Business Resources

Washington Health Benefit Exchange wants to hear from you!

We understand that recruiting and retaining valuable employees in this market can be difficult. Offering quality health insurance can help. The Washington Health Benefit Exchange has created a short 5-minute survey to better understand the health insurance needs of small businesses. Our goal is to ensure small business owners and their employees have access to the health coverage they need. Thank you in advance for your help and feedback.

For questions contact Marie Cooper at smallbusiness@wahbexchange.org

Washington Healthplanfinder

Direct Buy purchasing levels to remain in place through March 2025

Invest in the Planet by Investing in Each Other

More than 1.7 billion people around the world are unbanked and can’t access the financial services they need. Kiva is an international nonprofit, founded in 2005 in San Francisco, with a mission to expand financial access to help underserved communities thrive.

Kiva does this by crowdfunding loans and unlocking capital for the underserved, improving the quality and cost of financial services, and addressing the underlying barriers to financial access around the world. Through Kiva's work, students can pay for tuition, women can start businesses, farmers are able to invest in equipment, and families can afford needed emergency care.

By lending as little as $25 on Kiva, you can be part of the solution and make a real difference in someone’s life. 100% of every dollar you lend on Kiva goes to funding loans.

OMWBE Welcomes Gesa Credit Union to the Linked Deposit Program!

OMWBE Welcomes Gesa Credit Union to the Linked Deposit program! Gesa is the second credit union to join the program. They have locations serving both Eastern and Western Washington. We are excited to expand our list of participating lenders.

Govology Classes from PTAC

Did you know Washington Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC) clients have free access to live and on demand Govology classes? Govology is an online community with resources and knowledge for small businesses pursuing government contracting opportunities. If you are interested in these courses, please contact a PTAC counselor to access these. 

Please note, in order to be eligible to access these courses, your business needs to be an active PTAC client who has had counseling or attended a PTAC event within the last 365 days.

Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander Heritage Month

The Association of NIST Asian Pacific Americans (ANAPA) and Equal Employment Opportunity And Accessibility Office (EEOAO) are presenting virtual events to learn about and celebrate Asian Pacific American Heritage Month. Download the hyperlinked flyer to register.

University of Washington Stroum Lecture Series 2022

The University of Washington Stroum Center for Jewish Studies provides their lecture series free to the public with both virtual and in person options. 

In the 2022 Samuel and Althea Stroum Lectures in Jewish Studies, Lila Corwin Berman, professor of history at Temple University, will look at “the Jewish Question” — the question of how modern nations incorporate Jews  — in the United States, exploring the shifting status of American Jews’ citizenship and civic status across U.S. history.

New Certifications

41 businesses obtained OMWBE certification in March! We share these monthly lists of newly certified firms with our contract and procurement contacts at State Agencies and Institutions of Higher Education.