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Latina Entrepreneurs
Thriving Latina
Success in the U.S.
It
comes as no surprise
that more Latinas are
embracing
entrepreneurship in the
21st century. These high
achievers are ready for
a venture not only
toward high-growth
enterprises but also
pursuing a vision and
entrepreneurial growth
in the U.S. economy.
According to the 2007
update “Key Facts about
Women-Owned Businesses,”
women-owned firms employ
nearly 13 million people
and generate $1.9
trillion in sales.
Between 1997 and 2006,
majority women-owned
firms (51 percent or
more women-owned) grew
at twice the rate of all
firms (42 percent vs. 24
percent). In addition,
between 1997 and 2006,
Hispanic women-owned
businesses increased by
121.3 percent, the
number of employees
increased 18.6 percent
with a sales increase of
33.3 percent.
With a creative energy
and ensuing success,
these Latinas
demonstrate their
passion and skills
through entrepreneurial
enterprise.
One of the most
successful financial
planning firms in the
nation is Moreno, Peelen,
Ruggie, Pinto and Clark,
headquartered in
Orlando, Fl. Established
in 1961, the firm has
grown to achieve annual
revenues of $3.5 million
with $350 million assets
under management. Aside
from the comprehensive
services MPRPC provides-investment
planning to retirement
planning to employee
benefits-the firm is
unique because it began
as a Latino family
business. |
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Lisa Moreno-Haramboure
Senior Partner
Moreno, Peelen,
Ruggie, Pinto
and Clark |
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Lisa Moreno-Haramboure
joined the business in
1990 and works alongside
her mother and younger
brother. Up until his
death three years ago,
Antonio Moreno Sr.,
Lisa's father and the
firm's founder,
continued to work at the
firm with a passion to
help clients achieve
their financial goals.
At the core of the
business is to help
clients become well
informed about their
options and be
financially literate.
The firm continues today
in that tradition,
offering many free
informative materials on
their web site in order
to help visitors plan
for their future.
Moreno-Haramboure joined
the business in 1990 and
works alongside her
mother, Miriam Moreno,
and younger brother,
Antonio Moreno Jr., who
runs the estate and
business planning
division of the firm.
“My father was my mentor
and brought us all a
strong set of values.
Our business is based
mostly on referrals and
so our clients have come
to see that we are not
just there to sell. He
instilled a strong
passion for exceptional
service in all of us,”
says Moreno-Haramboure.
“One of the things my
dad taught me was the
ethical part of this
business. It was never
just about selling. It
was about serving the
needs of the individual.
Those are the values he
brought to his partners
and all of our employees.”
In looking at the past
few years, she says the
toughest part of her
specific role in the
business-securing health
insurance for
individuals and small
businesses-has been
markedly harder because
of the growing
complexity of health
care benefits and
different programs with
rising rates. In her
home state of Florida,
almost 40 percent of
residents are not
insured. Among Latinos
the rate is higher and
often due to economic
hardship and lack of
knowledge. For those who
come to the U.S. from
countries where they did
not need insurance, it
is a genuine surprise
that they cannot rely on
the government for
health care. “The future
of health care in the
country requires all of
us to come together" she
says. “Individuals,
insurance companies and
our government must
create a plan that works
for everyone.”
In the face of
challenges, Moreno-Haramboure
advises the would be
entrepreneurs to “be
proactive instead of
reactive. Change is not
easy and we can get into
a routine that won't be
helpful for the long
term. In our business,
there are constant
changes being made that
require constant
learning.” In order to
support that kind of
growth, she advises
entrepreneurs to join
professional
associations and get
involved in a wide range
of networks that can
help anticipate new
trends so that a
business can change
accordingly. It is no
surprise then that in
2006 she received the
“Jefferson Award for
Public Service” for
outstanding community
service, the Orlando
Business Journal listed
her in their annual
“Forty Under 40,” which
lists the most
successful and
influential people in
Central Florida under
40.
“I
also have a passion for
what I do. You have to
love your work in order
to be successful and
then have a great plan.
Don't just go in all
different directions--devote
time to create
specialization. If you
don't specialize, you
can run so thin that you
aren't providing the
quality service or
product you need to give
your customers in order
to make them happy. It's
so important to know
what you can do and what
you can't do. Then, let
other people help you
and realize you cannot
do it all. Find a staff
that has the same ideals,
ethics and values that
can support you all the
way.”
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SBA’s
Deputy
Administrator
Jovita
Carranza—A
Latina
on a
Mission
to
Serve
Entrepreneurs |
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As deputy
administrator of
the Small
Business
Administration,
Jovita Carranza
is a Latina on a
mission. She is
eager to
leverage her
unique industry
experience at
UPS—the global
shipping giant—to
help the SBA
address the
changing needs
of entrepreneurs.
While the SBA
was already
engaged in
renewed outreach
efforts and re-engineering
its operations,
it is no
surprise that
she sees
opportunities
for improvement.
Carranza brings
not only core
knowledge of
large scale
operations and
customer service—she
also brings a
remarkable
stamina to
foster and
promote change
at the 55-year-old
SBA.
Starting out in
1976 as a part-time
UPS clerk in Los
Angeles on a
night shift, she
rose through the
ranks and most
recently served
as the vice
president
managing
domestic
operations and
president of
international
operations for
Latin America
and the
Caribbean. A
native of
Chicago, she
earned her MBA
from the
University of
Miami while
working and
raising a
daughter as a
single parent.
