Latest / Craft Brewery Financial Training Podcast / How Breweries Can Use Workforce Grants To Boost Profit

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How Breweries Can Use Workforce Grants To Boost Profit · Craft Brewery Financial Training Podcast

• 0:00
  Kary Shumway: Today we've got a very special podcast, and it's specifically for Massachusetts Breweries.
• 0:05
  Kary Shumway: But hold on, this is also for any state that offers workforce training funds, workforce training grants, and I know that's pretty much every state.
• 0:15
  Kary Shumway: I happen to live in New Hampshire.
• 0:16
  Kary Shumway: I grew up in Massachusetts.
• 0:18
  Kary Shumway: So the focus for today is on Massachusetts breweries and how they can use a workforce training grant to strengthen financial performance in the year ahead.
• 0:28
  Kary Shumway: So if you are a Massachusetts brewery and you want to start off the new year on a much stronger financial footing, there's a powerful resource sitting right in front of you that most breweries don't even know how to use, and that's the Massachusetts Workforce Training Fund, specifically the Express program.
• 0:43
  Kary Shumway: We're going to talk about how to use it to get your staff trained, get yourself trained, and improve your financial systems and get up to 100% reimbursement.
• 0:51
  Kary Shumway: So if you're not in Massachusetts, fear not.
• 0:54
  Kary Shumway: We are looking into grant programs in every state.
• 0:58
  Kary Shumway: And if you happen to know about specific grant programs, training programs in your state, drop me a line and I'll see if I can get my programs approved so that you get 100% reimbursement.
• 1:11
  Kary Shumway: Just reach out Carrie at bearbusinessfinance.com, K A R Y at BeerBusinessfinance.com.
• 1:18
  Kary Shumway: And without further ado, let's talk about how breweries can use the workforce training grant to strengthen financial performance in the new year ahead.
• 1:27
  Kary Shumway: Welcome to the Kraft Brewery Financial Training Podcast, where we combine beer and numbers to provide you with tips, tactics, and strategies so that you can improve financial results in your brewery.
• 1:38
  Kary Shumway: I'm your host, Carrie Shemoy, a CPA, CFO for a brewery, and a former CFO for a beer distributor.
• 1:44
  Kary Shumway: I've spent the last 20 years using finance to improve financial results in our beer business.
• 1:50
  Kary Shumway: Now I'm helping other craft breweries to do the same.
• 1:53
  Kary Shumway: Are you ready to take your brewery financial results to the next level?
• 1:56
  Kary Shumway: Okay, let's get started.
• 1:59
  Kary Shumway: Just a quick note, and we'll be right back to the podcast.
• 2:05
  Kary Shumway: I want to let you know about a new network for beer industry professionals.
• 2:09
  Kary Shumway: It's called the Beer Business Finance Association.
• 2:13
  Kary Shumway: It's an organization of financial pros, just like you, looking to improve financial results, increase profitability, connect with your peers, and share best practices.
• 2:23
  Kary Shumway: So I'd love to tell you a little bit more about this.
• 2:26
  Kary Shumway: If you are interested in learning more, please email me, Carrie at Beer Business Finance.com.
• 2:32
  Kary Shumway: That's K-A-R-Y at beerbusinessfinance.com, or you can visit BBFassociation.org.
• 2:40
  Kary Shumway: That's BBFassociation.org to learn more.
• 2:43
  Kary Shumway: Today on the podcast, I want to talk about how Massachusetts breweries can use the workforce training grant to strengthen financial performance in the year ahead.
• 2:52
  Kary Shumway: So my name is Carrie Shamway.
• 2:54
  Kary Shumway: I'm a CPA, former CFO for a brewery and a beer wholesaler.
• 2:58
  Kary Shumway: And I understand how hard it is to get training for ourselves, for managers, for staff.
• 3:04
  Kary Shumway: So that's where I think this grant comes in is depending on the size of your brewery, uh, the training costs are 100% reimbursable.
• 3:16
  Kary Shumway: So we'll get into the details of how that works and how you can take advantage of it.
