Global Commerce Survey

OMB Control No. 0640-XXXX

Expiration Date: XX-XX-XXXX

Statement of Procedure

The purpose of this survey is to identify the participation rates of minority-owned businesses in global commerce. Currently there are no sources of data available that provide this level of information. A survey is necessary to establish benchmarks of minority business participation and contribution to export sales, international trade, and trade with fast growing countries/markets. This survey also aims to identify minority business access to capital markets, experience with trade barriers and regulatory issues, potential to enter the export market, and position in global supply chains.

To this end, the US Department of Commerce's Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA), in collaboration with Minimax Consulting, LLC, is administering the present questionnaire to minority- and non-minority-owned business enterprises. Data obtained from this survey will be used to develop a research paper on Minority Business Contributions to the U.S. Economy through Global Commerce.

This information collection contains requirements subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA). Notwithstanding any other provisions of the law, no person is required to respond to, nor shall any person be subject to penalty for failure to comply with, a collection of information subject to the requirements of the PRA, unless that collection of information displays a currently valid OMB control number. The estimated response time for this collection is­­­ 30 minutes. The response time includes the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. Send comments regarding this estimate or any other aspects of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing the length of this questionnaire, to the Minority Business Development Agency, Attn., Ivonne Cunarro, via email at [email protected] or telephone (202) 482-2157.

Confidentiality

Data obtained through the present questionnaire will remain absolutely confidential. No identifying information (such as name, address, SS number, phone number, e-mail address, etc.) will be asked throughout the questionnaire. Moreover, the link you received to access this survey is the same as all other companies with the same 2-digit SIC code as yours. This means that neither Minimax Consulting, LLC nor the MBDA will be able to match your responses with the e-mail address to which the survey link was sent. Furthermore, the data you submit will be protected during transmission with 128-bit SSL encryption, and stored in Minimax Consulting's secure server, to prevent unauthorized access to the data.

Instructions

Some of the questions in the present questionnaire will require information related to your company's financial statements; namely, the gross revenue within the last 3 years, as well as exports (if any) and number of employees will be required. Moreover, if your company has exports, a breakdown of the exports by country, as well as information about the barriers to exporting to those countries will be required. Finally, the questionnaire will end with questions about your company's access to capital markets. If you believe that another person within your company would be more idoneous to complete this questionnaire, please forward them the link you received by e-mail.

Contact Information

If you have any questions regarding the study or the present questionnaire, feel free to contact Mr. Clark Guo at Minimax Consulting, LLC ([email protected], phone: (401) 331-6360), or Ivonne Cunarro at the Department of Commerce's MBDA ([email protected]).

 

I certify that I have read and understand the statement of procedure and agree to participate as a subject in the specific research described therein.  My participation in this research is given voluntarily.  I understand that I may discontinue participation at any time without penalty.  I certify that I am at least 18 years of age.

 

General Information about the Company

1. Please select the option that best describes the form of this company:

Sole proprietorship

Corporation

Partnership

Non-profit organization

Other (please specify):

2. Is this company a subsidiary of another company?

Yes

No

3. Is this company minority-owned?

Yes

No (SKIP TO QUESTION 5)

Note: For the purposes of this survey, a minority business enterprise (MBE) is defined as a business concern that is owned or controlled (greater than 50 percent) by the following persons or groups of persons that are also U.S. citizens or resident aliens admitted for lawful admission to the United States:  African Americans, Hispanics, Asian and Pacific Islander Americans, Native Americans (including Alaska Natives, Alaska Native Corporations and Tribal entities), Asian Indians and Hasidic Jews.

 

4. Please indicate the type of minority ownership (check all that apply)

American Indian or Alaska Native

Asian

Asian Indian

Black or African American

Hispanic or Latino

Hasidic Jew

Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander

(IF THE ANSWER TO QUESTION 1 WAS "CORPORATION", SKIP TO QUESTION 10)

5. Is the company principally owned or controlled by an individual?

Yes

No (SKIP TO QUESTION 10)

 

6. What is the gender of the principal owner?

Male

Female

 

7. What is the age of the principal owner? (please enter a number, or leave blank if you don't know)

(PROGRAMMING: IF THERE IS A RESPONSE AND IT IS NOT A NUMBER, OR IF IT IS A NUMBER UNDER 18, DISPLAY ERROR: "Please enter a number above 18")

 

8. How many years of experience does the principal owner have in this line of business? (please enter a number, or leave blank if you don't know)

(PROGRAMMING: IF THERE IS A RESPONSE AND IT IS NOT A NUMBER, OR IF IT IS A NEGATIVE NUMBER, DISPLAY ERROR: "Please enter a a positive number")

