Presenter: Russ Dale, PM of Classes + Coaching and Jose Venales, Director of Microloans Date: November 3, 2021 Time: 12:00pm - 1:00pm Location: Online Register: Here Turn your dream into a plan with this small group, one-hour business planning class. The Iowa Center staff will help you kickstart your business plan by providing you a road map on completing your plan and taking the next steps towards business ownership. Also connect with other aspiring small business owners to refine your business ideas as you put them into real plans. About our hosts Russ Dale is our Classes and Coaching Project Manager. Russ spends his time working with clients, assisting them through their entrepreneurial journey. Russ also manages the IT initiatives for The Iowa Center, assists with the loan department as needed, and manages our CRM database. Russ is proud to say that he's the intern that never left!  Jose Venales is the Director of Microloans. Jose manages, develops, and implements The Iowa Center microloan programs. At the same time Jose has the responsibility to maintain a healthy loan portfolio to ensure the availability of these resources for future entrepreneurs.  Click here to register! 

Presenters: Kate Vigmostad and Jen Kranz, Owners of Volition Skate  Date: November 5, 2021 Time: 12 – 1pm Location: Online Come and listen to the stories of entrepreneurs, small business owners, and community members making their mark in Iowa. As you create your own story, treat yourself to this time each month to rekindle your entrepreneurial spirit and connect with others. Volition Skate Co. was founded by Jen Kranz and Kate Vigmostad in 2020 - at the height of the global pandemic. We started Volition Skate Co. because we want to share the JOY and the freedom roller skating brings to our lives with as many people as possible. We chose the name Volition, because we want to remind ourselves and inspire others to call upon themselves to create the life and the world they want to live in.   Volition Skate Co.'s Mission More than just selling roller skates, we are building a supportive online and in-person community that provides new skaters the resources they need to thrive in their new-found hobby. About our speakers Kate Vigmostad is a former professional dancer who received an MFA in Dance from the University of Iowa and spent much of her 20s living, working, and dancing in San Francisco and San Diego, CA. Kate is also a yoga instructor, and loves all things that challenge her physically and mentally. Kate is also the owner of Aerial Fitness Underground, a pole and aerial arts dance studio located in Fairfield, IA. Kate is a single mother and loves that her son is growing up with a strong, entrepreneurial mother and wants to expose him to the joy and creativity you can tap into as a small business owner. Jen Kranz received a Digital Media and Conscious Entrepreneurship degree from MIU in Fairfield, Iowa. Jen is...

Presenter: TJ Daniels, WBC Program Director & Alex Polzin, Dir of Finance & Administration Date: November 10, 2021 Time: 10:00 -11:00 am Location: Online Register: Here As a small business owner, you won’t ever really know the unexpected challenges or opportunities that await you in life and business. Always Ready: Financials is a working session for you to learn how to financially prepare your small business for the next step in your journey. The Iowa Center staff will show you what you need to do to always be ready to make financial moves in your business, including applying for a loan or buying/selling new goods. This class is especially for you if you’ve ever been denied a loan or need a helping hand to get your financials on track. About our speakers TJ Daniels is the official cheerleader of The Iowa Center. She’s a vibrant supporter of our mission, programs, clients and staff. As a Certified Credit Counselor, she assists clients with their credit, budget, financial statements and so much more. She also works with our lending programs assisting clients from start to finish, and often times well after the loan has closed making many friendships along the way. Alex is responsible for Iowa Center accounting and governmental reporting, he also helps with lending and education programs provided by the Iowa Center. Click here to register!  

