Business News for September 4, 2020
Today's message includes the following news and online courses:

  • News and Updates
  • D2P Accepting Applications for Campus Innovators
  • Governor Announces Additional Funding for Early Care, Arts
  • Tax Credits Available for Some Small Businesses
  • UW-Madison Online Resources for Job Loss, Search, etc.
  • New Classes Announced!
  • 2021 HR Trends: New World of Work — Are you keeping up
  • Cash is King: Understanding Cash Flow During COVID and Beyond
  • Navigating the New Normal Workshop - offered in partnership with WWBIC
Governor Announces Funding for Early Care, Arts
Early Care - applications open Sept. 9
An additional $30 million of federal CARES Act dollars are being directed toward supporting early care and education providers. Applications and program eligibility details will be available starting September 9, 2020, with the application window closing September 18, 2020 at 11:59 p.m.


Arts - applications close Sept. 30
The Cultural Organization Grant Program will support nonprofit cultural organizations whose operations have been negatively affected by COVID-19. This $5 million program, funded by the CARES Act, provides maximum grant amounts of $250,000.

These awards can help cultural organizations cover pandemic-related impacts such as lost revenue, increased workers compensation costs, cleaning and sanitization, and purchase of services or equipment to facilitate telework by employees.

Discovery to Product (D2P) Programs Accepting Applications for Campus Innovators until Sept 20
Innovation to Market (I2M) and Igniter are free, non-credit programs open to UW-Madison faculty, staff, and students that help campus innovators develop their groundbreaking technologies and creative ideas for introduction to the marketplace.

Applications to programs are due on September 20. Not sure if programs are right for you, or just want to bounce your idea off of someone with industry expertise? Chat with a D2P mentor or attend a virtual open house in advance of the deadline to learn more.
Tax Credits Available for Some Small Businesses
To help small businesses and self-employed workers stay afloat due to the COVID-19 outbreak, the IRS created new tax credits, including:
  • Employee Retention Credit
  • Paid Sick Leave Credit
  • Paid Family and Medical Leave Credit
UW-Madison Online Resources for Job Loss
If you have experienced job loss yourself or have had to make the difficult decision to lay off employees, UW-Madison's office of Adult Career and Special Student Services has several online resources. One page covers career planning and job search resources. Another page addresses job loss, job search, and career planning during the pandemic.
New Classes & Webinars - Just Added!
2021 HR Trends: New World of Work — Are you keeping up?
Annually, QTI surveys hundreds of employers to better understand HR challenges and leading trends to overcome these challenges. 

This survey explores topics such as talent attraction and engagement strategies, compensation and benefit plans, diversity and inclusion programs, and more. Join us as we share QTI’s latest survey results where we will provide you with data to drive decision making and actionable solutions to help your organization reach its full potential through people. 
Cash is King: Understanding Cash Flow During COVID and Beyond
Cash is the lifeforce of your business, and being able to control your cash flow is one significant way you can take some of the uncertainty out of running your business.

This free, interactive webinar is designed to provide you with a tool to help you forecast and plan your business cash flow, and the program instructor will walk you step-by-step how to use it. She will explain the process of forecasting and maximizing cash inflow and forecasting and minimizing cash outflow.

Navigating the New Normal Workshop - September 25th
Have you started working with your Navigating the New Normal COVID Response Guide, but have some questions about how to complete it? Are you looking for more information about what to do next?

We are proud to partner with WWBIC to present a brief, one-hour workshop about our recently released guide. After attending this workshop, you will also have the opportunity to sign up for future work-groups that will enable you to connect with other business owners who are experiencing similar challenges.

  • September 25, 2020
  • 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm

Register here at no cost, thanks to funding from the CARES Act
Full Fall Class Schedule Now Available!
Our fall class schedule is now available! In it, we are proud to feature a range of classes to support your goals - whether that is starting a new venture, shoring up your business operations, or growing your own leadership skills or those of your team.

Reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities will be made if requested at least two weeks in advance. Contact the UW-Madison SBDC office at sbdc@bus.wisc.edu or 608-263-2221 to request accommodations.

The Wisconsin SBDC Network is a proud part of the Institute for Business & Entrepreneurship in the University of Wisconsin System. It is funded in part through a Cooperative Agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration.