Holland College announced today the launch of PEI's first Small Business Counsellor Program in partnership with the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency and the four Atlantic provinces.
Holland College developed the Atlantic-based program on behalf of ACOA. The program is now administered by the Institute of Small Business Counsellors, Inc. and is delivered through centres located at Acadia University Centre for Small Business and Entrepreneurship and at University College of Cape Breton in Nova Scotia, the Memramcook Institute near Moncton, N.B., the University of New Brunswick, and the P.J. Gardiner Institute for Small Business at Memorial University, Newfoundland.
On PEI the program will be offered through the Local Delivery Centre at Holland College in Charlottetown. The centre was developed in response to a need to provide professional development training for small business counsellors across the Island.
‘The purpose of the program is to provide business counsellors with access to professional development training,' says Lawrence MacAulay, Secretary of State (Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA) and Veterans). ‘This initiative is in response to a growing need within the Atlantic business sector for these types of services and is extremely important to support our growing small and medium size business sectors.'
The program has been established to develop a set of standards for the small business counselling profession, to provide a means of accreditation for people who are delivering small business counselling, and to improve the overall quality of counselling and level of service being offered to small business clients.
‘The development of small- to medium-sized businesses is at the heart of our economy on Prince Edward Island,' said Robert Morrissey, Minister of Economic Development and Tourism. ‘We are hoping to create an environment which supports entrepreneurs by providing them with accessibility to trained and accredited small business counsellors.'
The program provides an opportunity for small business counsellors to expand on existing skills including marketing, financial and business planning, and effective counselling techniques.
‘Holland College developed this program for individuals who are currently offering small business counselling and are interested in ongoing opportunities for professional development,' said Paul Connolly, Director of Business Department, Holland College. ‘It also offers certification in the their field, and the opportunity to network with other professional across the region.'
Program Director, Katherine McMillan, will be implementing the Small Business Counsellor Program across the Island. McMillan has a strong business background, having taught the Retail Management Program at Holland College, as well as having over 15 years experience running her own small business in Charlottetown, PEI.
Small Business Counsellor Program marks the first of several new Holland College initiatives in the field of small business training and support.