This story originally appeared in the August 13 edition of the Laurel Star. is posted with permission and the original article can be read here: Tony Russon Digital Clips

Project Opportunity free entrepreneur training for vets will be offered this fall. There is an interest meeting beginning 6:30 p.m. Monday, Aug. 24, at the Wicomico Partnership, 408 Cole Circle in Salisbury.

Military service can give a person access to as much self-knowledge as it can intellectual knowledge. Training teaches them a skill, but it also teaches a lesson about limits and wherewithal. Increasingly, though, learning to translate military training into marketable private sector skills upon discharge can be difficult. This seems to be particularly true in Maryland, which has the highest unemployed veteran rate in the country.

Project Opportunity, a program aimed at walking vets through the entrepreneurial process, aims to change that. Founded by Army veteran Joe Giordano, Salisbury, Md., in 2010, Project Opportunity provides veterans from throughout the peninsula who have the will a way to focus their drive. Over the course of a little more than two months, participants will learn to create a solid business plan and then write that plan.

The ten-week course can be challenging, even for people who already have endured boot camp, but in the end, the successful participants have a document they can take to a bank, investors, or one of the other entrepreneurial support programs, like SCORE or the Salisbury Small Business Development Center.
Over the last five years, Giordano has held at least two sessions per year all over the middle of the state. He’s had a hand in helping successful entrepreneurs on the Eastern Shore, in Anne Arundel and Howard counties and throughout southern Maryland. Over the last five years, more than 140 people have graduated from the program, one-third of whom were on the Eastern Shore. Giordano said the program has an 87-percent completion rate.

When he started Project Opportunity, Giordano already had more than a decade of private sector experience in workforce development. Working with states, counties and municipalities as well as private industry, he was able to put his organizational experience from the military to good use in the private sector.
But experience is only part of the equation. Giordano knew he needed the right tools to accomplish his vision of establishing a free program to help veterans bring their ideas into the real world. To that end, he elected to follow the NxLevel Curriculum, a nationally recognized training program. Using the guidelines and course materials Giordano constructed the bones of the program.

As with any other project, it requires a lot of people with a lot of expertise to get all the work that needs to be done completed. Small business owners have to, at the very least, have a working knowledge of the financial, marketing and legal aspects of running a business. To this end, Giordano engages speakers who come in and do workshops with the students: bankers review their cash flow analyses, marketing professionals review their marketing plans, etc.
At the end, students know whether or not their plan needs more work or whether it might make sense to begin seeking finance immediately. In either case, the program already will have given them the tools they need to take the next step.

The training is intensive, so people are encouraged to have a working idea about the business they would like to start.

“I need veterans who are focused, because we hit the ground running,” Giordano said.

The program includes 30 hours of classroom time (three hours per week for 10 weeks) and about 25 hours per week of homework.
The homework is for real. The Project Opportunity training assumes that people come to work. Giordano said that for many, the first week is the hardest, because even though the participants believe they know what it is like to have to do 25 hours of extra work every week, it isn’t until they are in the middle of it that the true implications hit home.

“When we tell them there’s 25 hours of outside work, a lot of times I don’t think they understand what that means,” Giordano said.

Before the classes start in September, there is an interest meeting, to give people a program overview.

“I call it the good the bad and the ugly of entrepreneurial training,” Giordano said.

During the two hour presentation, he lays out the course description and takes questions about procedures and opportunities. Even though the classes are free, class space is limited, so it is important that people who are interested are prepared to make the commitment. Commitment and dedication aren’t a real problem for veterans, but it is critical that they are informed about the entire project.

This session of classes will be split between Easton and Salisbury. The Easton classes will be held at the DLLR Workforce Center on Bay Street, and the Salisbury classes will be held at the Wicomico Partnership on Coles Circle.

Click here for a copy of the original press release.

Joe Giordano, with Project Opportunity was recently recognized and awarded the 2014 Maryland Small Business Week Award in the “Veteran Small Business Champion of the Year”. Congratulations Joe, and all of the other winners below.

BALTIMORE—The winners of the 2014 Maryland Small Business Week Awards Program were announced today by Stephen D. Umberger, District Director of the U.S. Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Baltimore District Office. Winners will be honored at the 30th Annual Maryland Small Business Week Awards Luncheon Thursday, May 15th at Martin’s West in Woodlawn, Md.

