About Us

Who is the Small Business Development Center and what do we do?

The University of West Georgia Small Business Development Center (UWG SBDC) is part of the Richards College of Business and is one of 17 centers in the Georgia SBDC Network. Our professional business consultants at the UWG SBDC offer confidential, consulting services free of charge to companies seeking management, marketing, and financial advice.

Some assistance is also provided to pre-venture businesses that have gathered the necessary information and are ready to move forward. The UWG SBDC serves Carroll, Coweta, Douglas, Haralson, Heard and Polk counties.

The impact of small businesses on the Georgia economy should not be underestimated. According to the latest data from the SBA, small businesses account for 97.5 percent of all the businesses in Georgia and employ 43.5 percent of the state’s non-farm, private sector workers. Similarly for the nation, 99.7 percent of all businesses are defined as “small” (less than 500 employees) and they employ 50.1 percent of the nation’s workforce. Georgia is often cited in the popular press as well as academic publications as a leader in entrepreneurship.

By working with thousands of small businesses every year, the Georgia SBDC Network has a clear perspective on the challenges and special issues that small businesses must overcome in order to succeed in today’s economy. Through formal and informal needs assessments, we check the pulse of the small business community and develop consulting tools and training programs in direct response to the areas of greatest need.

The Georgia SBDC Network is proud to be the premiere service provider to the state’s small businesses. Georgia has a long history with the SBDC program, as one of the original pilot programs for the nation. Through the continued support of Congress via the SBA and the University System of Georgia, the Georgia SBDC Network assists small businesses in bringing innovations to the world market and jobs to our citizens.