grow as fast and as quickly as we did. The whole idea is to build a legacy to one, many or all of my kids – something they can continue to build on and have success with,” he said. “It doesn’t happen overnight but we are doing so well and in the next five years, we are going to be a very healthy small business.
“Right now, we have one location and two warehouses, but in the future, we may move into our own building or have one built. Also, there may be plans to expand.”
As his business develops, Byrd will continue to rely on future advice and past lessons.
“I have worked for some great managers, average managers and some poor managers and with that experience, I have learned what to do and what not to do,” he said. “The SBDC is a wealth of knowledge and has tools to help me get going where I need to go. Advisors like Cindy have been doing this long enough that she can say: he doesn’t seem strong enough here, here are tools to support him on this. I can always go back to her and say ‘Here is where I am right now, what are the tools for that?’”

•    The school’s Small Business Institute fosters entrepreneurial education by providing small business consulting services using undergraduate business students. Under the supervision of business faculty, the students provide general business analysis. In the past 10 years, the SBI program has served more than 125 local businesses.
•    Annually IU Northwest hosts Money Smart, a free financial fair aimed at teaching people strategies for better money management. Money Smart offers community members of all ages and income levels sound strategies and advice for stretching their dollars, avoiding scams and pitfalls, and investing in a more secure financial future.
•    Each spring, the School of Business and Economics, in conjunction with the IU Northwest Business Alliance, hosts the Business Speaker Series Luncheon, which features notable business personalities or other public figures.
•    Students in upper-level accounting courses are recruited as volunteers, trained by the Internal Revenue Service and supervised by faculty for the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program, which provides income tax assistance for low-income and elderly persons at no charge. In 2011, the IRS recognized the school for its 20 years of outstanding contributions to this public service.
The AACSB-accredited School of Business and Economics offers a Bachelor’s degree in business with a concentration in business administration or accounting/financial information systems. The Masters of Business Administration is offered through a weeknight or weekend program. The school also offers certificates in accounting and management.
“Innovative learning programs like the Wall Street on Broadway Trading Floor, which is Northwest Indiana’s only fully simulated stock-trading program, are representative of the kind of hands-on learning and innovative curriculum that takes place in the school,” Rominger said. “To ensure the school stays current with the needs and demands of the professional business world, we have developed the IU Northwest Business Advisory Board, which brings the school together with the business community.
“The school’s faculty members have also used their expertise and research to assist local businesses. As a best practice, they look for ways for students to participate in applied real world projects, where students can apply their knowledge to regional and national industry situations.”
Serving seven counties in the region, the NWI SBDC offers no-cost assistance for entrepreneurs starting or expanding their businesses. Through one-on-one consulting, the NWI SBDC helps guide small businesses toward their goals by offering referrals, workshops, training opportunities and other essential business tools. It is funded in part through a cooperative agreement with the Small Business Administration, the State of Indiana and other local partners.
For more information.
The IUN School of Business and Economics’ focus areas include teamwork, leadership and technology. Full-time professors teach the majority of business and economics classes, supplemented by business professionals who teach part-time in their respective areas of expertise. Faculty members assist students with internships, jobs, research projects and opportunities for community engagement as well as build connections to provide students with assistance throughout their careers.
For more information.

Small business owners and bankers are invited to attend the grand launch of this program on June 26 to learn more about Accion small business loan eligibility. The event will be an open house hosted by the Northwest Indiana Small Business Development Center (SBDC) in Crown Point, IN, Accion’s local business education partner.

Effective May 2012, Accion is now an SBA Microlender Intermediary in Indiana, which allows it to make small business loans at rates as low as 8.87% for qualified borrowers.

The SBA’s Microloan Program was developed to increase the availability of smaller business loans to prospective small business borrowers. Under this program, the SBA makes funds available to nonprofit intermediaries, like Accion, which in turn make loans to eligible borrowers.

Accion makes $500 to $50,000 loans in Lake County and Porter County to existing and start-up small businesses that have been unable to get bank financing. In an effort to increase small business success in Lake and Porter counties, Accion expanded its services into Indiana in 2008. Since that time, Accion has accomplished steady growth, providing 30 small business loans totaling $210,846 by the end of 2011.

“It does not matter what your profits are, if you do not have enough capital and your business is under-funded, you can fall into some hard times,” said George Huskisson, owner of Hammond Fence of Indiana, Inc, and an Accion client. “My Accion loan could not have come at a better time.”

For more information about Accion’s small business loan requirements and how to apply, visit www.accionchicago.org.

ABOUT ACCION

Accion Chicago is a member of the Accion U.S. Network, the largest microfinance network in the United States. Since its founding in 1991, members have collectively lent $305 million to small business owners nationwide. Accion Chicago has disbursed more than $20 million to over 2,600 clients since 1994. Last year, Accion Chicago originated 301 loans in Northwest Indiana and the Chicagoland area worth more than $2 million. From 2010 through the first three quarters of 2011, loans originated by Accion have created or retained more than 1,000 jobs.