 

9. What is the highest level of education attained by the principal owner?

Less than high school graduate

High school graduate/GED equivalent

Technical, trade, or vocational school

Some college, but no degree

Associate’s Degree

Bachelor’s Degree

Master’s, Doctorate, or Professional Degree

10. Which of the following best describes the activities of your company?

Mining/Agriculture/Forestry/Fishing (farming and extraction of raw materials)

Manufacturer (processing materials into new products)

Wholesale trade

Distribution/transportation

Retailer (sales to final consumer)

Financial/Insurance/Real Estate Services

Professional, scientific, or techcnical services

Other (please specify):

11. In what year was the company established?

(PROGRAMMING: IF THERE IS A RESPONSE AND IT IS NOT A NUMBER, DISPLAY ERROR: "Please enter a number")

 

12. How may years has the company been operating?

(PROGRAMMING: IF THERE IS A RESPONSE AND IT IS NOT A NUMBER, DISPLAY ERROR: "Please enter a number")

 

13. What was the average number of employees this company had in 2009?

Full-Time:

Part-Time:

(PROGRAMMING: IF EITHER OF THE BOXES ARE FILLED WITH NON-NUMBERS, DISPLAY ERROR NEXT TO THE APPROPRIATE BOX: "Please enter a number")

 

14. Does this company sell goods, services, or both?

Goods

Services

Both

 

15. Please indicate the total dollar value of your company’s gross revenue from sales of goods and services in the last 3 years:

Annual reporting period ending in...	Goods	Services
2007
2008
2009

PROGRAMMING: THE GOODS/SERVICES COLUMNS ARE DISPLAYED ONLY IF THE RESPONDENT STATED THAT THE COMPANY SELLS “BOTH” IN QUESTION 14. OTHERWISE, ONLY ONE OF THE COLUMNS IS DISPLAYED, DEPENDING ON THE RESPONDENT'S CHOICE IN QUESTION 14.

IF ANY OF THE BOXES ARE FILLED WITH NON-NUMBERS, OR WITH NEGATIVE NUMBERS, DISPLAY ERROR NEXT TO THE APPROPRIATE BOX: "Please enter a number")

 

International Commerce

16. Within the last 3 years, did your company make any sales to clients outside of the United States?

Yes

No (SKIP TO QUESTION 27)

 

17. To which countries did your company sell goods and services within the last 3 years?

 

18. Did your company create jobs to support the sale of goods and services to a country other than United States?

Yes

No (SKIP TO QUESTION 20)

19. How many jobs were specifically created at your company to support the sale of goods and services to a market other than United States?

Number of Jobs Created in the U.S. as a result of international trade:

       Full-Time:

       Part-Time:

Number of Jobs Created in Overseas Affiliates as a result of international trade:

       Full-Time:

       Part-Time:

(PROGRAMMING: IF EITHER OF THE BOXES ARE FILLED WITH NON-NUMBERS, DISPLAY ERROR NEXT TO THE APPROPRIATE BOX: "Please enter a number")

20. Please indicate the total dollar value of sales of goods and services made to international clients in the last 3 years:

Annual reporting period ending in...	Goods	Services
2007
2008
2009

(PROGRAMMING: THE GOODS/SERVICES COLUMNS ARE DISPLAYED ONLY IF THE RESPONDENT STATED THAT THE COMPANY SELLS “BOTH” IN QUESTION 14. OTHERWISE, ONLY ONE OF THE COLUMNS IS DISPLAYED, DEPENDING ON THE RESPONDENT'S CHOICE IN QUESTION 14.

IF ANY OF THE BOXES ARE FILLED WITH NON-NUMBERS, OR WITH NEGATIVE NUMBERS, DISPLAY ERROR NEXT TO THE APPROPRIATE BOX: "Please enter a number")

21. Please select the countries (non-US) where you sold the most goods or services during the annual reporting period ending in 2009. Choose up to 5 countries from the following list.

(PROGRAMMING: VERIFY THAT THE USER ENTERS AT LEAST 1 AND AT MOST 5 COUNTRIES. IF NOT, DISPLAY ERROR: "Please select at least one and at most five countries from the list")

22. During 2009, approximately what percentage of your company's total sales (goods and/or services) was made in the identified countries? Please ensure that the percentages add up to 100%.

