2016 is set to be another successful year for the Kansas Small Business Development Center at Johnson County Community College, which has a new director.

Elisa Waldman is replacing Malinda Bryan-Smith, who was promoted to director of grants, leadership and development at JCCC.

Waldman has been with KSBDC for nearly a decade now as a full-time consultant helping new and existing small business owners in Johnson, Wyandotte and Miami counties. Elisa understands the important work of KSBDC, as she herself used its services to help start her own business, Paint, Glaze & Fire, a paint-your-own pottery studio several years ago. (She ended up selling the business in 2005.)

Waldman already has big plans for the center this year. “I feel we have the opportunity this year to reach out to business owners who are considering exporting.”

She said the U.S. Small Business Administration and other federal agencies are putting a lot of resources into exporting, and KSBDC wants to help with that effort. The center is even offering its first class on the topic, “the Riddle of the Exporter,” this Friday, Jan. 29.

KSBDC is pushing its boundaries this year to expand the business services it offers to entrepreneurs and small business owners. With dynamic classes for those wishing to start a business and three full-time professional business consultants serving existing businesses, Waldman said KSBDC wants to help area companies achieve growth.

“Overall, our hope is to help existing businesses find new areas of growth and revenue, with one of those areas clearly being exporting,” Waldman said. “Another is government procurement, and lastly long-term strategic planning.”

KSBDC is starting a new five-session program called GAME—which stands for Growth through Action, Measurement and Engagement—designed to help small businesses learn better strategic planning skills so they can grow their revenue quickly.

“It’s been really exciting because there’s been so much going on in business in the KC metro area,” Waldman said, “we are focused on what’s the most helpful for small business owners. We believe that these new programs are realistic, and will yield great outcomes for our clients.”

If you’re interested in some of the new programs offered at KSBDC this year, visit the center’s website or call 913-469-3878.