Negocios Now

www.negociosnow.com 14 Octubre 2020 NegociosNow NegociosNow By David Steinkraus T he Covid-19 pandemic has not gone away, but neither has assistance from the state of Illinois for small businesses. Janel Forde, director of the Illinois Department of Central Management Services (CMS), and Kristi Dula, deputy director of the Office of Entrepreneurs- hip Innovation and Technology in the Department of Commer- ce and Economic Opportuni- ty, both said state government is working hard to help small businesses, especially the minority businesses that have been particularly hard hit by the economic effect of the pan- demic. CMS provides business servi- ces to other state agencies. For example, it oversees the pur- chase, repair, and maintenance of state-owned vehicles, and it oversees the benefit programs for state employees and reti- rees. The Department of Com- merce and Economic Opportu- nity is charged with supporting Illinois businesses and helping people to start or expand busi- nesses in the state. Dula's office oversees Illinois small-business assistance. STATE HAS MORE BUSINESS AID AND MORE BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES Grants and connections The second phase of the Business Interruption Grant program is open now with $220 million available. The program prioritizes groups disproportio- nately affected by the pande- mic and is guided by Gov. J.B. Pritzker's emphasis on equity, Dula said. More applications have come in so far for the second phase of BIG than for the first phase, she said. Illinois now has 42 Small Business Development Cen- ters open, she said. These provide advice, help people develop business plans, help access capital, and help with marketing, among other servi- ces. Nine Procurement Assis- tance Technical Centers can help businesses connect with government agencies looking for their services, help with cer- tifications and bid packages, and provide advice on subcon- tracting and quality assurance, among other assistance. Last year, the development centers served 1,000 Latinx clients, or about 12% of the total number of clients, Dula said. By September this year, the centers had served 1,100 Latinx clients, about 15% of the total. Vendors wanted Forde said it's not clear yet whether her department will lose vendors because busines- ses closed. At the same time, she said, more companies have expressed interest in joining the state's vendor pool. While the pandemic will bring changes, contracting opportunities won't disappear, she said. "Professio- nal services will still go on. It will just look different," she said. In particular, she said she would like to have more com- panies in the vendor pool for professional services, technolo- gy, and healthcare. Through a partnership announced in June, it is now easier for certified vendors of Cook County or the City of Chicago to join the state pool because the state will accept the city's or county's certifica- tion, she said. Companies need to file one affidavit with CMS, and in seven days, at no cost, they can become state vendors. Forde said she expects linge- ring pandemic impacts on Illi- nois small businesses for some time. It will be important to sup- port these companies, which are the economic engine for a large part of the state, she said. The Small Business Pulse Survey from the U.S. Census Bureau, released in August, said 35.2% of Illinois businesses reported a large negative effect from the pandemic. That's 2.6 percentage points higher than the national average. "When I think about my ven- dor pool, I am concerned. I am concerned about many of them remaining a going concern," she said. That's why technical assis- tance for businesses is so important, and why outreach is so important, she said. "W e have got to make it easier to do business with the government."

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