Wednesday, March 2, 2011

New Woman-Owned Business Small Business Program is just part of the equation

Now that the Final Rule aimed at expanding federal contracting opportunities for women-owned small businesses (WOSBs) is effective, can funding be appropriated? There are good reasons to reduce Federal spending and perhaps there is some positive movement to do so wisely by reducing duplicate federal programs.

So, if funding can be responsibly appropriated, will banks be open to lending to firms to keep the wheels turning? Commitment to Government projects does not come without significant operational costs. The January 2011 Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey on Bank Lending Practices  states that few banks reported changing or easing standards on commercial loans to small firms.

In addition to programs to get more under-represented firms in the game, additional action is required from lenders to keep small businesses on the playing field. Hopefully lending institutions, which hold the grease that oils the American economic engine of small business, will see the long term benefit of helping small business to put local talent to work, whether the business is owned by a woman or not. Pretty simple equation: access to meaningful projects plus access to capital equals increased payrolls, which translates into lots of financial transactions for the banking institutions.