• 3:21
  Kary Shumway: Um but by way of quick background, I I was born in Massachusetts, grew up there, live in New Hampshire currently, and I have a real vested interest in spreading the good word of financial training and literacy so that your business, your brewery can remain financially strong into the future.
• 3:38
  Kary Shumway: Because let's face it, I love numbers, but I love beer too.
• 3:42
  Kary Shumway: Um so I have I have a strong interest in seeing Massachusetts breweries be successful.
• 3:47
  Kary Shumway: And I think this this grant program can really really help in that regard.
• 3:52
  Kary Shumway: So if you're a Massachusetts brewery and you want to start up the new year on a stronger financial footing, this is a powerful resource that frankly I think most breweries don't even know about.
• 4:02
  Kary Shumway: I didn't know about it or how to use it.
• 4:04
  Kary Shumway: It took me a while to figure that out.
• 4:06
  Kary Shumway: Uh, and that's what I want to untangle here for you and uh really kind of shorten the learning curve because it took me a while to figure this, figure this stuff out.
• 4:14
  Kary Shumway: But uh I'm gonna kind of go through the details, share the value, and then give you some next steps if you're ready to kind of check this out.
• 4:22
  Kary Shumway: So again, the Massachusetts Workforce Training Fund.
• 4:26
  Kary Shumway: And there's uh couple of different programs under this.
• 4:29
  Kary Shumway: We're gonna talk about the Express program today, and as the name implies, it's fast and easy and really designed to give you quick wins.
• 4:37
  Kary Shumway: So we'll talk about how you can use it to get yourself, your managers, your staff trained, and improve your financial systems, and ultimately improve profitability and cash flow in the new year and get the state to pay for it.
• 4:49
  Kary Shumway: So we know we've got growing costs, they're just going up everywhere, margins are tight.
• 4:54
  Kary Shumway: Our staff needs this training, these financial headaches, they're just not gonna go away.
• 5:00
  Kary Shumway: So you can get this financial training, benchmarking tools, skill development, all reimbursed by the state.
• 5:06
  Kary Shumway: So I'm gonna show you exactly how the grant works, how breweries qualify, which courses are eligible, including the ones that I've put together, and why I think now is the perfect time to apply.
• 5:17
  Kary Shumway: And I think there's we're always looking for you know return on investment.
• 5:21
  Kary Shumway: Where can I spend money so that I get more money back?
• 5:23
  Kary Shumway: And I think this may be the easiest return on investment that you you're gonna get all year.
• 5:29
  Kary Shumway: All right.
• 5:29
  Kary Shumway: So, what is this training fund?
• 5:31
  Kary Shumway: It's a state funded program, and it's designed to help mass businesses, including breweries, train the workforce.
• 5:38
  Kary Shumway: So, again, two major programs under this.
• 5:41
  Kary Shumway: We're gonna talk about the Express program, which is perfect for small breweries.
• 5:45
  Kary Shumway: So it's a fast, streamlined online application.
• 5:49
  Kary Shumway: There's a catalog of pre-approved courses, and reimbursement is up to one hundred percent of these training costs.
• 5:57
  Kary Shumway: It's important because again, you know, budgets are tight.
• 6:01
  Kary Shumway: We don't have money just sitting around to invest in training, but this is a great way to get the training paid for.
• 6:06
  Kary Shumway: And it reduces the risk for you, lets you invest in the skills that drive profitability.
• 6:13
  Kary Shumway: And it's kind of like the state handing us a coupon for financial education that directly improves your margins.
• 6:19
  Kary Shumway: All right, so let's go through the details.
• 6:20
  Kary Shumway: How does this work?
• 6:22
  Kary Shumway: Break it down step by step.
• 6:24
  Kary Shumway: So the first step really is to go to the Express program website, and I'm gonna put that link here in the show notes for you.
• 6:32
  Kary Shumway: Uh, so you can go in there and just nose around like what what pro what courses are here, what might you need for training?
• 6:39
  Kary Shumway: I'll obviously direct you to the courses that I've um put together and have approved in the directory for financial training.
• 6:47
  Kary Shumway: Uh, so you can browse those courses.
