Business Resources
Business Planning & Strategy
Livelihood NW’s role is to holistically support your business journey by providing tools and resources available to help you start, sustain, or grow your business or idea.
Set up a Strategy & Planning meeting with an advisor to talk about topics such as: business planning, recovery strategies, projections & financials, leadership & management, and more!
pre start-up
Join us live or watch the replay of our Start your Business: A crash course in business basics where to start, what to know, and what to be thinking about when starting a new business.
Únase a nosotros en vivo o vea la repetición Incie su Negocio: sesión (en línea) es un curso intensivo sobre los fundamentos de negocios: dónde empezar, qué saber y en qué pensar cuando se inicia un nuevo negocio.
Oregon Secretary of State - When starting a new business, there are important decisions to make. Start a Business Guide checklist and recommendations for getting started.
Secretaría de Estado - Guía para Iniciar un Negocio en Oregón y Serie de Como Comenzar un Negocio.
Oregon SBDC - 20 regional Centers assist small businesses throughout Oregon with advising, classes, and access to the resources they need to be successful.
Navigate Your Business Journey - Oregon's state agencies are available to help you start your business journey, or meet you where you are to help you expand, grow, and succeed.
SBDC 6 Strategies for Successful Business Planning
SBA Plan your Business - You've got a great idea. Now, make a plan to turn it into a great business.
SBA Redacte su plan de negocios - Su plan de negocio es el fundamento de su negocio. Aprenda a escribir, de forma fácil y eficiente, un plan de negocio con un modelo de plan de negocio.
SBA Doing Business In Portland Guide - lists the requirements needed to start, grow, and expand your business.
Ascent Resource Portal - is full of up-to-date information and general best practices for growing your business on a FREE online education platform.
Washington State Start a Business Guide - they offer a PDF and in several languages and as a braille ready format, those versions can be found on the Small Business Guide download page.
Business Impact NW’s Events - Free & low-cost trainings covering a variety of topics from marketing to bookkeeping.
Business Impact NW Clases - clases gratis y de bajo costo acceso a capital en español a demanda
City of Portland Business Registration - Everyone doing business in Portland or Multnomah County is required to register. Register online, or use our PDF form to mail or fax us your registration. No payment is due with the registration form.
YCombinator Library - Watch videos, listen to podcasts, and read essays for startup founders
Business Entity Types - Your choice impacts multiple aspects of your business, including taxes, liability, ownership succession, and others. LLC? DBA? S-CORP? ABN? - We know Business alphabet soup. If you’re looking to start, or have started a business in Oregon, you need to register with the Oregon Secretary of State. We advise that you connect with a lawyer, accountant, and business advisor before selecting your business entity.
Disability Secrets article - Starting a business while continuing to receive disability.
Start-Up
How to Write Mission, Vision, and Values Statements
SCORE Business Plan Template for a Startup Business
Women Founders Network On-Demand Webinars
Small Business Development Center (SBDC) at Portland Community College (PCC) - Grow your business with personalized advice and expert training programs like Business Design Series, Getting Your Recipe to Market, Restaurant Business Builders, and more!
Techstars Entrepreneur’s Toolkit - an online educational resource to help you learn the fundamentals of entrepreneurship and accelerate your success.
Evergreen BizLink - Need help finding the right resource for your business? Use the interactive search tool to find the right help for your business question.
Cooperative Business Model Incubator - Designed for early-stage entrepreneurs, our Incubator is designed to help entrepreneurs explore and develop their business ideas into the beginnings of a business.
Exit Bliss - Experts in Change Management, Organizational Development, and Succession Planning. They offer a range of services at no cost to COBID-certified firms. Visit their website to learn more.
SBDA Manufacturing Advising Team (MAT) - MAT advisors provide no-cost, confidential business assessments and strategic 1:1 advising tailored to the unique needs of Oregon’s manufacturers.
MySBA Learning - A free learning platform for entrepreneurs with in-depth information to help you grow your business
Multnomah County Construction Diversity and Equity Fund (CDEF) - supports free technical assistance to businesses certified through the Oregon Certification Office for Business Inclusion and Diversity (COBID).
Established Business
SCORE Business Plan Template for an Established Business
Portland State University Business Capstone Program
SCORE Business Planning & Financial Statements Template Gallery - a collection of user-friendly templates for business planning, finance, sales, marketing, and management, designed to assist you in developing strategies for either launching a new business venture or expanding an existing one.
Certifications
MySBA Certifications - single application for SBA federal contracting certifications, is open! Certifications include 8 (a) Business Development, HUBZone, Veteran-Owned, and Woman-Owned.
Certification Office for Business Inclusion and Diversity (COBID) Certification - the primary goal of certification is to level the playing field by providing certified firms a fair opportunity to compete for government contracts regardless of owner ethnicity, gender, disability, or firm size.
LGBTBE Certification - get access to hundreds of corporate representative and supplier diversity professional contacts.
B-Corp Certification - for-profit companies that use the power of business to build a more inclusive and sustainable economy.
Oregon APEX Accelerators - is part of a nationwide network of APEX Accelerators working to help businesses compete successfully in the government marketplace.
Oregon Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) - identifies and supports established Minority Business Enterprises (MBEs) to achieve targeted objectives including boosting revenue and securing government, state, and local contracts.
Oregon Buys - a web-based eProcurement system that will automate the state of Oregon's procurement process.