Lunch and Launch

Starting Your Business in Alabama:

A Four-Part Webinar Series

Building your own business from the ground up is an exciting opportunity, but it can also be challenging. Join us to learn about the essential steps required to successfully start your own business and learn how to avoid common mistakes that derail great ideas. Get advice from experienced small business advisors that know what it takes to be successful.


Each 30 minute program begins at 12 noon and is available at NO CHARGE. The programs will feature an on-line chat function which will allow participants to access expert advice and ASBDC resources in real time.

Session 1: Wednesday, May 18, 2022 Successfully Launching Your Business Join us to learn about the essential steps required to successfully start your own business. The first program in the series will cover all the basics of a business start up and where to go for assistance. Planning your business, building your team, the best legal structure for your business and other topics will be covered. Click here to register for this event.


Session 2: Wednesday, May 25, 2022 Learn the Key Steps to License and Permits Your business needs to know about the licenses and permits required to legally operate a business in Alabama. License requirements for state, county and city will be discussed—as well as statewide boards and governing agencies. Click here to register for this event.


Session 3: Wednesday, June 1, 2022 Financing Your Small Business The biggest challenge many entrepreneurs face is financing their startup. Get advice from experienced small business advisors that know what it takes to successfully access needed funds. Click here to register for this event.


Session 4: Wednesday, June 8, 2022 Social Media Marketing for Your Small Business Building your own business from the ground up is an exciting opportunity, and an online presence is a must in the modern marketplace. What social media should you use, how should you use it and what is the best content to use? And how much time, effort, and money should you invest? Click here to register for this event.


This workshop series is presented in cooperation with the Alabama Department of Commerce’s Rural Development Program and Office of Small Business Advocacy.

Alabama SBDC Network is funded in part through a Cooperative Agreement with the U.S. Small Business
Administration (SBA). Hosted by The University of Alabama. Nationally accredited by the Association of SBDCs.

Reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities will be made if requested at least two weeks in
advance. Contact Karla Jordan, Box 870396, Tuscaloosa, AL 35487-0396. 1-877-825-7232

Shields Up” Warning Issued

From the Alabama Small Business Development Center Network

The current Russian invasion of Ukraine has caused anxiety, financial impacts, and political actions around the globe. Loss of life and property have been confined to Ukraine so far but, the impacts are being felt around the world economically and logistically in companies large and small.

In addition to the economic impact in the U.S., there is a high level of concern regarding cyber-attacks. State-sponsored attacks on Ukraine are being used to disrupt everything from utilities, to banking, and communications. The tools being used to cause these disruptions are not always under the full control of the attacker. Many of the threats being released on Ukraine are capable of making their way around the world via the internet. It is also a distinct possibility that the U.S. and its allies could see an increase in targeted cyber-attacks should Russia decide to retaliate against those countries imposing sanctions.

The cybersecurity community is taking this threat seriously and we would ask the small business community to do the same. There is a real possibility that any small business could become the victim of a cyber-attack either directly or indirectly. To minimize the risk, small business owners should, at a minimum, do the following:

  • Be more diligent about checking for unusual activity or performance issues on your devices and networks. This should include website traffic monitoring.
  • Make a plan to incorporate regular backups if you have not done so already.
  • Test a recent backup to make sure it works.
  • Check anti-virus and all software (including any website plugins) for needed updates and patches.
  • Incorporate a firewall or security monitoring software in your website and online store.
  • Use a password manager with complex passphrases (16+ characters with random numbers, letters, and symbols)
  • Use multifactor authentication
  • Turn on or incorporate virtual private networks (VPN) when online
  • Familiarize yourself with your website/online store providers data breach policy to fully understand who is responsible for reporting any breaches that may incur as well as who is liable in the event your site becomes infected.

While you cannot be guaranteed that you will not be impacted by a cyber-attack, you can dramatically reduce your chances of becoming a victim and substantially increase the speed of your recovery by following the above steps. Should you need more details or resources to assist with preparations, please contact your local SBDC offices and use the links below.

We strongly encourage all organizations to review and take advantage of the following resources:

  • Shields Up – CISA launched a new Shields Up webpage that provides actionable information on urgent steps to harden systems given the heightened threat environment.
  • Pro Bono Services – CISA recently launched a new catalog of free cybersecurity services from CISA, the open-source community, and our private sector partners in the Joint Cyber Defense Collaborative. The catalog is designed to help under-resourced organizations improve their security posture. 
  • Mis-, dis-, & Mal- information (MDM) – CISA released aCISA Insights titled, Preparing for and Mitigating Foreign Influence Operations Targeting Critical Infrastructure, which provides critical infrastructure owners and operators with guidance on how to identify and mitigate the risks of influence operations using MDM narratives from steering public opinion and impacting National Critical Functions and critical infrastructure. 
  • America’s SBDC – Basic Cyber Awareness Resources for Small Business: https://americassbdc.org/cybersecurity/resources/

CISA continues to lean forward to inform industry partners of potential threats—part of a paradigm shift from being reactive to being proactive. On January 11, 2022, CISA released a joint cybersecurity advisory with the FBI and NSA about the Russian threat to U.S. critical infrastructure, including specific tactics, techniques, and procedures associated with Russian actors. CISA followed this advisory with an executive-level product urging every organization to take urgent, near-term steps to reduce the likelihood and impact of a potentially damaging compromise. CISA maintains a dedicated public webpage providing an overview of the Russian government’s malicious cyber activities as well as all advisories and products on Russian state-sponsored cyber threats, to include the recent advisory on known tactics, techniques, and procedures used by Russian state-sponsored cyber actors.

Sources:

  • Brian L. Pavone, MAISS, CPP, CPD, ACI Protective Security Advisor, Region 4 – Birmingham, AL Northern District of Alabama U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA)
  • Paul E. Daymond, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Birmingham Division, Public Affairs Officer, Private Sector Coordinator, Media, Public and Congressional Affairs
  • Mark Lupo, Business Education/Resilience Specialist, UGA SBDC

America’s SBDC Cybersecurity Interest Section