BizFluent: Build Your Own Website Date: November 15 - 18 (Monday - Thursday) Time: 9:00 - 10:00 am Location: Online  Registration: Sign Up Here! The past year and a half taught everyone the importance of being online. If your business does not have a website, you are not going to be easily seen. With so many domains to choose from, design options, prices, packages, and data, it can be hard to know where to start. BizFluent – Build Your Own Website is designed to help entrepreneurs learn skills to build their own website, manage website analytics, and know community resources that can help when they have questions. Presenters will be a mix of local experts and Iowa Center staff, and you will have opportunities to network with the speaker and other participants after presentations. If you want to learn how to build and manage an effective website or are looking for ways to improve accessibility and boost clicks, this program is for you! This is a multi-day workshop. November 15 - 18 (Monday- Thursday) at 9:00 am - 10:00 am Topics covered includes: - Best practices for developing informative website - Best practices for developing marketplace website - Difference Between Domains - Analytics and SEO This class is one of our 3-part BizFluent series (Marketing, Websites, and Admin). You can bundle BizFluent classes together for a discount. • 1 Course: $100 • 2 Courses: $160 • 3 Courses: $200 Dates of other courses: Marketing: October 25-28 (Monday - Thursday) at 9:00 - 10:00 am Admin/Ops: December 13 - 16 (Monday - Thursday) at 9:00 - 10:00 am Sign Up Here! 

Presenter: Ann Hartz, CPA  Owner of Ann M. Hartz CPA & Associates Date: November 16, 2021 Time: 12:00pm – 1:00pm Location: Online Registration: Click Here Are you a small business owner looking to file your own taxes or thinking about opening your own business? Whether you are a seasoned entrepreneur or just starting out, this webinar will be full of important info and tips as we approach tax season. Join The Iowa Center and Ann Hartz of CPA Des Moines as we cover plenty of important information for tax time. About Our Speaker... Ann M Hartz is a CPA with a passion for helping other business owners focus on the parts of their business that matter to them most by taking away their concerns about day-to-day financial and bookkeeping issues. She has wanted to run her own tax practice since before going to school to become a CPA. She says, “It is always what I wanted to do from the time I did my first tax return.” She adds: “My passion is taking a burden away from the business owner and giving them peace of mind that they will not get into trouble with the IRS and that they are doing the very best that they can in regard to their bottom line.” Ann is a life-long resident of Iowa- born and raised in Albia and currently residing in Des Moines. She has more than 20 years of accounting and tax experience. She graduated from William Penn College in Oskaloosa, IA and worked early in her accounting career in the Southern Iowa area. She branched out on her own and opened her own Tax Practice in Albia before moving to Des Moines in 2000. She has worked for McGowen, Hurst, Clark and Smith, The Des Moines Symphony and Unity Point...

Presenter: Russ Dale, PM of Classes + Coaching and Jose Venales, Director of Microloans Date: December 1, 2021 Time: 12:00pm - 1:00pm Location: Online Register: Here Turn your dream into a plan with this small group, one-hour business planning class. The Iowa Center staff will help you kickstart your business plan by providing you a road map on completing your plan and taking the next steps towards business ownership. Also connect with other aspiring small business owners to refine your business ideas as you put them into real plans. About our hosts Russ Dale is our Classes and Coaching Project Manager. Russ spends his time working with clients, assisting them through their entrepreneurial journey. Russ also manages the IT initiatives for The Iowa Center, assists with the loan department as needed, and manages our CRM database. Russ is proud to say that he's the intern that never left!  Jose Venales is the Director of Microloans. Jose manages, develops, and implements The Iowa Center microloan programs. At the same time Jose has the responsibility to maintain a healthy loan portfolio to ensure the availability of these resources for future entrepreneurs.  Click here to register! 

