intentional Social: Crush your business goals by directly integrating your social efforts with your organization.

Your social media efforts are directly tied to your business goals, right?! No? You’re not alone. Social media marketing for business isn’t new. Organizations large and small have implemented some sort of efforts around social media. However, there is commonly an undeniable disconnect between all the content you’re generating on your social channels and the core goals and vision you have for your organization.

Consulting Cafe is a unique training environment where entrepreneurs can come with their own agenda loaded with the questions that matter to them now, instead of having to wait for a program that fits their needs.

Have a cup of coffee with a Small Business Development Center (SBDC) professional business consultant or a partner professional that can cover the following areas of need:

-Marketing
-Social Media
-Business Planning/Strategy
-Legal (provided by LegalCORPS)
-Finances
-Bookkeeping/Accounting

Cost is covered by sponsors and sign up prior to the event is requested.

A new venture competition that encourages and celebrates students' innovative business ideas. Open to the public, this exciting event showcases the BIG ideas of our students. Come vote for your favorite to win the People's Choice Award!

The Big Ideas Challenge gives students or alumnus within two years of graduating the opportunity to compete for $15,000 in prizes to fund their business.

Is entrepreneurship right for you? In this workshop you will gain a basic understanding of the essential steps to getting your business off the ground and the many local and online resources available to help you.

Like Rose the Riveter, today women are needed again -- this time to be entrepreneurial in a tech-based economy, bring leadership skills to business, and generate wealth in our communities. This workshop includes:
- The three things that have kept women from building business profits and wealth in the old economy and what has changed.
- Why your passion really is the most important driver of business success.
- How a triple bottom line of people, planet and profits is critical in the New Economy.
- Tech trends that are changing every industry -- including the four industries where women hold 80% of the market (for now).
- Learn about women across industry who have combined their passion with clever technologies to grow their sales by 20-30% and more.
- Participants will engage in Tech-Ideation, a form of idea storming to connect with new and off-the shelf technologies to grow sales, reach new markets and improve business operations.

Presented by Mo Collins, New Economy specialist, speaker, trainer, and expert in women's entrepreneurship.

The first stage of the "Employment Life Cycle" starts before an employee even joins your organization. It starts with the evaluation of your needs and developing your process and materials. This is a crucial part in your business development, and in order to succeed, you need to have a strategic recruiting process in place.

In this workshop, we will discuss what makes up the recruiting process along with learning how to write a job description, the differences between a job description and an analysis and why you should have both, how to set up a job file and an interview process including developing interview questions and other tools, and recommended policies that should be in place prior to the employee's first day of employment.

WHAT IS THE EMPLOYMENT LIFE CYCLE? The "Employment Life Cycle" corresponds to the different stages employers and employees go through during their time with an organization. It starts with an evaluation of the needs for additional help at an organization and never ends. Even when an employee leaves a company, what they take with them will continue to impact your company whether it is good or bad. Each stage throughout the "Employment Life Cycle" has its challenges.

Over the next four workshops, we will be discussing what is involved in each of the following four main categories for small businesses: Employee Recruitment, Employee Integration, Employee Development, Employee Departure.

The goal of this program is to bring an introduction and awareness of not only these categories but also to give you tools and information to lead your own successful "Employment Life Cycle" in your organization.

The second stage of the "Employment Life Cycle" starts once you have made a choice to hire a candidate. This is an important stage because this is where your new hire will determine how long they will stay with your company. With a shortage of an available workforce, employees on average are spending less than 5 years at a company. Most of them are determining within their first 90 days if they are going to stay or not. During this process, employees are learning their job duties, establishing relationships with co-workers and supervisors and determining their niche.

In this workshop, we will discuss onboarding and orientation. We will learn about guidelines to making a job offer and what should be included in the job offer confirmation letter. We will also review a general onboarding checklist along with new hire paperwork, including required reporting of a new hire with the State of MN and the key components of an initial employment file including setting up guidelines of confidential information.

WHAT IS THE EMPLOYMENT LIFE CYCLE? The "Employment Life Cycle" corresponds to the different stages employers and employees go through during their time with an organization. It starts with an evaluation of the needs for additional help at an organization and never ends. Even when an employee leaves a company, what they take with them will continue to impact your company whether it is good or bad. Each stage throughout the "Employment Life Cycle" has its challenges.

Over the next four workshops, we will be discussing what is involved in each of the following four main categories for small businesses: Employee Recruitment, Employee Integration, Employee Development, Employee Departure.

The goal of this program is to bring an introduction and awareness of not only these categories but also to give you tools and information to lead your own successful "Employment Life Cycle" in your organization.

This course is for businesses located in Minnesota that make products intended to be sold ultimately at retail. It is designed for business owners, bookkeepers, purchasing agents, and accountants who need a working knowledge of how sales and use taxes in Minnesota relate to product makers and the manufacturing process.

The primary focus is to give participants a better understanding of what items a manufacturer may buy exempt from sales tax and what items are taxable. Though we’ll cover some basics about Sales and Use Tax, this course is not meant as an introduction to the topic.

After completing this class you will:

* Recognize when you owe sales or use taxes

* Recognize the differences between the ”industrial production process” and the “integrated production process”

* Identify the exemptions available to manufacturers

* Distinguish how the use of goods determines if an item qualifies for one of these exemptions

*Identify how to use and when to accept an exemption certificate

*Identify when you have paid tax in error and how to get a refund

*List several resources that answer your sales and use tax questions

Presented by the Minnesota Department of Revenue.

Some of greatest stress we feel at home and at work is when we are misunderstood or we misunderstood the other person or situation!!! Learn the helpful techniques the will get you heard and will make sure you correctly understand what the other person is telling you.

Presented by Health Solutions

Is entrepreneurship right for you? In this workshop you will gain a basic understanding of the essential steps to getting your business off the ground and the many local and online resources available to help you.