The Small Business Association of Michigan's Small Business Weekly Podcast

“Who would have thought, huh? -- it just goes to show you that hard work and dedication will get you far in this world,” says SBAM VIP member Karen Pauwels, who rose from company receptionist to President & Treasurer of Industrial Servo Hydraulics Inc. in Fraser. Hear more about her success journey when she talks with Michael Rogers on SBAM’s Weekly Podcast.

The Small Business Association of Michigan is the only statewide and state-based association that focuses solely on serving the needs of Michigan’s small business community. We have been successfully serving small businesses like yours in all 83 counties of Michigan since 1969. We’re located in Lansing, just one block from the Capitol.

Our mission is to help Michigan small businesses succeed by promoting entrepreneurship, leveraging buying power and engaging in political advocacy. When small businesses band together through the Small Business Association of Michigan, they achieve more than they could on their own. 

Our 26,000+ members are as diverse as Michigan's economy. From accountants to appliance stores, manufacturers to medical, and restaurants to retailers, what unites the SBAM membership is the spirit of entrepreneurship…a spirit that drove you to start and continue to operate your own business because you believe you can do something better than anyone else is doing it!

(music licensed from www.jukedeck.com)

One of Michigan’s preeminent small business leaders says leadership can come from the top but also has to involve active listening. “I firmly believe that your company, a small business, is a living breathing thing -- it needs, it wants, it provides, it takes, and left to its own devices, it could either wither and die or turn on the owner like an ill-trained animal,” says David Rhoa, president of the Marana Group and a past chair of the Small Business Association of Michigan. “Because of this, you have to listen to the story that's constantly being told by your company and that's being told by your employees, your customers, your markets, your financials.”

Hear more small business leadership insights when David Rhoa talks with Michael Rogers on SBAM’s Weekly Podcast.

The Small Business Association of Michigan is the only statewide and state-based association that focuses solely on serving the needs of Michigan’s small business community. We have been successfully serving small businesses like yours in all 83 counties of Michigan since 1969. We’re located in Lansing, just one block from the Capitol.

Our mission is to help Michigan small businesses succeed by promoting entrepreneurship, leveraging buying power and engaging in political advocacy. When small businesses band together through the Small Business Association of Michigan, they achieve more than they could on their own. 

Our 26,000+ members are as diverse as Michigan's economy. From accountants to appliance stores, manufacturers to medical, and restaurants to retailers, what unites the SBAM membership is the spirit of entrepreneurship…a spirit that drove you to start and continue to operate your own business because you believe you can do something better than anyone else is doing it!

(music licensed from www.jukedeck.com)

A Traverse City specialty meat market is open during the COVID-19 lockdown and doubling down on serving the needs of their northwest Michigan community. Stephanie Wilson is a VIP member of SBAM and co-owner (with her husband) of Max Bauer Speciality Meats. Learn more when Wilson talks with Michael Rogers on SBAM’s Weekly Podcast.

The Small Business Association of Michigan is the only statewide and state-based association that focuses solely on serving the needs of Michigan’s small business community. We have been successfully serving small businesses like yours in all 83 counties of Michigan since 1969. We’re located in Lansing, just one block from the Capitol.

Our mission is to help Michigan small businesses succeed by promoting entrepreneurship, leveraging buying power and engaging in political advocacy. When small businesses band together through the Small Business Association of Michigan, they achieve more than they could on their own. 

Our 26,000+ members are as diverse as Michigan's economy. From accountants to appliance stores, manufacturers to medical, and restaurants to retailers, what unites the SBAM membership is the spirit of entrepreneurship…a spirit that drove you to start and continue to operate your own business because you believe you can do something better than anyone else is doing it!

(music licensed from www.jukedeck.com)

SBAM member Ben LaCross of LaCross Farm and Leelanau Fruit Company has been recognized as a “Top 40 under 40” most influential business leader in the Northern Michigan area. “What drives me so much to continue to network with other people, such as the Small Business Association of Michigan and some other groups, [is that they] really do a wonderful job of  reminding people that there is something in rural economies and agriculture is the driver of those economies.”

Learn more about the northern Michigan fruit business when Ben LaCross talks with Michael Rogers on SBAM’s Weekly Podcast.

The Small Business Association of Michigan is the only statewide and state-based association that focuses solely on serving the needs of Michigan’s small business community. We have been successfully serving small businesses like yours in all 83 counties of Michigan since 1969. We’re located in Lansing, just one block from the Capitol.

Our mission is to help Michigan small businesses succeed by promoting entrepreneurship, leveraging buying power and engaging in political advocacy. When small businesses band together through the Small Business Association of Michigan, they achieve more than they could on their own. 

Our 26,000+ members are as diverse as Michigan's economy. From accountants to appliance stores, manufacturers to medical, and restaurants to retailers, what unites the SBAM membership is the spirit of entrepreneurship…a spirit that drove you to start and continue to operate your own business because you believe you can do something better than anyone else is doing it!