She also has
received
executive,
management and
financial
training at the
INSEAD Business
School in Paris,
France, the
University of
Michigan and the
University of
Chicago.
Her enthusiasm
for bringing a
new way of
thinking to the
SBA is a
constant part of
her conversation.
“We have to
manage our tax
payer capital in
responsible ways.
We are looking
at our
operations to
promote
excellence at
all levels,” she
says. “We want
to establish
performance
measurements and
accountability
so that we
create an
emerging SBA
culture of
efficient
execution.
Through careful
discipline,
attention to
performance
measures and
automation we
can do this.”
Carranza is very
sensitive to the
perception that
getting support
from the SBA can
require a
sizeable
investment of
time for the
time-strapped
entrepreneur.
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“Process automation is
key,” she argues, “The
more that we can
automate and facilitate
the processes small
business owners are
asked to follow when
they interact with
lenders, our staff or
other stakeholders— the
better for them.”
Given her experience at
UPS, a corporation known
for assessing its
operations constantly,
it is not at all
surprising that she
speaks like this or sees
opportunities for
improvement at SBA. She
currently leads key
operational improvement
initiatives and projects
designed to improve
customer response at SBA.
As deputy administrator,
she serves under
administrator Steven C.
Preston and helps to
manage an agency with
more than 80 field
offices across the
country and a portfolio
of direct and guaranteed
business loans, venture
capital investments and
disaster loans worth
almost $80 billion.
Her appreciation of
Latina entrepreneurs is
yet another strong and
heartfelt passion she
demonstrates with her
interest in tracking
their access to key
financial resources.
“Latinas, like so many
other entrepreneurs,
work 24/7 at their
business and sometimes
this can limit time
spent accessing key
information or key
opportunities that can
make a real difference
for their business.
There can also be a
factor of limited
education that can cause
greater hardship.”
Yet in spite of those
challenges, she noted
that the SBA is seeing
more Hispanic owned
businesses take
advantage of key
programs that provide
essential capital during
early stages of growth.
She believes the strong
participation of
Hispanics in programs
speak highly of the
determination of Latinos
and Latinas to gain the
resources needed to
succeed in today’s
highly competitive
environment.
While Carranza might
enjoy reviewing the
metrics that monitor the
SBA’s success, she is
quick to point out that
the mission of the SBA
is “to maintain a
healthy economy” and
that this is a
formidable
responsibility with
profound implications on
every major aspect of
society. While others
may find that
overwhelming, she stays
true to her indomitable
spirit and says, “The
more I learn the more
excited I become about
the future.”
Key Findings from the
Small Business
Administration
For those businesses
that have just started
the SBA offers the 7(a)
Loan Guarantee Program
and the Micro Loan
Program. The 7(a) Loan
Guarantee Program works
in conjunction with
banks throughout the
country by guaranteeing
the loan and thereby
reducing the lenders
risk. Entrepreneurs
apply for these loans
directly from their bank
and the loan is actually
issued by the lender and
not the federal
government. In 2007,
10,108 SBA-guaranteed
7(a) loans were issued
to Hispanic businesses
totaling approximately
$1.9 billion. In
addition, SBA made
approximately 22,802
7(a) loans totaling
almost $3 billion to
women-owned businesses
in 2007. For more
information on this kind
of loan, you may visit:
http://www.sba.gov/services/financialassistance/sbaloantopics/7a/index.html
A separate program for
small businesses looking
for long term, fixed
rate is the 504
Certified Development
Company Program. This
program is conducted in
conjunction with 271
regional non profit
corporations throughout
the nation whose mission
is to fuel economic
growth by creating or
retaining jobs as a
result of their
financing. The 504 CDC
program is designed to
finance a small business
needs for major fixed
assets, such as land and
buildings. Under this
program last year, the
SBA approved more than
1,760 loans worth $959
million to businesses
owned by women. In
addition, more than
2,251 loans went to
Latina-owned small
businesses and these
loans totaled
approximately $192
million. For more
information on this
program, you may visit:
http://www.sba.gov/services/financialassistance/sbaloantopics/cdc504/index.html
The SBA Microloan
program provides very
small loans (no more
than $35,000) for start
ups or early stage
companies. Typically
this involves consulting
firms, retail, IT
service providers,
construction companies
and restaurants. This
program also engages
local community-based
lenders that qualify
borrowers. The average
loan is roughly $10,200.
Under this program the
SBA provided 392 loans
to Hispanics worth $4
million in 2007. For
more information on this
program, you may visit:
http://www.sba.gov/services/financialassistance/sbaloantopics/microloans/index.html
The SBA’s 8(a) Business
Development Program is
designed for those
businesses those have
been operating for at
least 2 years and are
ready to compete for
federal contracting
opportunities. Carranza
notes that the 8(a)
program can give a small
business key advantage
when competing for
federal contracts. This
program immediately
gives the small business
owner access to a
network of companies
that can provide
insights on service or
product opportunities
and how to compete for
contracts. Companies
that are eligible for
the program can remain
in the 8(a) program for
no more than nine years.
Since 2000, Hispanic-owned
8(a) firms grew from
1,585 to a total of
2,187 in 2007, creating
a 38 percent growth.
http://www.sba.gov/aboutsba/sbaprograms/8abd/index.html
By
Maria Hernandez |