• 6:49
  Kary Shumway: Um my courses are listed under Brewery Financial Training, Craft Brewery Financial Training.
• 6:54
  Kary Shumway: Uh so we've got a brewery financial benchmarks and scorecards course.
• 6:59
  Kary Shumway: We've got our Financial Excellence for Breweries, that's a multi-part uh course that's uh longer, more comprehensive.
• 7:05
  Kary Shumway: So, step one, go to the website, search the programs, see what's available, see what might tickle your fancy.
• 7:13
  Kary Shumway: Then you choose a course.
• 7:15
  Kary Shumway: So, so for example, say you want to start with a two-hour workshop on brewery financial benchmarks.
• 7:22
  Kary Shumway: So you choose the course, it lists out all the details, the pricing, the reimbursement, all the things that are available, and then you make applications.
• 7:31
  Kary Shumway: So, right on the website at the bottom, once you select the course, it'll say, you know, apply here.
• 7:37
  Kary Shumway: So the application, you know, it takes probably 10 or 15 minutes.
• 7:41
  Kary Shumway: You're gonna need some information to fill this thing out.
• 7:43
  Kary Shumway: The application itself is pretty straightforward.
• 7:45
  Kary Shumway: It's like your name, your address, your tax ID number, uh, things of that nature.
• 7:49
  Kary Shumway: They'll need a few documents that you're gonna need to upload with the application.
• 7:54
  Kary Shumway: One is just your certificate of good standing with the state of Massachusetts.
• 7:59
  Kary Shumway: You can usually get that online.
• 8:00
  Kary Shumway: A certificate of insurance, uh, and this is going to number one prove that you've got workers' comp insurance, but two, show how many W-2 employees you have, and that's how they determine the reimbursement.
• 8:12
  Kary Shumway: So if you have 50 or fewer W-2 employees, uh the reimbursement is 100%.
• 8:19
  Kary Shumway: If you have 100, uh between let's say 50 and 100, over 50 and less than 100 W-2 employees, the reimbursement is 50%.
• 8:28
  Kary Shumway: So you're gonna upload that information um with the application.
• 8:33
  Kary Shumway: And again, probably takes 10 to 15 minutes.
• 8:35
  Kary Shumway: Getting those documents might be um take a little bit more.
• 8:39
  Kary Shumway: So once you submit, uh, there's an approval process.
• 8:44
  Kary Shumway: Usually the state says it takes up to 21 days, so you might expect between two and three weeks once you apply to get that approval back.
• 8:52
  Kary Shumway: Once you get the approval, now you're ready to take the training.
• 8:55
  Kary Shumway: The approval is good for a year.
• 8:59
  Kary Shumway: So if you apply now, you're good for the whole rest of the year uh to go ahead and take that course.
• 9:04
  Kary Shumway: So it's not like you have to apply, take the course immediately.
• 9:07
  Kary Shumway: You can take it uh up to a year uh ahead of time, meaning you've got a whole year to take the training.
• 9:13
  Kary Shumway: So you'll take the training, um, you'll get all of the information included.
• 9:19
  Kary Shumway: My courses include all the tools, templates, dashboards, uh, follow-up support.
• 9:24
  Kary Shumway: Uh, these are Zoom meetings where there's a lot of time for QA as well as you know covering the specifics uh of the class.
• 9:31
  Kary Shumway: And at the conclusion of the training, then you submit for reimbursement and you get uh the training costs back.
• 9:39
  Kary Shumway: So it's simple, fast, and it removes that financial barrier uh to training your brewery team.
• 9:44
  Kary Shumway: So let's talk about some of the frequently asked questions, commonly asked questions that breweries may have.
• 9:50
  Kary Shumway: So the first is do breweries qualify?
• 9:53
  Kary Shumway: And the answer is yes.
• 9:54
  Kary Shumway: Almost every Massachusetts brewery qualifies, um, provided you hit that under 50 W-2 employees or under 100 uh W-2 employees.
• 10:04
  Kary Shumway: Uh, can you apply for multiple courses?
• 10:07
  Kary Shumway: Yes, you can.