(music licensed from www.jukedeck.com)

John Forsberg, owner of i2Integration in Grand Ledge and a VIP member of the Small Business Association of Michigan, is a big proponent of a concept called design thinking. “It's a methodology, you're bringing business and design and tech teams together toward a project and building a solution under a unified vision. And really, what it's all tailored to is the user who is the final user of that solution and building it around them,” he says.

Hear John describe the four components of design thinking when he talks with Michael Rogers on SBAM’s Weekly Podcast.

The Small Business Association of Michigan is the only statewide and state-based association that focuses solely on serving the needs of Michigan’s small business community. We have been successfully serving small businesses like yours in all 83 counties of Michigan since 1969. We’re located in Lansing, just one block from the Capitol.

Our mission is to help Michigan small businesses succeed by promoting entrepreneurship, leveraging buying power and engaging in political advocacy. When small businesses band together through the Small Business Association of Michigan, they achieve more than they could on their own. 

Our 26,000+ members are as diverse as Michigan's economy. From accountants to appliance stores, manufacturers to medical, and restaurants to retailers, what unites the SBAM membership is the spirit of entrepreneurship…a spirit that drove you to start and continue to operate your own business because you believe you can do something better than anyone else is doing it!

(music licensed from www.jukedeck.com)

One of the biggest technology challenges facing small business owners in 2020 is figuring out how to make the right investments. “We see a common thread when we come to a prospect or a new client or whatever, where there hasn't been a plan, there hasn't been a strategy around where that investment is going says Mike Schipper, founder and CEO of insITe Business Solutions in Zeeland, a VIP member of the Small Business Association of Michigan. “We talk about it internally a lot and I speak with our clients about it, it's really turning cost into investment. So that's a consistent challenge.”

Learn more about Mike’s company and his unique “ESIM Mindset” when he talks with Michael Rogers on SBAM’s Weekly Podcast.

The Small Business Association of Michigan is the only statewide and state-based association that focuses solely on serving the needs of Michigan’s small business community. We have been successfully serving small businesses like yours in all 83 counties of Michigan since 1969. We’re located in Lansing, just one block from the Capitol.

Our mission is to help Michigan small businesses succeed by promoting entrepreneurship, leveraging buying power and engaging in political advocacy. When small businesses band together through the Small Business Association of Michigan, they achieve more than they could on their own. 

Our 26,000+ members are as diverse as Michigan's economy. From accountants to appliance stores, manufacturers to medical, and restaurants to retailers, what unites the SBAM membership is the spirit of entrepreneurship…a spirit that drove you to start and continue to operate your own business because you believe you can do something better than anyone else is doing it!

(music licensed from www.jukedeck.com)

Where do you get the most bang for your buck when it comes to saving energy in your small business?

“The low-hanging fruit is lights, the second one is EC motors, which stands for electronically commutated,” says Roy Rabban, Vice President of Energy Saving Technologies of America, Inc, and a VIP member of the Small Business Association of Michigan. “Half of the world's energy is used by motors. And the motors that I go and replace with controls can cut the energy use on motors anywhere from, let's say, 50-70% or more, depending on the situation.”

Learn more about small business energy savings when Roy Rabban talks with Michael Rogers on SBAM’s Weekly Podcast.

The Small Business Association of Michigan is the only statewide and state-based association that focuses solely on serving the needs of Michigan’s small business community. We have been successfully serving small businesses like yours in all 83 counties of Michigan since 1969. We’re located in Lansing, just one block from the Capitol.

Our mission is to help Michigan small businesses succeed by promoting entrepreneurship, leveraging buying power and engaging in political advocacy. When small businesses band together through the Small Business Association of Michigan, they achieve more than they could on their own. 

Our 26,000+ members are as diverse as Michigan's economy. From accountants to appliance stores, manufacturers to medical, and restaurants to retailers, what unites the SBAM membership is the spirit of entrepreneurship…a spirit that drove you to start and continue to operate your own business because you believe you can do something better than anyone else is doing it!

(music licensed from www.jukedeck.com)

Committed and involved volunteers are key to the success of a southeast Michigan non-profit that assists families of kids who have lost parents. Diane Lazette is executive director of Yatooma’s Foundation For The Kids -- a VIP member of the Small Business Association of Michigan. Learn more about Yatooma’s Foundation For The Kids when Diane Lazette talks with Michael Rogers on SBAM’s Weekly Podcast.

Despite the widespread use of online communications tools, there’s just something special about an effective face-to-face business meeting. “You cannot replace that time that you get with people making human connection,” says Allison Beers, owner of meeting and event management agency EventsNorth in Traverse City. Learn more about the latest trends in business event planning when Allison Beers talks with Michael Rogers on SBAM’s Weekly Podcast.

Mike Helmer is the executive director of Randy’s House and a VIP member of SBAM. The Randy’s House mission is to help restore the individual seeking recovery to mental, physical, and spiritual wellness; and to educate the public about the dangers, disease process, and treatment options available to the Substance Use Disorder (SUD) community, families and employers.