This year’s winners are:

• Accountant Advocate of the Year: Donald Cunningham, Donald Cunningham, CPA LLC, Millersville
• Attorney Advocate of the Year: Chad Malkus, Esq., Michael Hodes, LLC, Cambridge
• District Director’s Unsung Hero Award: Rich Loeffler, Maryland Small Business & Technology Development Center, Wye Mills
• Entrepreneurial Success of the Year: Danny Farrar & David Posin, Soldierfit, Frederick
• Family Owned Small Business of the Year: Kim Lawson, Fishpaws Marketplace, Arnold
• Financial Services Champion of the Year: Steve Primosch, Anne Arundel Economic Development Corp., Annapolis
• Home-Based Business Champion of the Year: Barbara Zimmer, B. Zimmer & Co., Pasadena
• Insurance Advocate: Nancy Ann Nicklow, W. Ray Huff Insurance, Pasadena
• Maryland Small Business Person of the Year: Stephanie Novak Hau, Chesapeake Environmental Management, Bel Air
• Minority Small Business Champion of the Year: Charles Ramos, CR Dynamics, Baltimore
• Small Business Exporter of the Year: John Doran, Centreville Trailers, Centreville
• Veteran Small Business Champion of the Year: Joe Giordano, Project Opportunity, Salisbury
• Women in Business Champion of the Year: Shabri Moore, Moore Wealth, Inc., Frederick
• Young Entrepreneur of the Year: Matt Wyble, Champion Realty, Severna Park

Each year the President of the United States declares national small business week in celebration of the contributions of the small business community to the nation’s economy. The SBA holds the annual awards competition to recognize outstanding small business owners and their advocates. National Small Business Week activities will be held May 12-16, 2014 at various locations across the country.

For more information contact Rachel Howard at (443) 848-7025 or at [email protected]. For information on the 2014 Maryland Small Business Week Awards Luncheon or for tickets, visit the event website at www.mdsbwawards.org.

– Originally posted on November 24th, 2013 by SHANTEÉ WOODARDS for the Capital Gazette. You can read the original article here.

Tim Longmire wants to start a business that eventually provides 24-hour grooming and other services to dogs.

First, he needs a storefront. And financing. And a bunch of other things he wasn’t sure about until he entered Project Opportunity. The Navy veteran is part of the first Annapolis group to be involved in a 10-week program that teaches veterans how to become entrepreneurs. As a result, he and his wife plan to move forward with Bark, Bathe, Board & Beyond by 2015 at the latest.

“(The program) had very knowledgeable people in the field and you could ask them anything you wanted. You didn’t have to sit on the phone,” said Longmire, an Arnold resident who was once stationed at Pearl Harbor. He added that he thinks his military training prepared him for the entrepreneurial lifestyle.

“One of the key things that was always beaten in my head is details, details, details. You’ve got to pay attention to details and you’ve got to adapt.”

In 2010, Consulting, Training, and Development Services launched Project Opportunity as a way to help veterans who wanted to start a business on the Eastern Shore. Since then, 26 have completed the program.

This year, the Annapolis Economic Development Corp. partnered with Consulting, Training, and Development Services and the state Technology Development Corp. to offer the free program locally. Eighty veterans applied and that was later whittled down to the 11 who completed the courses. Two more events are being planned in the county, and they will launch in the winter and spring.

Statistics show that veteran-owned firms have annual sales of $1.2 trillion, nearly 6 million employees and a payroll of about $210 billion. The U.S. Small Business Administration’s 2012 report on veteran-owned firms found that veterans represented 9 percent of all companies in the country in 2007, the latest statistics available. That included roughly 54,000 firms in Maryland with $25 million in sales, according to the report.

At last week’s graduation ceremony at Loews Annapolis, Project Opportunity veterans were encouraged to look to Marine Maj. Rob Dyer for inspiration.

The Annapolis resident launched RuckPack — a vitamin and energy shot — with his military friends. After a series of challenges, he landed on ABC’s Shark Tank last year. He gained a $150,000 deal with Kevin O’Leary and Robert Herjavec getting a 20 percent stake in the company.

Since then, the company has made $500,000 and has signed a national deal with Walgreens.

Still, his sleepless nights have not ended, and he encouraged Project Opportunity participants not to give up their day jobs immediately. He continues to teach at the Naval Academy.

“You stay flexible and you grind. You grind like nobody else can because nobody else knows what veteran life is like,” said Dyer, who was the keynote speaker at Project Opportunity’s graduation ceremony.

“If somebody says ‘Man, this is tough,’ this isn’t boot camp tough. … It’s not that bad. I didn’t even get shot at today, yet. When that becomes your fallback matrix, you figure out you can do anything.”

Brenda Dilts led the Project Opportunity sessions, which were held on Tuesday evenings at Maryland Hall. Each night included a guest speaker, as well as information on marketing, financing and management. The goal was to get participants to apply what they learned to their own business plan.

Their final project was to whittle their goals down to a three- to five-minute pitch speech, which they delivered at the graduation ceremony. In front of family and friends, they pitched plans that included nanny services, cellular phones, technical consultation and diabetes research.

Navy veteran Jimmie Bell’s signature phrase “Fluck It” is being sold on T-shirts, jackets and other apparel through his website. He aims to use it to encourage positive thinking among teenagers and other young people.

