“Well, all I can say is, ‘Look at what you guys started,’” teased Maria Meyers, network builder for KCSourceLink, to a packed auditorium at the Stowers Institute on Monday, Aug. 13.

Meyers, KCSourceLink, its founders, and resource partners were honored with the U.S. Department of Commerce’s 2007 Excellence in Economic Development Award for Enhancing Regional Competitiveness. Meyers—who donned a rainbow-colored top hat during her remarks, a KCSourceLink in-joke and running symbol of the many hats entrepreneurs must wear as they start and grow their businesses—had moments before received the award from U.S. Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Economic Development Sandy Baruah and U.S. Congressman Emanuel Cleaver II (MO-05).

The award recognizes the best and the brightest examples of economic development strategy and results. KCSourceLink, which connects more than 140 business building nonprofit resources to small business in the 18-country region, was cited for its commitment to sound, research-based, market-driven economic development that has helped support and grow the local economy.

In addition to Assistant Secretary Baruah and Congressman Cleaver, other speakers included Guy Bailey, UMKC chancellor; Judith Cone, vice president at the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation; and Samuel Jones, regional administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration.

The Power of Connections: From “K.C.” to “U.S.”

Founded by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, the U.S. Small Business Administration, and the Henry W. Bloch School of Business and Public Administration, the KCSourceLink network comprises incubators, small business development centers, organizations like SCORE (Service Corps of Retired Executives), groups that provide microloans, angel networks, chambers of commerce, economic development corporations and more.

Together, those collaborative partnerships have paved a powerful path for small business growth in Kansas City, connecting small businesses to the resources they need and tracking and measuring how those services are provided and the economic impact they deliver. Entrepreneurs, at any stage, can tap into the wealth of information and resources by calling KCSourceLink’s hotline number, visiting the Web site (www.kcsourcelink.com), or contacting any of the 140+ resource partner organizations.

And that concept of collaboration has served as a model for other cities, regions and states nationwide.

The KCSourceLink model, known nationwide as USSourceLink, has hit the road. NetWork Kansas, a statewide initiative of the Kansas Center for Entrepreneurship, connects nonprofit resource organizations to entrepreneurs and small businesses statewide. The Toledo, Ohio Regional Chamber of Commerce and the Charlotte, North Carolina region have adopted specific SourceLink tools to connect area resources. The Urban Entrepreneurship Partnership network uses the SourceLink system in Milwaukee, Cleveland, Cincinnati, Jacksonville, Florida and Atlanta to assist minority and urban entrepreneurs. The SourceLink model is being adopted in areas of Mississippi and Alabama, and is being expanded into other regions of Missouri as Missouri SourceLink.

The Power in Collaboration: Serving Our Veterans

After pausing to thank the elected officials in attendance, including Mayor Funkhouser, Congressman Emanuel Cleaver, and “uberentrepreneur” Henry Bloch for their support, service, and leadership, Assistant Secretary Baruah cited KCSourceLink as yet another kind of model.

“We must all acknowledge what we all learned on the playground of our youth—and that is we are stronger when we stand together than when we stand alone,” he said.

Baruah encouraged economic development professionals, entrepreneurs, and government officials, to look beyond traditional political boundaries that divide cities, counties, and states, “because the competitiveness of America’s companies is in large part tied to the economic competitiveness of the regions in which they do business.

“And nowhere is that concept more important than right here in the greater KC region. . . . The work of KCSourceLink is so strong in this area that it’s gone national.”

The plans for SourceLink continue, through business and beyond.

Through the bistate efforts of Congressman Cleaver and Congressman Dennis Moore (KS-03), the SourceLink model could form the backbone for veterans’ services in the Kansas City region. Vet Link, approved by the U.S. House of Representatives in June and pending approval by the Senate, will identify and organize community resources for veterans through in online database—and go a long way to simplifying the process of linking veterans to the resources they need. If approved, the Kansas City pilot program will be administered by the Bloch School, with plans to expand to the model to a nationwide network of veterans’ services.

KCSourceLink is part of the Institute for Entrepreneurship and Innovation at the UMKC Henry W. Bloch School for Business and Public Administration