Adam Hoeksema stepped away from his role at Bankable to devote more of his energies to ProjectionHub, an online platform specializing in creating financial projections for business plans. John P. Cleary | The Herald Bulletin
ANDERSON — Striking out and starting his own business had been a goal of Adam Hoeksema’s for several years, even before COVID struck in 2020.
The pandemic, however, meant that Hoeksema, then the executive director of Bankable, the Flagship Enterprise Center’s nonprofit lending arm, needed to focus almost exclusively on his responsibilities in securing and distributing millions of dollars in pandemic relief loans to small businesses.
“The long-term idea was, I was going to back away over time, but then when the pandemic hit, I was much more needed at Bankable,” he said. “I kind of went back to full time for a period of time there, because there was so much to do with PPP loans (Paycheck Protection Program), and all of our clients needed support.”
As many coronavirus-related concerns gradually subsided during 2021, Hoeksema decided the time was right to make a significant change. He stepped away from his role at Bankable to devote more of his energies to ProjectionHub, an online platform specializing in creating financial projections for business plans. He co-founded it with his brother, Brandon.
“I think it was clear, OK, now is the time to make a shift,” Adam Hoeksema said. “It felt like the pandemic was draining on everybody, I think, so it was a fresh start.”
He is among scores of Americans who, over the last year, have decided to become their own bosses.
Whether their motivation stemmed from a desire to escape the stresses of office work — and the COVID-related restrictions that came with it — or simply an aspiration to try something new, workers are starting businesses in never-before-seen numbers.
Nearly 33 million people have quit their jobs since the spring of 2021, according to the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Report, in what some economists have dubbed the Great Resignation.
In a smaller, but seemingly parallel trend, the U.S. Census Bureau found that nearly 5.4 million applications were filed to form new businesses last year, a record number.
“The Great Resignation kind of sparked for people this idea that they could go and do their own thing,” said Kathryn Petralia, co-founder of Kabbage, an Atlanta-based online financial technolog y company.
“Technology is enabling people to run their own business by using tools that are available to people who want to be in the creator or influencer economy. These tools didn’t exist 10 years ago, and now people are like, ‘I don’t have to do this job that I’m doing. I can make the same amount of money or I can supplement my income.’” There is uncertainty that can come with starting a business. According to National Business Capital, a leading small business financing company, startup failure rates in 2019 were around 90%, and more than 20% of startups fail within the first year. For Hoeksema, initially having his business as a side hustle was invaluable because it allowed him to dictate the pace of his transition to doing it full time.
“I think one thing that I’ve learned in the entrepreneurship mindset is that day to day, it can vary a lot,” he said. “One day you think, ‘We’re doing great,’ and then the next day, it’s, ‘Oh no, we’re going to fail.’” The ups and downs — and, at times, the emotional turmoil that comes with them — aren’t for everyone, Petralia noted. She said it’s wise to ask plenty of questions and seek advice from trusted friends when considering a career change of this nature.
In the end, however, she speculates that there’s a simpler reason that the pandemic has brought about such profound change in the way people view their work.
“I think people are like, I really hate commuting. It really sucks,” she said. “I’m spending two, three hours a day getting to my job, and I don’t want to do that anymore. Just the day-to-day challenges of getting to and from a job, people didn’t have that (during the pandemic), and they’re like, I don’t want to go back to that.”
Locally, business and government leaders are recognizing the shift in people’s thinking and are continuing to brainstorm ways to make Madison County appealing to new entrepreneurs. Economic development officials are discussing small business incubators and a variety of support services, among other incentives, that could help.
“Those who have been able to create new businesses, I think those folks are going to be a piece of our economy much di fferent than before,” said Rob Sparks, executive director of the Corporation for Economic Development in Madison County.
“It bodes well for us to continue to work on these ideas and make sure that locally, we have these resources to put in front of (entrepreneurs) to help them any way we can.”
© 2024 Community Newspaper Holdings, Inc.