Presenters: Tobi Parks, Owner/CEO of xBk  Date: December 3, 2021 Time: 12 – 1pm Location: Online Come and listen to the stories of entrepreneurs, small business owners, and community members making their mark in Iowa. As you create your own story, treat yourself to this time each month to rekindle your entrepreneurial spirit and connect with others. Tobi Parks is a musician; entertainment attorney; Owner/CEO of xBk (Des Moines); and Board Vice President for the National Independent Venue Association Foundation. Join us as we hear Tobi's story, how Covid impacted xBk, what moves she made to pivot, survive, and thrive! About our speakers Tobi Parks is an entertainment and intellectual property attorney, majority owner and CEO of xBk, a Des Moines-based music venue and the Board Vice President for the National Independent Venue Foundation, the 501(c)(3) arm of the National Independent Venue Association (NIVA). She has worked in the Business and Legal Affairs division of Sony Music for a number of years as both an attorney and Director of Copyright for Sony's Columbia Records, Epic Records, and RCA Records. She has a long history working in media having worked for a number of years as a Programming and Promotions Associate for Clear Channel Broadcasting and as Director of Marketing and Public Relations with the PBS produced series, In the Life. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Mass Communications and a Master of Arts in Media Literacy from Webster University in St. Louis and a Juris Doctor degree from Drake University Law School. She is a musician that has played bass in the NYC glam-punk band Bambï, Toronto-based The Cliks, St. Louis-based acts The Star Death, Is That You?, and Grandpa’s Ghost. As a solo performer and session player, she has worked with Cyndi Lauper, Margaret Cho, Darin Gray, Tim...

Presenter: Ronee Andersen, SPHR, MBA, CTACC, Owner of Coaching and Consulting by Ronee, LLC Date: December 7, 2021 Time: 12:00pm – 1:00pm Location: Online Registration: Click Here Now more than ever it is difficult to retain and/or attract new talent for your business. Join us as we ask Ronee Andersen, Owner of Coaching and Consulting by Ronee LLC, her tips and tricks for pivoting your business to the new normal of hiring and retention for your employees. In this session you will learn: What employees want to stay What managers need to retain employees How to attract top talent How to retain your high achievers About our speaker... Ronee Andersen, SPHR, MBA, CTACC Owner, Leadership Coach, and Business Consultant Ronee Andersen, is an experienced Human Resource professional with 20 years of progressive experience in companies from 50 to 6,000 employees. She has experience working in family-owned businesses, private sector and publicly traded companies, as well as, experience in the public sector in city and county government. She has held positions as HR Officer, HR Director and Senior HR Director. She has been a member of leadership and executive teams. With her HR background, she understands the needs of the company, management and the employees. Ronee has held her Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) certification since 2003. She has an MBA with an emphasis in Human Resources and an advance certificate in Strategic Human Resources from Cornell University. She is a certified coach through the Coach Training Alliance. She is a member of the Iowa Chapter of the International Coaching Federation (ICF). Ronee is passionate about leadership and team development, culture creation and helping individuals and organizations meet their full potential. Click here to register!    The Iowa Center Women's Business Center is funded in part by U.S. Small Business...

Presenter: TJ Daniels, WBC Program Director & Alex Polzin, Dir of Finance & Administration Date: December 8, 2021 Time: 10:00 -11:00 am Location: Online Register: Here As a small business owner, you won’t ever really know the unexpected challenges or opportunities that await you in life and business. Always Ready: Financials is a working session for you to learn how to financially prepare your small business for the next step in your journey. The Iowa Center staff will show you what you need to do to always be ready to make financial moves in your business, including applying for a loan or buying/selling new goods. This class is especially for you if you’ve ever been denied a loan or need a helping hand to get your financials on track. About our speakers TJ Daniels is the official cheerleader of The Iowa Center. She’s a vibrant supporter of our mission, programs, clients and staff. As a Certified Credit Counselor, she assists clients with their credit, budget, financial statements and so much more. She also works with our lending programs assisting clients from start to finish, and often times well after the loan has closed making many friendships along the way. Alex is responsible for Iowa Center accounting and governmental reporting, he also helps with lending and education programs provided by the Iowa Center. Click here to register!  