“My message to them is ‘fluck it,’?” Bell said in his pitch speech. “You control your destiny. You control what happens to you. If you want to do something, say you’re going to do it. Put the ball in motion and start making it happen. Fluck it, no matter what somebody tells you.”

The following article was originally written by Emilie Eastman on Monday, March 4, 2013, For The Capital. The original article can be found online here: Capital Gazette – Article on Project Opportunity.

Joe Giordano says it’s a no brainer.

The retired U.S. Army Master Sergeant started Project Opportunity to provide military veterans free business startup training. Through a 10-week program based off the NxLeveL for Entrepreneurs business program, Maryland veterans will research, develop and eventually create their own businesses.

“I think it’s something they’ve earned,” Giordano said.

Giordano launched his entrepreneur program three years ago and has 35 graduates. This spring, Project Opportunity is expanding from the nine counties of the Eastern Shore where it began to Columbia and Southern Maryland, reaching Annapolis by the end of the summer.

Annapolis Economic Development Corp. is partnering with Project Opportunity’s Annapolis branch. She said the program could make a significant impact on the city that is home to the U.S. Naval Academy and scores of retired veterans.

“I hope to see every veteran who goes through Project Opportunity in Annapolis ultimately start their own business,” said AEDC CEO Lara Fritts. “We hope they’ll be able to grow here.”

Fritts, whose husband and father are veterans, said her group “really liked the veteran component to this, and knowing Joe was a veteran himself made it a great opportunity.”

Giordano owns Consulting, Training, and Development Services . When he started Project Opportunity, he was looking for veterans who were “focused and knew what type of business they would like to start,” he said.

He wanted to give them the tools they needed to succeed because, “you can’t start a business without a business plan,” he said.

Giordano is expanding his program beyond the Bay Bridge after veterans across the state requested classes closer to their homes, he said. The three new programs are already funded, including textbooks for the participants.

The graduates of Project Opportunity have developed or expanded business plans that run the gamut, including a website development company, a clothing design business, a private investigation and security company, a bakery and a dog-breeding business, Giordano said. Participants range in age from 20 to 60 and are split almost evenly between male and female, he said.

Adrian Holmes said Giordano’s program is rigorous. The 50-year-old Ridgely resident served in the Air Force for 15 years. She said Project Opportunity is challenging but rewarding.

“When I met Joe … he was very tough,” she said. “He wouldn’t even send us classwork until we went to the first class.”

Holmes partnered with another Project Opportunity participant, Jermaine Anderson, 40, of Cambridge. They merged their businesses to create TNT Moving and Cleaning by Design

The firm offers moving and interior design services. The merger gives clients more bang for their buck because people who are moving often need help designing or re-designing, Holmes said.

TNT currently provides services across Maryland and has even been as far as Connecticut, Texas and Florida, she said.

Holmes said the program sends an important message.

“I think this program epitomizes who veterans are as citizens — their creativity and their camaraderie,” she said. “When we … run our businesses, we go to it like we’re going to Iraq. That’s just how we roll.”

Anderson said the program is based on universal principles and forces participants to adopt an entrepreneurial outlook.

“I think [Project Opportunity] should be a national program,” he said.

Graduating is not a simple feat. The programs requiring about 15 hours of homework per week. Before entering, Giordano gives interested veterans a 45-minute screening assessment.

Then, he chooses the best candidates. While some candidates are put on a waiting list, Giordano said they can re-apply.

Giordano has high standards for enrollees.

“They call me a drill sergeant because I work them hard,” he said. “But I think by the end of 10 weeks, when they see their business plan come together, they appreciate the time and effort they put into it.”

2011 was the second year that Project Opportunity was conducted. It is a free eleven week entrepreneurship training program that meets one night a week for three hours and is designed solely for veterans who want to start their own business. The pre requisite for veterans who wished to be considered to participate was that they had to have a solid idea of what business venture they wanted to start because the course is designed to develop and complete a business plan instead of just exploring the possibility of entrepreneurship. Additionally they needed to commit a minimum of nine (9) hours per week to attend class, complete reading and homework assignments, and work on the development of their business plan.

Stage 1 was to schedule and conduct two outreach and educational orientation sessions, which were held in Easton and Salisbury. These two hour workshops were titled “Exploring Entrepreneurship” and included a discussion of why the individuals wanted to start their own small businesses, characteristics of successful entrepreneurs and completion of a self-assessment exercise. These sessions gave veterans aspiring to become entrepreneur”s information and resources needed to make an informed decision as to whether entrepreneurship is right for them. Lastly, the importance of a business plan and its components were discussed. A total of eighteen (18) veterans attended these two sessions and seventeen (17) of those in attendance indicated a desire to move forward to Stage 2.

