Hey, National Small Business Week! What About Philanthropy?

All over the country more and more people are catching on to the idea that small businesses can be major contributors through philanthropy and volunteerism to causes. This week is the presidentially designated National Small Business Week and the conference is being held in Washington DC, May 23rd and 25th. The main goal and, a worthy one, of  National Small Business Week is to drive entrepreneurial development and to give support and  ideas that help small businesses to thrive. While there are some great workshops and cool people like the CEO of Zipcar speaking, there is an absence of any mention in the program of small business social responsibility, philanthropy, or sustainability. However, major cities around the country have hosted their own Small Business Week events and San Francisco held one workshop on Social Responsibility led by Steven Van Yoder,Get Slightly Famous, Sylvia Ventura, founder One Block off the Grid & Nikki Pava, Co-founder/Co-host, EcoTuesday and Sylvia Ventura. Sorry that I was out of town, l would have loved to attend.

The statistics about the economic impact of small businesses on the US economy always amaze me. Here is what is posted on the conference website:

Small businesses are major contributors to the strength of the American economy. More than half of Americans either own or work for a small business. They also create 60-80 percent of new jobs in the country. Small businesses drive innovation, create 21st century jobs and increase U.S. competitiveness.

And, if one considers the fact that small businesses account for 70% of the work force, it is easy to see  that social responsibility and philanthropy should be not left only to the corporate giants.

So, as my small part of contributing to  National Small Business Week, I will be highlighting some of my earlier posts and featuring other blogposts and articles that have focused on distinctive issues that small businesses face in philanthropy; how small businesses to can have the most impact on supporting their local communities; and why giving is good for small businesses.  

Can social responsibility and philanthropy be an important contributor to the growth of a small business-Absolutely! And so, I have a mission, help me fulfill it! Let' s get National Small Business Week to include social  responsibility and philanthropy on their agenda in 2011.