May 23-25: SBA's Free Forums to Address Key Small-Biz Concerns During National Small Business Week

The small-business public is encouraged to take part in this year's National Small Business Week town hall meeting and business forums, addressing key small-business concerns.

Participants will have an opportunity to exchange ideas and dialogue on relevant issues for small businesses with leading business experts during National Small Business Week, May 23-25, in Washington, D.C.

The town hall meeting and business forums are free, and will be held at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel and Conference Center, 1330 Maryland Ave., SW, in Washington, D.C.

U.S. Small Business Administration [SBA] events on issues that impact small business and the economy include:
* Town Hall Meeting: "Small Business: Driving America’s Economy"
* Innovation Forum: "Turning Innovation Into Jobs"
* Exporting Forum: "Taking Your Business Global"
* Social Media Forum: "Join the Conversation"

Among this year's distinguished town hall and forum moderators and speakers:
* JJ Ramberg, MSNBC Host, "Your Business"; and Town Hall Meeting Moderator
* Sean Greene, SBA Innovation Special Adviser; and Innovation Forum Moderator
* Luz Hopewell, SBA International Tradel; and Exporting Forum Moderator
* Brian Moran, Veracle Media LLC; and Social Media Forum Moderator
* Ray LaHood, Secretary of Transportation
* Janet Napolitano, Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security
* Scott Griffith, Chairman & CEO, Zipcar
* Dinesh Lathi, eBay North America Marketplace
* Stephen P. Zimba, Cbeyond
* Claire Johnson, Google
* Dale Hayes, UPS
* Angus Thomson, Intuit Grow Your Business Division
* Luther Lowe, Yelp
* Rieva Lesonsky, GrowBiz Media

2010 Schedule of SBA-Sponsored Events
May 24, 2010 -- Mandarin Oriental Hotel and Conference Center
* 10:45 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. -- Town Hall with SBA Administrator Karen G. Mills
* 2:00 p.m. - 3:15 p.m. -- Innovation Forum
* 3:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. -- Exporting Forum
Sponsors: eBay, Cbeyond and UPS

May 25, 2010 -- Mandarin Oriental Hotel and Conference Center
* 10:30 a.m. - 11:45 p.m. -- Social Media Forum
Sponsor: Intuit

Visit http://www.NationalSmallBusinessWeek.com/ to register for forums, and for the full National Small Business Week schedule.

Live Webcasts Available
For participants who are unable to attend National Small Business Week events in Washington, D.C., the town hall meeting and business forums will be webcast live online at http://www.NationalSmallBusinessWeek.com/.

2010 Small Business Week sponsors and co-sponsors include: Sam’s Club, Visa, Ford, ADP, Raytheon, Cbeyond, UPS, Intuit, Google, eBay, AT&T, Northrop Grumman, Lockheed Martin, D&B, Verio, ASBDC, NADCO, NAGGL, NASE, NSBA, WIPP and SCORE.

To view highlights of 2009 National Small Business Week events, visit: http://bit.ly/SmallBizWeek2009.

To learn about Small Business Week events in your area, go to: http://bit.ly/SmallBizRegion.

To stay informed about SBA's efforts to simultaneously promote entrepreneurship and economic recovery, bookmark the following URL: http://bit.ly/RecoverySBA.

SOURCE: U.S. Small Business Administration
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