State Director of the New Hampshire Small Business Development Center

The Peter T. Paul College of Business and Economics at the University of New Hampshire seeks interested applicants for the position of State Director of the New Hampshire Small Business Development Center (NH SBDC).  

 

The NH SBDC has operated in New Hampshire since 1984 and has built a reputation in the State for high quality, in-depth business advising. NH SBDC has been recognized publicly with awards from Business NH Magazine and New Hampshire Business Review for its outstanding work. The NH SBDC is part of a national network of 62 SBDCs, which operate in each U.S. state and territory as part of the U.S. Small Business Administration’s (SBA) suite of Resource Partners. The State Director’s role, at a high level, is to simultaneously oversee the administration of the program per federal guidelines, while driving innovation locally based on state and regional needs.

 

The State Director provides vision and leadership in creating, implementing and administering business and economic development programs for small businesses throughout the State of New Hampshire. The Director is responsible for maintaining a fully accredited (ASBDC) statewide program which includes the lead center located at Paul College in Durham, seven regional business advising centers, satellite offices and a statewide education program, as well as specialty programs including e-Learning, Environmental Management, Exporting and others.  The Director implements policies and procedures for the financial and programmatic administration of the statewide SBDC network and is responsible for meeting standards and outcomes for periodic U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) program and financial reviews and a national accreditation review every five years.

 

The State Director is responsible for:

 

Vision and Strategic Direction:  Responsible for positioning the NH SBDC to meet the needs of New Hampshire's small businesses with particular attention to technical assistance, innovation, collaboration and communication, impact and measurement, technology and the environment to sustain the NH SBDC as an effective organization in the 21st century. 

 

Leadership: Provide direction and management support for 14 full and part-time professional staff, who operate regionally. Staff are primarily business advisors, but include program support, administrative staff and an educational program staff member. 

 

Set and monitor key measures insuring that national accreditation standards are met.  Communicate and maintain relationships with federal and state stakeholders including the Governor's office, the NH State Legislature, U.S. Senators and Representatives; promote and build new relationships with public and private partners including economic development agencies, community colleges, lenders and others.  Work effectively with an engaged advisory board. 

 

Host Relationships: The NH SBDC has been hosted by the University of New Hampshire since the program’s founding in the state, and the program relies on this partnership for programmatic support (e.g., grant administration support and accounting), office space and the strategic development of research and educational opportunities that are mutually beneficial to the NH SBDC’s clients and Paul College students.  Maintaining relationships and a commitment to moving these relationships forward is crucial for the State Director.

 

Engagement with ASBDC:  The national network of SBDCs are connected through a national Association, the ASBDC.  The State Director will be required to engage with the ASBDC through conference travel and potential committee involvement.  Leadership opportunities include serving on the national accreditation committee and Board of Directors.

 

Financial Management:  The Director manages an annual grant-based budget of $1.1 to 1.4 million. The Director negotiates agreements with federal and state partners for funding and deliverables and oversees preparation of all grant proposals and contracts for state, federal and private sector funding; responsible for direct management of all program budgets, as well as build and maintain sound, long-term relationships with funding partners;  leads fundraising efforts for the NH SBDC network; secures underwriters, sponsors and matching funds from public and private sources.

 

Qualifications:

 

Minimum Qualifications:  Master’s Degree in relevant field (MBA, MPA, etc.) is required; diverse background with five years of progressively responsible and relevant leadership experience preferred; experience in federal grant management, proven ability to develop and manage budgets with many diverse sources and uses of funds; success in developing new funding sources including grants and contracts; demonstrated ability to establish and maintain effective public and private stakeholder relationships is critical to the success of the SBDC network; demonstrated ability to identify and evaluate new and emerging opportunities; and excellent interpersonal and communication skills are required, including the ability to advocate publicly through writing and speaking.

 

Additional Desirable Qualifications:  Previous leadership and management experience in an SBDC network or other consulting service provider; demonstrated experience working through an accreditation or similar review process involving strategic planning and alignment with standards and measures (rooted in the Baldridge criteria for performance excellence); understanding of the management and financial challenges faced by small businesses to be sustainable. 

 

Host Institution:  The Peter T. Paul College at the University of New Hampshire (UNH):  UNH, a comprehensive land-, sea-, and space-grant university, is the state’s flagship public university.  It is ideally located in the rural town of Durham, near to Portsmouth and with ready access to the Maine and New Hampshire seacoasts, Boston and the White Mountains. The University actively creates and nurtures a dynamic learning environment in which qualified individuals of differing perspectives, life experiences and cultural backgrounds pursue goals with mutual respect and shared spirit of inquiry. UNH has just under 13,000 undergraduate students and 2,200 graduate students.

 

The Peter T. Paul College of Business and Economics is one of six colleges within UNH. It has elite business school accreditation from the Association for the Advancement of Collegiate Business Education (AACSB). It has been nationally ranked in 2016 and 2017 among the top 100 undergraduate business schools and among the top part-time and on-line MBA programs.  The College has a beautiful new building (2013) with excellent teaching facilities, a dynamic and collegial culture and an engaged student body and alumni community.  Currently, the College has 2,700 undergraduate students, 300 graduate students and over 100 full-time faculty.  The College offers four undergraduate degrees: BS Business Administration, BS Economics, BA Economics and BS Hospitality Management.  At the graduate level, Paul College offers an MBA (full-time, part-time and online), MS Accounting and MA and PhD in Economics. 

 

Application Review begins April 16, 2018 and will continue until the position is filled. All application materials should be submitted online at https://jobs.usnh.edu/postings/29037 

 

The University of New Hampshire is an Equal Opportunity/Equal Access/Affirmative Action Employer. The University is committed to creating an environment that values and supports diversity and inclusiveness across our campus communities and encourages applications from qualified individuals who will help us achieve this mission.  The University prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, disability, veteran status or marital status.  Applications by members of all underrepresented groups is encouraged.  Hiring is contingent on eligibility to work in the U.S.