Hoping to better marshal the intellect of some of the community's most savvy business leaders, officials with Montana Business Assistance Connection have joined with the Helena Area Chamber of Commerce to implement a formal Business Expansion and Retention (BEAR) program.

"It's a program that's been pushed statewide for a long time, but we've never taken advantage of it," said MBAC director Terry Myhre. "Everyone who's in business has some areas where, if they knew there were people they could talk to, they would take advantage of it."

Here's how the program works. Interested small business owners in MBAC's three-county (Lewis and Clark, Broadwater and Meagher) region can request a visit from a pair of outreach partners, who will conduct an interview of about an hour to develop a profile of the firm.

The interview will include questions about a company's products, marketing, sales, competitors, management, workforce, facilities and more.

Once the data is collected, the BEAR team meets to determine what areas are the company's strengths and where there might be room for improvement. And based on those results, follow-up consultations are scheduled with local experts in various areas of business.

For example, a company might get extra training in customer service, or assistance navigating the regulatory environment, or accounting, marketing or technology resources.

"It gives an opportunity to come in and request help in a specific area," Myhre said. "And it gives (MBAC) a chance to be proactive with borrowers who may be having trouble making their payments."

MBAC and the chamber have developed a roster of some 20 experts in various areas of business to help BEAR program participants.

Myhre added that as more businesses take part in the program, the collective data might yield information about Helena's business climate.

"As more businesses go through the process, we can identify trends, strengths and weaknesses across the entire regional economy," he said.

For more information on the Business Expansion and Retention program, go to the MBAC Web site at www.mbac.biz, or call 447-1510.

Reporter John Harrington: 447-4080 or john.harrington@helenair.com