Empire Building Services owner Suzanne DeRossett still refers to the thick report put together three years ago by a team of student consultants from Cal State Fullerton for her janitorial firm.
She paid $1,250 for the semester-long consulting project, which helped her set up a new accounting system, streamline inventory management and create an employee handbook and new performance rewards.
The review came at the right time for her Santa Ana company, which was just passing the 50-employee mark.
"It's amazing how many small-business owners kind of think the same way when they've been in business for a while and hit a wall: Where do I go from here? How do I get bigger?" said DeRossett, who started her firm in 1982 and now employs 70 people.
Student consultants -- typically business school undergraduate or graduate students -- are an overlooked resource for small businesses, especially those looking for an edge during a lingering recession.
Many universities offer the service free through their business, information technology or engineering schools. Others charge, such as Cal State Fullerton, which asks as much as $3,000. Some projects are narrow -- a marketing plan for a single product, for example. Others can be much broader, depending on what the company needs and the school's resources.
Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, with the fourth-largest agriculture college in the country, tailors its programs to local agribusinesses, such as wineries and food suppliers.
Student projects include designing a healthful snack package to appeal to kids, testing broccoli labels in various languages and doing market research for a drinkable yogurt with immune-system boosters.
Niner Wine Estates in San Luis Obispo has tapped the school for market research into what consumers want in a wine tasting room. Students will present their findings this week.
"It's going to serve a real need for us because we are in a position right now, talking about the recession, where we don't want to go out and hire a marketing or PR firm to do this for us," said Allison Dana, marketing coordinator for the five-person business, which is building its first winery and tasting room near Paso Robles.
Cal Poly dairy science students consulted with Pinkberry on quality control when the frozen yogurt chain was smaller, according to the school.