Stage 2 was the conduct of a telephonic screening assessment to identify those veterans with characteristics that would make them good candidates to complete the training and move on to actually starting their own business. If after attending the “Exploring Entrepreneurship” workshop, the participants decide that they would like to continue in the process, they will be asked to participate in an assessment session. This session will take approximately one hour to complete. During the assessment exercise, individuals will be asked a series of questions to determine if they would be a good fit to move on to the next stage in the process. Sample questions will be: describe your business idea, why do you want to go into business, what experience do you have in the business you plan to start, who will buy your products and services and how will you attract these customers, how much money will you need to start/expand your business and where will you get it, when do you plan to start your business, what will be the biggest challenge in starting your business, what are your personal strengths that will contribute to being successful in your business, will you be able to commit to meeting one night a week to complete the ten week “Business Plan Bootcamp” course. A total of seventeen (17) veterans participated in this assessment process and based on the results and a follow up telephone conversation a total of fifteen (15) were selected to move on to Stage 3, the eleven (11) week training program. After the selection one individual withdraw due to conflicts with his work schedule and a second was unable to participate as he moved to the Philadelphia area to attend a trade school.

The third and final stage is an eleven week course entitled “Business Plan Bootcamp.” This course will help the veterans selected through the above process prepare a “bank ready” business plan.

The NxLevel Business Plan Basics Guide for Micro-Entrepreneurs textbook and accompanying training materials was used. The course outline was as follows:

• Week 1 – Assessing Your Business Idea and Business Planning
• Week 2 – The Marketing Plan and Marketing Analysis
• Week 3 – Product, Price, Placement, and Promotion
• Week 4 – Where is the Cash and Managing Money
• Week 5 – Financial Tips and Tools
• Week 6 – Networking and Selling Success
• Week 7 – Business Entities, Accounting Practices, and Government Oversight
• Week 8 – Management
• Week 9 – Websites and Social Media
• Week 10 – Procurement Opportunities Available to Veteran Owned Businesses
• Week 11 – Presentation of Business Concept and Graduation Ceremony

Each week a guest speaker presented additional information and subject matter expertise to the class. Guest speaker participation was as follows:

• Week 1 – Representative of SBDC discussed services available to program participants
• Week 2 – Representative of SBDC discussed marketing plan research
• Week 3 – Regional Director of Maryland Division of Rehabilitation Services discussed business grants and loans available to disabled veteran business owners and the process for applying for them
• Week 4 –Local business banker discussed cash flow analysis
• Week 5 – Local business banker discussed 5 C”s of credit and business loan applications and procedures
• Week 6 – Chamber of Commerce Director discussed selling strategies and networking
• Week 7 – Lawyer and accountant discussed different forms of incorporation with the pros and cons for each
• Week 8 – Representative from TEDCO discussed agency and loan/grant opportunitie4s available to small businesses in rural areas.
• Week 9 – Veteran owner of small web design firm discussed social networking and E-Commerce. Local insurance producer discussed various types of commercial insurances
• Week 10 – Veteran small business owner discussed state and federal contracting opportunities for veteran owned business as well as corporate supplier diversity programs. Federal contracting program manager discussed how to identify opportunities and sell yourself to federal procurement decision makers.

Twice during the program subject matter experts came in to meet with the participants and review their individual business plans. The first review was for the Marketing Plan portion and a representative from the SBDC and a small business owner of a local marketing and PR company joined the instructional staff in a constructive review of each plan. The second review was for the Financial Plan portion and subject matter experts from the Bank of America and local SCORE Chapter joined the instructional staff in a constructive review of each plan.

The last week of the program consists of the Graduation Ceremony. Each participant is required to give a three (3) minute summary of their business plan and answer any questions from the audience. Veterans are encouraged to invite family and friends to attend and join local donors and guest speakers in the celebration. The event is capped off with a catered meal for all in attendance. This year we were honored to have Secretary Edward Chow, Jr., from the Maryland Department of Veterans Affairs be the guest speaker for the event.

Thirteen veterans were selected to participate in the Business Plan Bootcamp and eleven completed the entire program. One individual withdraw after four (4) classes due to personal reasons and another withdraw after five (5) classes due to business related obligations but the remaining eleven completed the program and were given NxLevel Course Completion Certificates at the Graduation Ceremony.

Here is a listing of current and anticipated business ventures for the participants:

• Lawn Maintenance and Snow Removal
• Baker
• Website Design and Maintenance
• Website Design, Graphic Design, and Logo Design
• Property and Lawn Maintenance
• Living Assisted Facility
• IT Consulting
• Mobile Marine Repair
• Non Profit Community Center
• Non Profit Boys Basketball and Life Skills Program
• Internet Advertising and Veteran Assistance Center

Follow up status checks on all participants will be conducted at the end of February and early March 2012 to determine the status of their businesses at that time.