Steps on how to Apply for Business Certificate
Why to get a Women Owned Business Certification?
There are many reasons it’s a good idea to certify a business as women owned. There are few, if any, disadvantages or reasons not to. A women owned certification allows for the government to assist with businesses gaining contracts through programs that they qualify for. There are different types of certifications to benefit different types of companies.
Some of the biggest certifications are the WOSB (Women Owned Small Business Certification), the EDWOSB (Economically Disadvantaged Women Owned Small Business), and the WBE (Women Owned Enterprise). There are differences between each of these that help different types of companies thrive. For example, the WOSB program allows the government on a federal level to provide contracts to these businesses.
A WBE program allows for these businesses to accept federal contacts as well as private contacts. Certifying as a WBE doesn’t take anything away from the WOSB certification, it only adds to it. The same goes for the EDWOSB program which is aimed at disadvantaged companies or companies coming from disadvantaged areas. These certifications would only open the companies up to more opportunities than they previously were. As Handel “Del” Henri, a financial consultant says: “Nowadays, grants are available – and this is a philanthropic opportunity to enable more women to get onto the corporate ladder, a true win for equal opportunities globally. In the US, obtaining WOSB is a necessary step to obtain certain grants”.
Does the business qualify?
There are some requirements before heading out and certifying a business as women owned. The first and biggest requirement is that women must own, run, or manage at least 51% of the company. Another requirement is that a woman be in the highest position within the company. The woman should also be involved on a daily basis in decision making. They also require the woman or women in charge to be a US citizen and recommend that she’d been in business for at least 6 months. If the business meets all of these criteria, it will likely have no problem being approved for the certification they apply for.
How to become certified
There is a lot of paperwork and documentation involved in the certification process. The business owner and or their appointed assistant with the project would need to look into what exact paperwork they need for the type of certification they are applying for. Once that is complete, they’d need to send all the paperwork, backup files, documentation, etc to the place they are applying through. In some cases, these applications can be done online as well which would help with things like delivery time and having to worry about printing and mailing documents. If everything is there that is asked for, it could help the process go faster because the recipients wouldn’t have to be in contact for any more information. If they are mailing documents, the business owner should make sure they are keeping copies of everything for their own records. Typically, a committee that would review this application would be made up of a CPA, an attorney, and other business associates. Once the initial application has been received, the process could take anywhere from 3-8 weeks. There is also usually an in person interview with the committee to go over paperwork and verify anything that needs. This would also verify face to face that a woman is running the company. After the interview, the committee will meet with each other again to make a final decision. If a business is approved for the certification, they’ll get a physical certificate awarded to them. If they are not for any reason, they’ll receive notice of that as well but they’ll also have a 30 day window to appeal the decision. A website called TRUiC has a guide to all things you’ll need to do when applying for this type of certification. Check them out at https://startupsavant.com/how-do-you-become-a-certified-woman-owned-business.
What happens next?
After a company is certified for whichever program they’ve applied for, they would be able to carry that and use that whenever they wanted. The company would want to advertise the certification wherever they can. It may be on marketing materials, promotional ads, the company website, and whatever else they think is appropriate. They would also want to communicate with their community to let them know they have been certified and this will help them gain contracts and benefits of the certification. They would want to contact federal, state, and local agencies to see about getting themselves put on a mailing list with them.
Does it expire?
Unfortunately, The certifications expire every year so the business owners would need to recertify yearly to keep the benefits. The good news is, the certification process is much shorter and less difficult to get than the initial process. The thing to keep in mind here is that if the business owners let the certification expire, they’ll have to go through the whole sign up process again rather than the lesser process of just recertifying. This is something the business owners should make an effort to keep track of so they don’t accidentally forget to recertify their business. Especially if they are gaining a lot of assistance from the certification.