Look here to start your business or start your next career: VetXL roundup from July 28

You had many questions about starting a business or career and, on July 28, we assembled a variety of partners to answer them.

Viewed by an audience of more than 400,000, our recent Veterans Experience Live event, “Hire a Vet: Are you looking for your next job or to start a new business?” featured representatives from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Amazon, the National Veteran Small Business Coalition, The Manufacturing Institute and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. They fielded your questions about obtaining a small business loan, business training, federal employment and more.

(Read our previous VetXL event roundup here: https://rly.pt/2XynfpD.)

Here are some of the resources and tips offered during the event:

Deliver for Amazon. Several of you expressed interest in starting a business delivering packages for Amazon through its Delivery Service Partner program (amazon.com/DSPveteran), but wondered about how to finance the start-up costs. The Amazon representative said initial funding must come from you, and recommended viewing the informational webinars to learn more. Other government officials reviewed options for accessing small business loans (see below). The Amazon rep said, however, that some veterans could get reimbursed for start-up costs with proof of an honorable discharge from the military (read more here, https://rly.pt/3fvpdwY). Check out these other Amazon resources for veteran entrepreneurs or jobseekers:

• Sell your products on Amazon: amazon.com/selling.
• Start your own business through Amazon: amazon.com/buildyourbusiness.
• Search for career opportunities: amazon.jobs/military.
• Connect with recruiters at a military affairs webinar: amazonmilitarywebinarseries.splashthat.com.

Explore a manufacturing career. Babs Chase, vice president of The Manufacturing Institute, highlighted the group’s Heroes MAKE America initiative, created by founding sponsor Samsung.
This integrated training, certification and career-readiness program is a partnership with local community colleges. If you’re a military spouse or if you’re transitioning from the military, are a veteran or are in the National Guard or reserves, you could be eligible to get assistance entering into a career in advanced manufacturing. Watch the video and find a Heroes Connect virtual event at https://rly.pt/2DE8muA.

Get a loan and business training. You also asked about how to get small business loans, without having to wade through a thicket of paperwork, and business training. Several responders offered a variety of suggestions:

• Talk to the local bank. SP5 Scott Denniston, executive director of the National Veteran Small Business Coalition, recommended talking with your local bank about a U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) guarantee loan. “SBA has special programs for veterans,” he said, but you need to “start with your local bank.”

• Identify the right loan. Cpl Ray Milano, director of the Veterans Business Outreach Center program at SBA, agreed. “The key is to identify the right loan program and lender for your situation,” he said. He noted that local, no-cost business advisers can be found at http://www.sba.gov/localassistance, http://www.sba.gov/vboc or http://www.sba.gov/ovbd. He also said veterans can reach him via email at [login to see] or by phone at [login to see] .

• Get some business training. CPT Chanel Bankston-Carter, director of Strategic Outreach and Communications at VA’s Office of Small & Disadvantaged Business Utilization (OSDBU), said budding business owners can consult with one of 1,000 local Small Business Development Centers, a business assistance network partly funded by Congress through a partnership with SBA. Get free and at-cost training to start, grow and expand your small businesses at https://americassbdc.org. Also check out SBA’s Boots to Business training offerings for transitioning service members, veterans and military spouses at https://sbavets.force.com/s.

• Get verified as veteran-owned. Once your veteran business is set up, Bankston-Carter said, get help getting verified from OSDBU (https://rly.pt/3kheSZ6) and start doing business directly with VA, the second largest federal agency.

Get licensed. Veteran Andrew Rapozo, who said he recently earned his master’s degree in social work, asked how he could get past the seeming bottleneck of USA Jobs. Gina Klaus, program analyst with the Veteran Readiness and Employment (VR&E) program at VA’s Veterans Benefits Administration, suggested he explore working as a VR&E vocational rehabilitation counselor (VRC) “to secure the necessary license for employment in your career field.” She suggested he apply at https://rly.pt/3ih2ZAR. VA also suggests reaching the human resources point of contact listed on the USA Jobs application to check the status of your submission.

Work from home. Klaus said for the few questioners interested in working from home, apply to VR&E to get access to a vocational rehabilitation counselor, who can review the self-employment track (https://rly.pt/2PtF9VT) or connect you to your state’s workforce center and local employment coordinator. She added that VA also has a work-study program available to veterans who are eligible for GI Bill benefits (https://rly.pt/3i3szZU).

Learn more

Check out the full session here: https://rly.pt/HireAVet