Washington, DC -- Partner America Chairman, George A. Cloutier, chairman and CEO, American Management Services, Inc.

George A. Cloutier Download the entire best practices document (720k .pdf file)

announced the "best small business practices" at the U.S. Conference of Mayors 69th Annual Winter Meeting. The program is a new component of the US Conference of Mayors small business initiative to promote the importance of small business to the local and national economy. "Small business is the backbone of our economy," stated Cloutier, "With over 25 million small businesses in the U.S., this is an important constituency that must not be overlooked. The purpose of this directory is to share successful programs that have helped mayors connect with their small business community in hopes that we will inspire other cities to implement new or similar programs in their own communities."

Conference President Boise Mayor H. Brent Coles remarked that "We are very pleased to have such a positive response to this new component of the Partner America small business/city resource initiative - over three dozen cities responded." These programs are published in a directory that was released during Thursday's opening plenary session.

In conjunction with the announcement, two Mayors presented their city's best small business practices:

• Richmond, CA Mayor Rosemary M. Corbin - Visiting Small Businesses
  How visiting small businesses to show that they are appreciated has contributed to a positive atmosphere of mutual respect resulting in an improved business retention rate.

• Forth Worth, TX Mayor Kenneth L. Barr - Fort Worth Business Assistance Center
  A one-stop shop has inspired start-ups and encouraged business expansion in a community that faced the devastating effects of national defense downsizing.

Programs also recognized, but whose Mayors were not in attendance to present:

• Orlando, FL Mayor Glenda E. Hood - The Mayor's Business Assistance Team
  A program to provide small businesses with accessible, accountable, efficient and effective service while resolving their needs.

• Philadelphia, PA Mayor John F. Street - City of Philadelphia Department of Commerce Mayor's Business Action Team (MBAT)
  Responsible for the business retention and attraction program for the city that provides comprehensive business assistance.

List of cities that Contributed to Partner America "Best Small Business Practices" directory:

Birmingham, AL, Mobile, AL, Long Beach, CA, Richmond, CA, Denver, CO, Bridgeport, CT, New Haven, CT, Stamford, CT, Lauderhill, FL, Orlando, FL, Pembroke Pines, FL, Tampa, FL, West Palm Beach, FL, Atlanta, GA Boise, ID, Arlington Heights, IL, Chicago, IL, Louisville, KY, Reno, NV, Irvington, NJ, Albany, NY, Buffalo, NY, Hempstead, NY, Rochester, NY, Rome, NY, Akron, OH, Kettering, OH, Toledo, OH, Philadelphia, PA, Caguas, PR, Forth Worth, TX, Alexandria, VA, Burlington, VT, Bellingham, WA, Redmond, WA

About the Partners

Partner America
Partner America is a public-private partnership created by the United States Conference of Mayors and American Management Services to help small and mid-sized businesses improve profits and sales through management technical assistance in hundreds of cities, and every state across the nation. Partner America is the first initiative focused specifically on combining the resources and programs offered by local and federal government agencies, with the management expertise provided by private enterprise, to implement profit-improvement programs for U.S. businesses. Find us at www.partneramerica.com.

U.S. Conference of Mayors
The United States Conference of Mayors is the official non-partisan organization of cities with populations of 30,000 or more, and focuses on the development and implementation of national urban policies impacting the sustainable development and growth of cities across the United States. Find us at usmayors.org.

American Management Services, Inc.
Serving 5,000 small businesses since 1986, American Management is the leading provider of implementation-based profit improvement services with a team of professional operating executives who work directly with owners to implement the changes necessary to improve cash and profits. To date, American Management Services has already brought over $1 billion in savings to its clients, forty-percent of which are family-owned businesses. Find us at www.amserv.com.

For Partner America Contact:
Jennifer Johnson
(202) 861-6701

For American Management Contact:
Morris L. Reid
(202) 879-5594

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