WASHINGTON - The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) has announced that its Business Matchmaking Southeastern Regional Face-to-Face Event will be held at the Broward County Convention Center in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., on Thursday, Nov. 16, 2006. Participating firms will receive advance education and tools to prepare for face-to-face meetings with buyers from federal, state, and local government agencies and major corporations.

Elements of the event include:

Individual business counseling and guidance provided by the SBA, the SCORE Association, and other resource partners.

Viewing of the Virtual Business Matchmaking Workshop, an online tutorial to prepare for business matchmaking and procurement opportunities.

Access to the Business Matchmaking System in advance of the event to be matched with participating procurement representatives and setting a schedule for appointments with buyers.

Face-to-face meetings with procurement representatives of federal, state, and local government agencies and major corporations.

Small business specific and topical workshops available throughout the event day.

Exhibits and networking with regional small business resources including access to capital, SBA loans, insurance, federal qualification requirements, women and minority business tools, certification, etc.

Access to representatives from private sector co-sponsors for information about their companies.

For more information, visit www.businessmatchmaking.com/regionse.shtml.

Publication date: 10/23/2006