Janis Stevenson

By Brian Sodoma

Monday, June 29, 2009 | 1:04 p.m.

Janis Stevenson has learned from other people’s mistakes. And to the benefit of the local business community, she has used those lessons to help set many minority small businesses on the path to success.

An adviser with the Nevada Small Business Development Center since 1994, Stevenson annually consults with about 200 entrepreneurs, business owners or prospective business owners, more than half of which are racial or ethnic minorities.

After graduating with a degree in business administration from The University of Arizona, Stevenson began a banking career that included the positions of loan officer, business development specialist and compliance officer for banks in Arizona and Nevada. In the mid-’80s, she left banking to work for the Las Vegas Minority Business Development Center, a nonprofit that assists socially and economically disadvantaged businesses.

“I wanted to use what I knew about business in a different fashion,” Stevenson said. “I wanted to help people on the other side of the desk.”

It wasn’t that she wasn’t able to help small businesses as a banker. But the knowledge she gained from working with well-run small businesses and those that weren’t well-run was too valuable, she felt, to not be used elsewhere.

“As a banker … I learned a lot from the mistakes that were made. I wanted to show people how to avoid these same errors I call common missteps, in ways you approach business or handling finances,” Stevenson added.

Even today, Stevenson far too often sees a tradesman or technician who is very skilled in his or her field but not aware of what it takes to make a business work. This is a common misstep that sets the prospective business owner up for failure.

“I’m a big believer in understanding the business end of the business. Technicians and products don’t make money. Businesses make money. You’ve got to understand the finances and legalities in your own market and what makes that market tick in order to develop an organization that moves forward,” she offered.

Stevenson also prides herself in working for an objective organization. Housed at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas’ College of Business, the Nevada Small Business Development Center is a partnership between the U.S. Small Business Administration and the Nevada System of Higher Education that offers completely nonbiased third-party advice.

“When people are looking for information and don’t have money and/or they’re trying to find someone that doesn’t have an ax to grind, we become a detached set of eyes and ears,” Stevenson said. “Many times, it’s not so much that we know the answer to everything. But sometimes, small-business people are so very stressed out and bogged down that … if they take the time away from their surroundings and are put with someone nonthreatening, nonjudgmental, it’s amazing how they will work out their own problems.”

While the business professional enjoys helping build solid businesses in Southern Nevada, she also enjoys wearing the hat of student with her clients.

“I like learning about all these different industries. That’s what I enjoy the most about my job,” Stevenson added.