A small business mindset can benefit even the largest business. Having an entrepreneurial mindset is equivalent to having a customer service mindset, according to Lentz Stowe, director of the Small Business Center at Beaufort County Community College.

In that spirit, the business administration program at the college partnered with the Small Business Center to put students through HP LIFE e-learning, a series of online courses that help students develop technology and entrepreneurial skills.

Instructor Cynthia King teaches business administration students skills related to managing businesses large and small. In an effort to expand small businesses in eastern North Carolina, King partnered with Stowe to focus student skills around entrepreneurship.

The Small Business Center is a state-funded program in BCCC’s Continuing Education Division. The SBC regularly presents free seminars led by both local and regional business leaders to help local business owners develop marketing, accounting and personnel skills. BCCC is a member of the National Association for Community College Entrepreneurship, which is partnering with HP LIFE to offer the seminar for free to its members.

HP LIFE, a program through computer company Hewlett Packard, can be incorporated into existing business classes free of charge. It teaches contemporary information technology and business skills through 27 simple, interactive courses in finance, operation, marketing and communications. At the end of each course, students receive a certificate of completion.

“Part of thinking like an entrepreneur is thinking about what unique services you can offer to your customers,” King said. “The HP LIFE series is one more advantage I can offer to our business administration students.”

Demetrius Holloway, a business administration program graduate who went through the HP LIFE course, said that the HP LIFE certificates stand out on his resume.

“My interviewers were truly impressed by my certificates and were interested in learning more about the program,” Holloway said. “Also depending on which certificates you earn, it can be really beneficial in getting the job you may want because most interviewers look at it as a skill.”

Stowe insists that the course is not just for small business hopefuls, but for all business students like Holloway.

“Optimally, everyone should possess an ownership mindset in their workplace regardless of their placement in the operation,” he said. “What can I do more efficiently? How can I help grow the business? The HP LIFE course helps cultivate this type of entrepreneurial mindset.”

“That personal touch, that connection — that’s what brings customers back,” Stowe said. “Entrepreneurs think outside the box. They connect the dots to fill an economic need in their community.”

It is exactly that kind of “big picture” thinking that led to the collaboration between the business administration program and the SBC, and the results so far have been satisfied customers, students like Holloway, who can leave BCCC with a stronger set of skills as they enter the workforce.