So, just how is American entrepreneurship doing these days? According to SBA Administrator Maria Contreras-Sweet, conditions have improved, but there’s still a lot of work to be done to make sure America remains a great place to start a business.
Contreras-Sweet presented her State of Entrepreneurship Address in a place where many young companies hope to be someday: NASDAQ.
“From Main Street to Wall Street, the state of entrepreneurship is strong,” she said. “But without our serious attention, it won’t stay that way. In ways large and small, America is changing.
“You can feel the tectonic plates shifting beneath our feet: Our demographics are changing rapidly. There’s an increased focus on gender equity, which is long overdue. The clean energy revolution is real and gaining momentum. The new gig economy has people working in ways we’d never dreamed of and is disrupting entrenched economic interests.”
Among her recommendations:
>> Local governments need to reduce the paperwork burden for new businesses. According to the World Bank, the United States ranks 49th on a 189-country list of the easiest places to start a business.
>> More banks need to be involved in small business lending. Only a third of U.S. banks are SBA lenders, and small business credit is about 83 percent of what it was before the Great Recession. Banks are needed to provide an alternative to online lenders, who often charge higher rates.
>> Investors need to start looking at young, diverse companies that aren’t receiving a lot of attention right now.
“Only if we all do our part will America remain the world leader in entrepreneurship and innovation,” Contreras-Sweet said.
