III Periodic Review of Centers (Academic Policy 100.0)

Montana Business Connections

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A. Written Report Summary:

1. Purpose: Montana Business Connection’s mission is to support business development and growth in Montana by linking business with resources, information, and expertise. Montana Business Connections provides referrals to university, public and private resources through the Business Resource System and the Montana Manufacturers Information System.

2. Objectives:
Ÿ Collect, maintain and update information on business assistance and economic development programs and resources.
Ÿ Make this information available to all Montanans in an effective and cost efficient manner.
Ÿ Create a comprehensive online directory of all manufacturers in Montana.
Ÿ Gather in-depth information to the extent possible on the products, services, needs, capabilities and capacity of each manufacturer.
Ÿ Make this information available to Montana manufactures and potential customer’s n and effective manner.
Ÿ Utilize data to analyze the manufacturing sector, support economic development efforts and identify economic development opportunities.

3. Activities:
Ÿ Website/database development: MBC develops and programs the database structure that contains the data for the Business Resource System (BRS) and the Montana Manufacturers Information System (MMIS). Currently the data are available online through two linked websites developed by MBC (www.mbc.umt.edu & www.mmis.umt.edu). In partnership with groups in Idaho and Washington the data structures and online programs are used to provide wood product directories for those states (www.mmis.umt.edu/ID/ & www.mmis.umt.edu/WA/).
Ÿ Maintaining/updating data: The data in the BRS and MMIS are updated through monitoring information and directly contacting the organizations in each system.
Ÿ Data analysis: In partnership with the Bureau of Business and Economic Research the MMIS data are used to analyze the manufacturing sector of Montana’s economy to identify resources and areas where manufacturing activity could be expanded.

4. Other organizations involved:
University partners:
The University of Montana
Bureau of Business and Economic Development
World Trade Center

Montana State University
Montana Manufacturing Extension Center
Extension Services – Forest Products
Inland-Northern Forest Products Research Consortium
Washington State University, Dept. of Natural Resource Sciences
University of Washington, Ctr. For International Trade in Forest Products
University of Idaho, Dept. of Forest Products
State partners: Montana Department of Commerce
Federal partners: U.S. Department of Commerce
Technology Opportunities Program
Economic Development Administration
Private sector partners: Montana Economic Developers Association

5. Reporting line: The Director of Montana Business Connections reports to the Dean of the School of Business Administration. The budget for Montana Business Connections is administered through the Office of the Vice President of Research and Development. The MBC was established in 1990.

6. Relationships with academic units: Montana Business Connection, through the Business Resource System, connects businesses and entrepreneurs to many programs and organizations within the University, such as the Small Business Institute, School of Business Administration and Internship Services.
Bob Campbell, Director makes guest appearances in business classes. He also provides assistance to students working on projects that involve developing business plans or consulting with local businesses. An average of 4 students per year interact directly with MBC for projects or indirectly through their employment at the BBER. Occasionally he has assisted other departments with database management or computer programming projects. He is a point of contact for business counseling for entrepreneurial efforts within the university. Connections are also made between university researchers seeking to work with businesses to gather data or create case studies through MBC’s database of businesses.

7. Similar programs:
Ÿ Small Business Administration, Helena publishes a resource directory which contains major business assistance programs and focuses on their own services. (MBC’s databases are more comprehensive because they also include individuals and businesses not associated with SBA.)
Ÿ Montana Department of Commerce, Helena has an online directory of financial assistance programs. (MBC’s databases include financial assistance as subsets, making MBC databases more comprehensive.)
Ÿ Many local Chamber of Commerce or local economic development councils have listings of local business assistance resources. (These databases tend to be point-in-time lists that quickly outdate. These databases are also focused on local, not statewide businesses. The MBC databases collect statewide data and are maintained in an ongoing manner, which keep the information current.)
Ÿ There are a number of private sector manufacturers’ directories, though none are designed for economic development purposes. Some examples include Harris InfoSource, Thomas Register, and DexOnline. (MBC’s manufacturer database is more comprehensive because it does not require business to pay to be included in the listings. This makes the MBC database more comprehensive.)

8. Budget: Montana Business Connections is grant funded and since February 2004 has had no grant funds. MBC’s basic expenses, approximately $100 per month for phone, postage and connectivity are covered by funds from its SPABA account. MBC has been funded during most of its existence; the lack of grant funds has been a recent experience. The size of the center has been reduced as funding is reduced.

a. 1. Current faculty and percentage of time: None
Current staff: MBC’s staff consists of Bob Campbell, Director, who is a non-faculty
contract professional. He is currently being paid .5 FTE by the Bureau of Business and Economic Research for assisting with data analysis, database development and administration, information technology and systems administration needs. He is maintaining MBC’s websites and databases and responding to inquiries while pursuing funding opportunities.
2. Need and cost for new faculty (next five years): none
3. Need for other personnel: data entry support

b. Use and anticipated needs (next five years) of University Resources: refer to c.
1. Library: none
2. Technology/equipment: Three servers are used to provide the online services of MBC; this equipment requires maintenance and upgrades as needed.
3. Facility and space: Sufficient- MBC is housed in Gallagher Business Building Rooms 242 and 243

c. Source of Funding (Estimate ):

General Funds	$0	0%	Personnel	$77,000	93.9%
Grants (pending)	$	100%	Operations	$5,000	6.1%
Estimated Total	$82,000 (at least)		Estimated Total	$82,000

Anticipated source of funding for the next five years: MBC is working with Research Administration to pursue federal and state funding sources. In partnership with the Bureau of Business and Economic Research funding to support and expand the MMIS system may become available from the Inland-Northwest Forest Products Research Consortium and/or the U.S. Forest Service.

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B. Review and Approval Process

2. The Faculty Senate through its Chair, ECOS, and Committees as appropriate shall recommend continuance or discontinuance by vote.

Review in terms of Scope as stated in academic policy 100.0
To provide instruction, scholarship, or service to the University, state or world by: (1) focusing attention on an area of strength and/or addressing a critical issue, or (2) facilitating collaborative, multi-disciplinary endeavors to combine resources from several programs or institutions to address issues of common interest.

Recommendation: As long as the MBC is capable of supporting its efforts directly through grant funding or indirectly through BBER contracts that support the Director’s salary, it should remain in operation. However, ECOS strongly recommends that the center resume collecting data to show how the center is meeting its objectives. Another review will be scheduled in two years to look at success in obtaining funding and data indicating how the center is meeting its objectives.

Justification:

Scope: The MBC is focused on economic development, which complements the research and education efforts of the BBER. The need to support economic development is a critical issue in this state. Although the databases of MBC share characteristics with various other state and local databases, the MBC databases are more comprehensive, more inclusive of small businesses and individuals, and better maintained. There are no current data on number of users or businesses impacted by this center.

University mission: The center, established in 1990, is not controversial. It appears to provide limited benefit to students through access to and experience with a database. Students employed by BBER gain experience indirectly with the MBC databases as part of their employment; students in business and computer science may work directly with the MBC database and director when preparing business plans. There is also potential to increase interaction between faculty and external businesses. The half-time Director provides guest lectures to business students and provides some mentoring for student projects.

Budget: Historically, the center has been fully supported by grant funds. Over the past two years, funding has been more difficult to obtain. The center has reduced the size of its staff as funding has decreased. The center is currently supported through contracts with the Bureau of Business and Economic Research, an extramurally-funded research program, which pays the Director’s salary for work on projects. Operational expenses come from MBC’s SPABA account. No general university funds are used to support the center. A majority of the budget is devoted to the Director’s salary with minimal operating expenses.