Month: April 2024 – ND Small Business Development Centers
Greetings from the North Dakota Small Business Development Network (ND SBDC, ND APEX, and VBOC of the Dakotas)!
This month, we are highlighting our wonderful ND SBDC State Advisory Board – a group of thirteen, each from one of our state’s eight planning regions, ensuring that North Dakota businesses and regions are accurately and fairly represented. Members of the board include small business owners, economic developers, lenders, and representation from the Economic Development Association of North Dakota (EDND), Greater North Dakota Chamber (GNDC), SBA District Office, Bank of North Dakota, and the university system, by the Dean of UND’s Nistler College of Business & Public Administration.
The purpose of the Advisory Board is to advise, support, and advocate for the ND SBDC. Board members provide the State Director and network staff with insight into the world of small business and ensure that the interests of small business owners and entrepreneurs are represented in the network’s efforts to anticipate and meet current and future business needs. Their input keeps us tuned in to the genuine needs of North Dakota’s small businesses, guiding our efforts to address these needs effectively.
Meet our 2024 State Advisory Board Members:
Alan Haut – SBA District Office
Alan Haut, District Director, is responsible for overseeing SBA services across North Dakota. As the nation’s go to resource and voice for small business, the SBA provides counseling, capital, and contracting expertise so businesses can confidently start, grow, expand, or recover. Al’s SBA career has included many positions, including Economic Development Specialist, Loan Officer, Lender Relations Specialist, & Deputy District Director.
Dr. Amy Henley – UND Dean of Nistler College of Business & Public Administration
Amy Henley is the dean and a professor of management at the UND Nistler College of Business & Public Administration. She holds a Ph.D. from the University of Texas in Arlington in the area of organizational behavior and psychology. Henley’s research interests include distributive
and procedural justice, compensation and pay fairness, and intragroup processes. Dr. Henley has co-authored papers that have appeared in numerous top tier academic journals.
Kaylen Hausauer – Bank of North Dakota
Kaylen Hausauer is a Business Banker with BND where she has worked since 2012. She began as a Finance Associate at BND where she spent a year learning each area of the Bank. In 2013, she began working as a Loan Officer. She is from Bismarck and has a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting from University of Jamestown and Master’s degree in Business Administration from University of Mary.
Ray Berry – Small Business Owner
Ray Berry is co-founder of OmniByte in Fargo, ND. An NDSU graduate, he is a life-long ND resident and brings over 30 years of experience in the fields of engineering and technology together with his passion to accomplish OmniByte’s mission: Improve the safety and lives of mobile workforce personnel. The ND SBDC has been an important partner for OmniByte from its beginning in 2015, and through different stages of growth globally. Ray is an advocate and staunch supporter of small businesses and of the SBDC organization.
Shannon Duerr – Economic Developer
Shannon Duerr is the Executive Director of the Cavalier County Job Development Authority, where she has been employed since 2007. She is a member of several organizations including the Economic Development Association of North Dakota and the Mid-America Development Council. Shannon is passionate about ensuring thar small businesses in rural communities receive access to the same services and programs available in larger communities.
Chris Moen – Lender
Chris Moen serves as a Financial Advisor and Consumer/Small Business banking lender for the Northern Valley Market. He specializes in providing clients with holistic financial planning needs and is an active member in the entrepreneurial ecosystem. After seeing the massive impact the ND SBDC has had on his referred clients, he knew he wanted a more active role on the board to continue the great work being done in our communities and state.
Missy Feist-Erickson – Lender
Missy Feist-Erickson is the Vice President of Peoples State Bank of Velva, a locally owned community bank with offices in Velva and Minot. She is also the treasurer for the Minot Area Chamber/EDC and serves on the Governor-appointed board, Commission on Status of Women. Missy believes that small businesses are big business! Through the partnership with the ND SBDC and the bank customers, she has seen firsthand the key role ND SBDC plays to assist in the success of business of all kinds.
Cherie Harms – Small Business Owner
Cherie Harms is President/CEO of Leonardite Products in Williston, a mining and processing facility serving the agriculture and oil industries globally. In addition to serving on the ND District Export Council, Harms is a founder of the Humic Products Trade Association and A Dakota Boys and Girls Ranch Foundation board member. She is a long-term client of the Williston SBDC and was recently named SBA’s 2024 North Dakota Small Business Person of the Year.
Nathan Schneider – Economic Developer
Nathan Schneider is the Vice President of Economic Development for the Bismarck Mandan Chamber EDC. He has been with the organization for ten years and leads the Chamber EDC’s business attraction business retention and expansion, entrepreneurial development, workforce development and talent attraction efforts. As a fourth generation North Dakotan and Harvey native, he is excited to be part of the growth of this state. He believes that Bismarck-Mandan is a shining star in the upper Midwest for both business and talent and tries to showcase everyday why business should expand or individuals should relocate here. He shares “this is a great time to be a part of this community and this organization.
Carie Boster – Economic Developer
Carie Boster has served as the Economic Development Director at Dunn County Jobs Development Authority since 2012. Carie has been a strong advocate for rural community and business development in the western part of the state, involved in numerous organizations, including REAP Investment board, ND Opportunity Fund Loan Committee, and the Killdeer Area Community Foundation Development Board. She brings vast and diverse experience to our advisory board with over twenty years professional experience in the business sector including Editor of Dunn County Herald, Consumer Advocate at BCBS of MT, and Associate Director for the Helena Montana Business Improvement District and Helena Downtown Merchants Association.
Brad Barth – Economic Developer
Brad Barth has been Executive Director of Forward Devils Lake Corporation, the Economic Development agency for the City of Devils Lake and Ramsey County, ND since May of 2018. Brad’s career has spanned over four decades with the early years in software sales management and the later years in college fundraising. He is passionate about helping Devils Lake and NE ND grow in people and businesses. Brad believes in regional economic development and the importance of regional and statewide relationships. He has been an EDND board member since 2019 and last fall, began a 2-year term as President of the EDND Association, which puts him in the rotating EDND board seat on the ND SBDC advisory board.
Cheryl Kary – Sacred Pipe Resource Partner
Cheryl Kary is an enrolled member of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe. She holds a Ph.D. in Communications and Public Discourse from UND. In 2013, she established the Sacred Pipe Resource Center, a non-profit organization serving the American Indian population in Bismarck-Mandan. She has worked within and with Tribal communities and populations for a majority of her career, advocating for Native people and Tribes in a variety of volunteer efforts.
Amanda Remynse – Greater North Dakota Chamber
Amanda Remynse is the Vice President of Operations & Outreach for the Greater North Dakota Chamber (GNDC), her background is a blend of creativity, content creation, and public policy. Additionally, she constantly works to promote GNDC through her strengths in collaboration and relationship building. Before joining GNDC in 2019, Remynse was employed by the State of North Dakota focusing specifically to address the state’s workforce challenges. Her background also includes a stint at an advertising firm where she promoted various businesses and tourism events in North Dakota.
We could not be more thankful for our Advisory Board. Their advocacy, experience, and hard work make them great partners and assets for the network as we work together. When small businesses thrive, communities thrive… North Dakota thrives.
Thank you,
Tiffany Ford, State Director
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