FREE workshops provided by the Ontario Service Safety Alliance:

  + Health & Safety Basics
     8am - 10am
     Thu, Feb 25, 2010

  + Hazard Assessment
      8am - 10am
      Fri, Mar 26, 2010

  + Health & Safety Compliance
      8am - 10am
      Fri, Apr 30, 2010

All workshops will be held at the Niagara-on-the-Lake Campus. Contact Mary Ann Martin at 905-641-2252 x 4456 to reserve a seat. Don't miss out on these valuable tips for your business!

If you're not eligible for Ontario Self-Employment Benefit (OSEB) program funding, or if you have clients lined up and need to get your business going quickly, we have a program just for you! We'll customize a package that best suits your needs. Call now for your FREE 1-hour assessment!

Contact Mary Ann Martin at 905-641-2252 x 4456 to find out how we can help you become one of Canada's successful business owners.

If you have an established business and need some professional input on business start-up, marketing and sales consulting, market research, human resources tools and services, budget and cash flow forecasting, optimizing a retail operation, business growth and planning, and more, we can help you. We have qualified business advisors with expertise in a variety of business operations. Call us for a FREE 1-hour consultation to discuss your needs, and we'll create a customized package that works best for you. For more information, call 905-641-2252 x 4456.

Build your business on a solid foundation using the fundamental principles that you'll learn in our 1-week Business Basics program.

Explore and develop your business idea through this intense classroom experience. Participants have found that valuable input from both instructors and fellow students is an important component of this comprehensive program. Business professionals contribute their real world knowledge and expertise.

The program includes 1 week of in-class business concept development followed by 2 Business Plan Clinics, Concept Development Manual, Business Plan Template, BDC Resource CD, parking privileges at the Niagara-on-the-Lake Campus of Niagara College, and access to College learning resources.

Sessions:

1. Orientation and Concept Development
2. Goal Setting and Time Management
3. Marketing Strategy
4. Promotion Strategy
5. Financial Strategy
6. Legal Issues
7. Effective Business Communications
8. Sales and Quality Service
9. Anatomy of the Business Plan & Business Plan Development

Fee:

Self-Employment Benefit Program participants.........       included at no extra charge

Non-SEB participants..........................................        see Start a Business above

For more information or to book, phone 905-641-2252 x 4456

All participants have access to the Niagara College Libraries, which are located at the Niagara-on-the-Lake and Welland Campuses and are Web-accessible from home. The Centres feature indexing and full-text content for 1,150 business journals, magazines and newspapers; Netlibrary, a collection of 5,800 e-Books that are keyword searchable; and Search Portfolio, which provides links to "best of the web" resources for online newspapers, directories, fast facts, government information, etc.
 

Our Business Basics program is also offered in an online version. Participants progress through the units and worksheets online with the support of an expert instructor over a 14-week period. Weekly online discussion groups allow participants from a wide variety of locations and backgrounds to interact personally with each other and the instructor, sharing ideas as well as their own stories and issues. The topics covered are the same as for the in-class program (see above).

Business Basics Online has been delivered to participants throughout North America and internationally. Please see the list of technical requirements below. The Concept Development Manual can be shipped internationally either in hard copy or on CD; shipping is included in the course fee.

The Business Basics Online Program is currently available to contracted groups only. We are looking at creating a format for individuals; please check back for more information at a later date. 

For more information, phone 905-641-2252 x 4456

Technical Requirements:
access to the Internet and an e-mail account
Windows 98 or higher
Microsoft Office Word 2003
Microsoft Office Excel 2003
Adobe Reader (5.0 or higher)

How to Manage Your Business Records (formerly Managing Your 1st Year Finances)
3 hours, 6:30 pm - 9:30pm; offered monthly
Fee: included in Self-Employment Benefit Program; $59 for general public
Upcoming Sessions: on hold until further notice

Business Plan Workshop
6 hours, 9:00am to 4:00pm with break for lunch (not. incl.)
Fee: included in Self-Employment Benefit Program and Jump Start Program; $79 for general public
Upcoming Sessions: on hold until further notice

Business Plan Clinic
3 hours – twice monthly on selected Fridays, 9:00am to 12:00pm
Fee: included in Business Plan Workshop price
Upcoming Sessions: on hold until further notice

How to Boost Your Sales Results (formerly Basics of Selling)
3 hours, 6:30 pm - 9:30pm; offered monthly
Fee: included in Self-Employment Benefit Program; $59 for general public
Upcoming Sessions: on hold until further notice

This innovative 3-day business training program, developed in conjunction with Niagara College and the Business Development Centre (BDC) specifically for business people working in the farm sector, will prepare farm families to approach their farm operation from a fresh perspective.

You’ll have a better understanding of your strengths and weaknesses and will learn practical business skills from seasoned professionals. An experienced coach/trainer will help you develop a working Business Plan that will allow you to operate your existing farm business more efficiently and/or start up a successful supplementary business.

This program is being restructured. For more information, please check back at a later date.