Date: December 9, 2021 Time: 9:00 am - 11:00 am Location: Online Registration: Click Here Work for Yourself@50+ is a webinar to help you gain the knowledge, support, and resources you need to make informed decisions about working for yourself and take the right first steps toward successful self-employment. The decision to start your own business can be both exciting and daunting. Work for Yourself@50+ breaks the choices down for older adults in an approachable way through five steps: 1. A careful consideration of the potential benefits and risks of working for yourself 2. Exercises to help develop the self-employment idea 3. A realistic overview of what it takes to pursue a self-employment opportunity 4. Guidance to help avoid pitfalls and scams 5. Ways to find trustworthy support and services This is an online webinar. In order to access the webinar, you will need to use either a computer, tablet for smartphone. You will receive instructions on how to join the webinar in your registration confirmation or your reminder email that will go out prior to the webinar. Please do not share the webinar access information with anyone who is not already registered. Click here to register!    The Iowa Center Women's Business Center is funded in part by U.S. Small Business Administration.

BizFluent: Administration and Operations Date: December 13 - 16 (Monday - Thursday) Time: 9:00 - 10:00 am Location: Online  Registration: Sign Up Here! With businesses moving massive amount of data online, cyber-attacks are on the rise. Business owners are expected to keep their customer’s data safe while also solving IT issues, managing your Point of Sale (POS) system/inventory, and handling HR-related issues. There are countless regulations and roles entrepreneurs have outside of just running the business BizFluent – Admin covers a variety of behind-the-scenes issues small business owners typically face and provides resources and action steps they can take to make their business and processes more secure. Presenters will be a mix of local experts and Iowa Center staff, and you will have opportunities to network with the speaker and other participants after presentations. New business owners wanting to know what they have to be on top of or existing business owners looking to sharpen their skills of business management should check out this course to learn applicable strategies for your business. This is a multi-day workshop. December 13 - 16 (Monday- Thursday) at 9:00 am - 10:00 am Topics covered includes: - Security - Point of Sale Systems - Human Resources - IT/Tech This class is one of our 3-part BizFluent series (Marketing, Websites, and Admin). You can bundle BizFluent classes together for a discount. • 1 Course: $100 • 2 Courses: $160 • 3 Courses: $200 Dates of other courses: Marketing: October 25 - 28 (Monday - Thursday) at 9:00 - 10:00 am Website: November 15 - 18 (Monday - Thursday) at 9:00 - 10:00 am Sign Up Here!

Presenter: Michelle Rembert, PT, ACC, owner of Momentom3 Mind Body & Beyond, LLC Date: December 14, 2021 Time: 12:00pm – 1:00pm Location: Online Registration: Click Here Ready to Make it Happen in 2022? What is it? It is anything that you have been thinking about and/or talking about for a long time, but not actually doing (yet!).  Join Michelle Rembert, owner of Momentom3 Mind Body & Beyond, LLC, for this engaging and interactive workshop designed to help you get clear on what you most want to make happen personally and/or professionally, figure out what gets in your way or keeps you stuck, and learn evidenced-based strategies to set yourself up for success in 2022!  You will walk away with a plan to honor your commitment to yourself, to take inspired action, and to make it happen – now! This is an interactive workshop – You will have optional opportunities to engage with the group by adding to the chat and/or unmuting to share take-aways.  You are invited to show up to the virtual workshop on camera, however if this isn’t an option, please still join us!  Please bring a notebook + pen. About our speaker... Michelle Rembert is an ICF credentialed coach, speaker and workshop facilitator, who helps heart-centered leaders & entrepreneurs to stress less, live more, and lead well. With over 30 years of experience in the healthcare industry, Michelle is well-prepared and uniquely qualified to support individuals, teams, and organizations in workplace wellbeing.  She has expertise in helping individuals to overcome overwhelm, stress and burnout. She believes that in order to show up fully and lead others, we must show up fully for ourselves first. Michelle is also passionate about empowering leaders and organizations to create a coaching culture. Michelle is a licensed facilitator in Coach U's -...