Photo provided Eric Hersey, third from left, owner of the Strong Minded Agency, chats with other business owners selected to attend the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses Program.

WHEELING — Three local businesses are getting a stellar opportunity to learn and gain knowledge to help grow their operations.

Goldman Sachs has selected 33 West Virginia businesses to participate in its Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses program. There were about 400 applicants in the state, and three Wheeling business owners were among those selected.

They were Stacey Purpura of Sigma 9 Design, web designer Eric Hersey of Strong Minded Agency and Kyle Kinkead of Nail City Painting.

“It is a program sponsored by the Goldman Sachs Foundation, which I think is set up to help entrepreneurs get additional training and additional business acumen,” Hersey said. “They’ve had at least 17,000 people go through the program over the last several years.”

Hersey said businesses learned of the program in an email sent out by the West Virginia Secretary of State’s Office, and an interview process followed.

Most of the cohorts are in big cities, and the one in Charleston is one of the few happening in rural areas, he said.

West Virginia participants spent three days in Charleston beginning March 18 getting to know each other face to face and learning about the program. Going forward, their studies will be online.

The program continues through the end of June.

And it’s a lot of work, almost like taking on a separate part-time job, according to Hersey. They are involved in online discussions each day that require additional homework, and participants easily put in 20 hours each week, he said.

The goal of the program is to promote economic growth by providing already successful small businesses with the tools they need to thrive, Hersey said.

Lessons involve finance, leadership, philanthropy, audits, financial forecasting and other business-related topics.

“It’s almost like a little MBA process. Everything is funded. It’s all going through Goldman Sachs,” he said. “Babson College in Wellesley, Massachusetts, is the partner that helps create the curriculum.

“Ultimately, they want to see more businesses grow and bring economic growth to West Virginia.”

Purpura said the lessons presented are especially beneficial to creative types like herself. She is a graphic designer who had never really seen herself owning a business and concentrated on artistic endeavors.

“I’m just a graphic designer. I didn’t want to be a business owner,” Purpura said. “There were things I should have learned and known if I thought I was going to get into this. There are skills that help us be bankable and effective.

“They are teaching us about things that are outside of my wheelhouse, definitely.”

She said the program has emphasized the importance of networking. Purpura explained she has never liked doing this and is more comfortable sitting behind a computer screen.

“I work with people in other countries and they are everywhere, but I am very bad with networking,” she said. “I have two kids. The last thing I want to do is go out and network. As a woman, it’s hard to talk about yourself and see your worth …

“But I noticed it is really nice to be in a room full of like-minded people. It’s a group that is all in the same place wanting to grow and is open to hearing every person’s suggestion. Everyone is wanting that.”

Purpura said too often she has been in rooms where “not everyone wants to hear or wants your suggestions.”

“That is common for women,” she said. “I’ve been doing this for 25 years. It’s better now. Nobody worked remotely, and it was hard to have a work-life balance.

“I do have social anxiety. I am much better behind a screen.”

She agreed the program is very challenging.

“It is intense. It’s a lot,” she said. “We’re in groups I think were put together purposely. My partner is in construction. They put together people who don’t have anything in common, and it seems purposeful and useful.”

The early days of the program have been spent discussing financial procedures and growth plans for their businesses, as well as the resources available to them.

“The resources for small businesses are amazing,” Purpura said. “I feel people don’t know they are there, and they are free.”

Kinkead with Nail City Painting did not wish to comment.