• 10:07
  Kary Shumway: You can stack this training and select multiple courses at the at the time of application.
• 10:14
  Kary Shumway: Is the application difficult, time consuming?
• 10:17
  Kary Shumway: It's not.
• 10:17
  Kary Shumway: It takes about 10 minutes.
• 10:19
  Kary Shumway: I'll guide you through it too.
• 10:20
  Kary Shumway: That's the other thing is if you want to jump on a quick zoom, we can go through it together.
• 10:26
  Kary Shumway: Uh, happy to do that.
• 10:27
  Kary Shumway: Uh, another question, you know, what if I have never done this before?
• 10:31
  Kary Shumway: And the short answer is most breweries haven't haven't done it before.
• 10:35
  Kary Shumway: So you're not behind, uh, but this is your chance to catch up, take advantage of this resource.
• 10:40
  Kary Shumway: Uh, does the program run out of money?
• 10:43
  Kary Shumway: Um, not typically, but approvals will slow down during busy periods.
• 10:47
  Kary Shumway: So the recommendation is to apply early, apply now, why wait?
• 10:52
  Kary Shumway: It's not doesn't cost you anything, and you don't have to take the training, you simply make applications so that uh you're approved if you find the courses that you want to take.
• 11:02
  Kary Shumway: So now is the perfect time to apply.
• 11:05
  Kary Shumway: We're coming up at the end of the year.
• 11:07
  Kary Shumway: We want to start the new year on the right foot.
• 11:10
  Kary Shumway: Um, you know, I think January is a great time to really refocus on your financials, cost of goods sold, payroll, tax obligations.
• 11:19
  Kary Shumway: What are we doing now?
• 11:21
  Kary Shumway: What are we going to do into the new year to improve financial results?
• 11:25
  Kary Shumway: So, also these grant approvals do take some time, right?
• 11:28
  Kary Shumway: Two to three weeks.
• 11:29
  Kary Shumway: So if you apply now, you can start training in early January, February, whenever it's most convenient for you.
• 11:35
  Kary Shumway: Starting off with a plan, the new year with a plan, is imperative.
• 11:41
  Kary Shumway: Most breweries that I work with don't have a financial plan, or it's not completed, or we had one, but we didn't quite use it.
• 11:50
  Kary Shumway: So it's essential.
• 11:51
  Kary Shumway: Gotta have that financial roadmap.
• 11:53
  Kary Shumway: Uh, it's super important in order to get where you want to be financially.
• 11:57
  Kary Shumway: So we've got free money on the table, we've got training that makes your brewery more profitable, we've got tools and systems that reduce stress and improve financial outcomes.
• 12:07
  Kary Shumway: So we don't want to let another year go by without getting control of those numbers.
• 12:13
  Kary Shumway: So, with that, the next steps are book a call with me and I'll walk you through the entire application.
• 12:18
  Kary Shumway: I'll help you choose the right course, show you the information to upload, answer any questions that you may have about the course content, timing, reimbursement, and then you'll be ready to enroll and start training as soon as January.
• 12:33
  Kary Shumway: So I really want your brewery to be more profitable in the new year.
• 12:37
  Kary Shumway: And the simplest place to start is with training that's already up to 100% paid for.
• 12:42
  Kary Shumway: The state wants you to build a stronger business.
• 12:45
  Kary Shumway: I want to help you build a more profitable brewery.
• 12:48
  Kary Shumway: So check out the Workforce Training Express program, choose your course, and reach out if you need help.
• 12:55
  Kary Shumway: And here's to a healthier, more profitable year ahead.
• 12:59
  Kary Shumway: Thank you for listening to the Craft Brewery Financial Training Podcast, where we combine beer and numbers so that you can improve financial results in your brewery.
• 13:08
  Kary Shumway: For more resources, tools, guides, and online courses, visit Craft Brewery Financial Training.com.
• 13:15
  Kary Shumway: And don't forget to sign up for the world famous Craft Brewery Financial Training newsletter.
• 13:20
  Kary Shumway: Until next time, get out there and improve financial results in your brewery today.