MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — The Tennessee Department of General Services, Middle Tennessee State University, and the Tennessee Small Business Development Center are encouraging area businesses to take advantage of a free GO-BID Certification Workshop to be held Thursday, June 18, at the Rutherford County Chamber of Commerce.

The free workshop will guide businesses step-by-step through the state of Tennessee’s certification application process while enhancing their understanding of state procurement programs, opportunities, and procedures.

Online registration is open for the workshop, which will be held from 9 to 11 a.m. June 18 inside the Rutherford Chamber’s building at 3050 Medical Center Parkway in Murfreesboro. GO-BID partnered with the Murfreesboro/MTSU Service Center for the Tennessee Small Business Development Center to host the workshop at its location inside the chamber. Register at https://bit.ly/4v6kiKp while seats remain. 

Kim Henry, director of the Governor’s Office of Business Initiatives and Development, or GO-BID, said state certification provides a boost for businesses of all types interested in doing business with state agencies and institutions. The process involves her office vetting those seeking certification to ensure they have the required documentation regarding ownership, financials and more.

Workshop participants are asked to bring a laptop or tablet to complete the registration and application; two forms of identification; and the following documents uploaded to their device: their most recent business tax returns, their business license and an equipment list outlining items essential to operating their business.

Henry said businesses of all kinds seek state certification, ranging from caterers to construction companies to information technology firms, janitorial services and everything in between.

“So when you use someone certified, you know you’re getting a legitimate bona fide business that has their documents in order,” said Henry, noting that certified businesses are added to the state’s online database and automatically receive bid notifications related to their areas of expertise that noncertified businesses would have to seek out themselves.

Henry said GO-BID also hosts events throughout the year that are open to certified businesses, giving recent examples of a “pathway to capital” networking and panel event that connected several lending institutions with businesses seeking access to funding, and a “Taste of Tennessee” event at their Nashville headquarters that allowed certified caterers to connect with state institutions and provide samples and information about their services.

“We’re trying to encourage universities, state agencies, or anybody to really embrace using small businesses. When you use small businesses, you’re keeping the money right in the local economy, right in the community, and it promotes workforce development as well,” Henry said.

The Tennessee Small Business Development Center, which is headquartered at MTSU within the Jennings A. Jones College of Business, consists of a network of 15 service centers connected to universities and community colleges throughout the state. The centers’ consultants provide no-cost virtual and in-person business consulting, training, and resources to help for-profit businesses of any size start, grow, and sustain their business.

For more information about the GO-BID certification workshop, call 615-849-9999 or email [email protected].

— Jimmy Hart ([email protected])