Joe McClure is District Director for the US Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Montana District Office located in Helena. Appointed in May of 2011, McClure is responsible for the delivery of SBA programs throughout Montana including a loan portfolio of almost 2,000 loans and more than $300 million dollars, oversight of ten Small Business Development Centers (SBDC’s), seven SCORE chapters, three Certified Development Corporations (CDC’s), and a Women’s Business Center.
McClure has been involved in assisting small businesses in a variety of capacities during his 18 year career in Economic Development. He began his career in Southern California in 1989 with the Antelope Valley Local Development Corporation where he was responsible for a 30,000 square foot business incubator and administered the organization’s SBA 504 loan program for North Los Angeles County. He was also instrumental in developing a series of Minority and Women Small Business Seminars, an Entrepreneurial Partnership Program, and the Antelope Valley’s first SCORE chapter.
In 1994, McClure further developed his skills in the small business financing arena by overseeing a $3.2 million EDA funded Defense Conversion Loan Fund and SBA 504 portfolio duties for the Business Finance Center in Los Angeles County. After leaving the Business Finance Center, McClure was as an entrepreneur himself as a commercial loan broker who specialized in SBA 504 and 7a loan products. In 1997, he joined the Economic Development Collaborative – Ventura County (EDC-VC) as their Officer of Business Loan Programs. At the EDC-VC, Mr. McClure administered a $1.2 million revolving loan fund, developed a comprehensive Financial Resources Directory for Ventura County, and in March of 1999 was promoted to Executive Director.
As Director of the EDC-VC, McClure supervised a staff of 5 for this regional economic development corporation. Accomplishments included developing a partnership agreement with the 10 municipalities in Ventura County to take the organization from a federally grant funded agency to self-sufficiency through contracts for services and business loan funds.
In 2001, McClure’s family relocated to Billings, MT where he accepted the position of Executive Director for the Big Sky Economic Development Authority overseeing a staff of 15 and annual budget of $1.5 million. Programs included a Small Business Development Center (SBDC), the lead center for the Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC) in Montana, and the Community Development Department for Yellowstone County. Over the next 7 years, he oversaw the transformation of Big Sky EDA from a 100% government funded agency to a public-private partnership complete with local private business member/investors.
Specific accomplishments while at Big Sky EDA included the creation of the state’s first regional business retention and expansion program (known as BEAR) focused on retaining and growing key employers in Yellowstone County and the development of a business plan and launch of a new non-profit corporation specifically geared to better serve the small business community; Big Sky EDC. Big Sky EDC is a joint venture between local government and the private business community of Yellowstone County. It became the state’s 2nd Certified Development Corporation (CDC) designed to provide SBA 504 loans to growing businesses. The EDC also administers a Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) with the goal of providing needed capital to smaller businesses in Yellowstone County.
The final component of Big Sky EDA’s transformation was the development of a targeted business recruitment effort which lead to the location of a new 40,000 sq ft Bresnan Communications Network Operations Center creating over 450 new jobs, a new 46,000 sq ft General Electric back office facility creating over 200 new jobs, and a new 40 bed Long Term Acute Care Hospital creating over 150 new jobs. He was eventually recruited to be the hospital’s start up CEO.
Most recently, McClure was hired to be the first Economic Development Director for the City and County of Broomfield, CO and established their first in-house Economic Development Department.
McClure and his wife Christa have 8 children and 2 grandchildren and currently live in Helena, MT.
