IGNACIO – Fostering professional connections amid a shifting market and an often difficult business-ecosystem was a common theme at last week’s 14th annual Southwest Colorado Small Business Conference.
The conference, which was presented by the Southwest Colorado Small Business Development Center, the Fort Lewis College Center for Innovation and the Durango Chamber of Commerce, took place May 6 at the Sky Ute Casino in Ignacio.
Keynote speakers, close to 20 breakout sessions and a healthy dose of networking took place. A range of topics were explored, including avoiding burnout, navigating business loans, making it in a small market, practicing professional kindness and using artificial intelligence for practical data uses.
Jack Llewellyn, a business development officer with Bank of Colorado, was one of 175 attendees.
He said he attended the conference to network and get a gauge on new businesses forming in Southwest Colorado but walked away with practical routes for improving his own operations.
“We’ve got to go back and check our (customer relationship management) system,” he said. “(I heard) a few things (today) that were great reminders.”
Several speakers addressed the crowd, including Sandy A. Lane from Sandy Lane Consulting; Elizabeth Philbrick, owner of Esoterra Ciderworks and a La Plata County commissioner; and Liz Cartier, dean of the FLC Katz School of Business.
Philbrick underscored the important role a supportive professional community plays in keeping rural small businesses alive.
“What we (at Esoterra) very, very quickly learned is being good at your product is not being good at business, and business requires a genuine community of people,” she said.
Jordan Noble, an event organizer, said the conference allows business owners to step outside their day-to-day operations and connect with others in the business world.
“Living in a rural region, it is vital that we create training opportunities like this conference to contribute to the development of our workforce and economic region,” she said.
epond@durangoherald.com
