New Director Named for Utah Small Business Development Center

By Julene Reese | July 12, 2016

Michael FinnertyMichael Finnerty was recently named state director for the Utah Small Business Development Center (SBDC), which is hosted and located at Utah State University and operated through USU Extension. Finnerty has been state director for the Montana Small Business Development Centers in Helena, and is also president of NxLeveL® Education in Sandy, Utah, which provides entrepreneurial adult and continuing education.

Finnerty will be responsible for providing the leadership, vision and direction for the network of SBDC centers located at colleges and universities around the state. His primary responsibility includes creating and managing a $2.5 million budget funded by the Small Business Administration, the Utah Governor’s Office of Economic Development and other participating partners. The funding provides the means for fourteen network centers to deliver small business counseling and training services to their clients. In addition, the funds help generate new business starts, increase sales and employment, provide new capital investment and support other local economic development endeavors in Utah communities. 

“We are pleased to have someone of Mike’s experience and background lead the Utah SBDC Network,” said Dillon Feuz, USU Applied Economics Department Head. “His vision and leadership will provide support and direction to Utah’s excellent network of small business service providers.”

The SBDC Program is the largest government-funded small business management and technical assistance program in the United States. The Utah Small Business Development Centerprogram currently includes sixty-three lead centers and more than nine hundred service delivery points throughout the United State and its territories. For further information visit http://sbdc.usu.edu/.

Writer: Julene Reese, 435-797-0810, julene.reese@usu.edu
Contact: Dillon Feuz, 435-797-2296, dillon.feuz@usu.edu