Spots are still available for the ConocoPhililps Small Biz Builder coming up July 23.
The University of Texas Permian Basin received a $100,000 grant to host the ConocoPhillips Small Biz Builder program in Odessa.
Led by Brian Shedd, executive director of the Center for Entrepreneurship and Economic Development at UTPB, the program aims to help local entrepreneurs and small business owners build stronger, more sustainable businesses through hands-on training, expert mentorship, and practical financial tools.
Program Director Stephanie Griffin said the course starts from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. July 23 at Odessa College.
“That’s the first week, and it’ll run for six weeks, and then we move the show on the road to Carlsbad, which kicks off in October. The goal is, hopefully, we’re back next year with other locations in Midland, Big Spring and Hobbs,” Griffin said in a Microsoft Teams interview.
She added that the Biz Builder program is for entrepreneurs, no matter what stage they’re in, but mostly it’s for those who are launching a business; people with a business idea that may have gotten stuck in the launching phase.
The program uses curriculum from CO.STARTERS, a nationally recognized model that walks entrepreneurs through business idea development, customer discovery, and business modeling. It is paired with tools and training from FINSYNC, a leading small business financial platform that helps participants manage cash flow, streamline operations, and make confident decisions. Later-stage entrepreneurs will also work with the UTPB Small Business Development Center to refine their businesses for additional growth and success.
“We’re going to use the boot camp format that they have. It’s for six weeks. (There’s) a lot of information crammed in there. … They work through their pricing. Will they make a profit? What was their break even point? Who’s their customer base? How’s their marketing plan?” Griffin said.
“It’s truly going through all the basics that you need to start a business that a lot people don’t always get. They have a great idea, and they just jump out in the community versus this gives them true curriculum, true time to really think about their business plan and get out there,” she added. Griffin said they planned for 40 people and they have 34 who have signed up.
“We did (an) information session. We’ve got a lot of marketing going. We partnered with the chambers (of commerce). We’re just getting the word out, but there’s a lot of interest right now,” she added.
The deadline to register is July 18. To register for the Odessa session and/or to learn more about the ConocoPhillips Small Biz Builder program, visit:
A variety of businesses are expected such as food trucks, schools and daycare centers and a gospel lounge, she said.
“It kind of runs the gamut. There’s some folks who do drone images out in the oilfield. There’s some party services. … It’ll be a fun group to be able to brainstorm and share … different ideas, because that’s the point. We want them to work as a cohort and hopefully keep up with each other as they go, regardless of what your business is,” Griffin said.
The entrepreneurs can look to each other for advice and network.
“We have the track of … early starters, those who … just have their idea and don’t know the first thing to do. And then we have those who probably already have a business idea going. The SBDC, Tyler (Patton) and team will be working with us, with that group, where they may need more advanced help. They may be … further along than some of the others, so we hope to break them up into the two tracks to give them more specialized insight,” Griffin said.
Patton is director of the Small Business Development Center.
There is one woman who wants to open a gospel lounge with Christian and gospel music and mocktails.
“It’s a really cool concept that she’s talking about,” Griffin said.
ConocoPhillips has offered Biz Builder for years, but it’s a very different program this year, she added.
“This is their first year partnering with UTPB. The three years that they did it before, it was virtual, and they had folks from all the different areas on one call, versus now we’re in person in the communities,” Griffin said.
“That’s why this one in the Permian we’ll be doing in Odessa. But there are folks from Odessa, from Midland, from other places in that location. This will be the first year it’s in person. This is the first year actually using the CO.STARTERS curriculum with folks from UTPB facilitating. So we’re expecting a different experience this time,” she added.
Griffin said she thinks it will be more effective in person than virtually.
“Myself and the other facilitator, we’ve gone through facilitator training with CO.STARTERS, so we’re really excited about the programming and the information that they’ll get,” she added. “We do think this year will start a new process of turning out folks who are really ready to either get started or to know the work” that’s ahead of them.
Griffin emphasized that the registration deadline is coming up.
“We want to thank ConocoPhillips for their support and for offering up that grant to help us out,” she said.
She added that the program is open to any age and any stage of business.
“We’ve had some high schoolers interested as well as folks retiring. We had someone on the information session who was saying he’s planning for his retirement and he wants to turn his hobby into a career,” Griffin said.
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