October 22, 2012 – Simon Engineering & Consulting, Inc. President Voranique “Nikki” Simon is one of 17 participants to graduate today from the highly coveted e200 Emerging Leaders program.
In its fourth year, the e200 Emerging Leaders program is an extension of the Dallas Fort Worth District Office of the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) that provides executive level training. The e200 Emerging Leaders curriculum includes business assessment, finance, marketing, sales and resources modules. Each graduate was also required to develop and present to a guest panel a three-year strategic growth action plan (SGAP) with benchmarks and performance targets.
“As a small business owner, I realize the importance of constantly continuing to improve my business acumen. This is why I applied for the e200 Emerging Leaders Program,” Simon, a minority- and women-owned business, said. “I started my firm because of a ‘big vision’. However, after starting, it was difficult to identify the best path. The e200 program walked us through very detailed strategies that helped establish short-term goals that feed my ‘big vision.’ ”
In addition to the modules, according to the SBA, e200 graduates not only participated in biweekly CEO mentoring groups to discuss program curriculum and how to relate to issues affecting their businesses they also presented their SGAP to a panel of guest experts.
Furthermore, guest experts were invited to various class sessions to provide relevant information and feedback in live case presentations.
“Participating in the e200 program was a wonderful opportunity. Not only did I learn from the extensive modules, it was great interacting with the other business owners,” Simon said. “Through the iterative process of building on goals in each module, I now have a company strategic plan that would have taken years to develop on my own.”
The Dallas/Fort Worth e200 effort, which is offered at no cost to the participants, is a collaborative one with area cosponsors and numerous other organizations.
“We have had great success with the SBA e200 Emerging Leaders Program,” Herbert Austin, SBA Dallas/Fort Worth district director, said. “These small business executives are serious about growing their business, creating jobs and giving back to their communities. We congratulate each of the graduates.”
About Simon Engineering & Consults, Inc.
Simon Engineering & Consultants, Inc., a HUB and DBE certified firm by TxDOT and NCTRCA, currently is the prime firm in the design of the Sierra Vista Transit Plaza for the Fort Worth Transportation Authority (The T). As part of Fort Worth’s Urban Villages concept, the Sierra Vista Transit Plaza includes a design that replaces existing bus stops that produce a hazard to pedestrians in an underdeveloped part of town with an area that is safer for the transfer of passengers between busses. The design includes paving sidewalks, drainage and utility coordination. To learn more about Simon Engineering & Consulting, Inc. and its projects, capabilities and history, visit www.simonengineering.com .