Country	Goods	Services
COUNTRY 1	Top of Form Bottom of Form
COUNTRY 2
COUNTRY 3
COUNTRY 4
COUNTRY 5

[PROGRAMMING:

THE GOODS/SERVICES COLUMNS ARE DISPLAYED ONLY IF THE RESPONDENT STATED THAT THE COMPANY SELLS “BOTH” IN QUESTION 14. OTHERWISE, ONLY ONE OF THE COLUMNS IS DISPLAYED, DEPENDING ON THE RESPONDENT'S CHOICE IN QUESTION 14.

COUNTRY1-5 REPRESENT THE COUNTRIES CHOSEN IN QUESTION 21. ONE ROW PER COUNTRY IS DISPLAYED, SO THAT IF LESS THAN 5 COUNTRIES WERE CHOSEN, THEN LESS THAN 5 ROWS ARE SHOWN.

VALIDATE THAT THE SUM OF ALL PERCENTAGES CHOSEN IS 100%. IF THEY DO NOT ADD UP TO 100%, DISPLAY ERROR: "The percentages do not add up to 100%. Please revise them as needed."]

23. While engaging in sales to clients from COUNTRY, did you encounter any of the following? (check all that apply)

U.S. regulations that require you to change the nature of your good or service (for example, its quality, packaging, ingredients, etc.) to get permission to export it to COUNTRY

COUNTRY regulations that required you to change the nature of your good or service (for example, its quality, packaging, ingredients, etc.) to get permission to export it from the U.S..

Tariffs or other fees due to the government of COUNTRY to get permission to export it from the U.S..

Fees requested by the government of COUNTRY to expedite or facilitate exports to that country.

U.S. regulations that required some form of official registration/paperwork to get permission to export the goods or services to COUNTRY.

COUNTRY regulations that required some form of official registration/paperwork to get permission to export the goods or services from the U.S.

U.S. regulations that banned exports of the company’s goods or services to COUNTRY

COUNTRY regulations that banned imports of the company’s goods or services to from the U.S..

(PROGRAMMING: THIS QUESTION IS TO BE REPEATED FOR EACH OF THE COUNTRIES ENTERED IN QUESTION 21. REPLACE THE WORD "COUNTRY" WITH THE ACTUAL NAME OF THE COUNTRY.)

 

24. In the following space, describe in your own words any experiences your company had with regulation-related difficulties that prevented your company’s exporting.

 

25. In the following space, describe in your own words any experiences your company had with other difficulties related to exporting (such as language barriers, cultural differences, etc.).

 

26. What do you think the U.S. government could do to facilitate the process of selling to international clients?

PROGRAMMING: SKIP TO QUESTION 32 AFTER QUESTION 26

 

27. Are the goods or services that your company sells potentially exportable? (examples of non-exportable goods and services include haircuts, auto repairs, etc.)

Yes (SKIP QUESTION 28)

No

 

28. Are you aware of other companies, similar in size to yours, that export goods or services that are similar to those provided by your company?

Yes

No (SKIP TO QUESTION 32)

29. Please select the reasons why your company is not exporting its good or services (check all that apply):

Not interested in exporting / Never considered exporting. (SKIP TO QUESTION 32)

Want to export, but...

...don’t know how to reach overseas clients.

...don’t know how to register as an exporting company with the U.S. government.

...the registration process with the U.S. government to become an exporting company is too long, difficult, or costly.

...don’t believe there is demand for your product abroad.

...don't have the infrastructure to ship/send/provide the goods/services to foreign clients.

...do not have access to adequate funds for expansion purposes or working capital.

...don't have the knowledge of the foreign market company wants to export to.

...tariffs are too high in the country/countries this company could export to.

...exports of the company’s goods or services to the country/countries this company could export to are banned by the U.S. government.

...exports of the company’s goods or services to the country/countries this company could export to are banned by the recipient country/countries government.

...other regulations/laws prevent your company from exporting (please indicate that regulation or law):

...company is otherwise incapable of exporting (please indicate reason):

 

30. If the U.S. government could alleviate the problem/s you marked in the previous question at no direct cost for your company, would you consider exporting your company’s goods or services?

Yes

No (SKIP TO QUESTION 32)

31. If the U.S. government alleviated the problem/s you marked previously at no direct cost for your company, what percentage of your most recent year’s sales would you expect to export in the next year?

<15%

15%-30%

30-50%

50-100%

100%+

 

Access to Capital Markets

32. Within the past 3 years, did your company require a capital injection in the form of loans, bonds, or equity purchases? Please answer “Yes” if a capital injection was needed, even if it could not be secured.

Yes

No (SKIP TO END)

33. What were the main reasons your company sought the most recent capital injection? Please check all that apply.

Expansion of the business (hiring, purchasing new capital goods, etc.) to do business within the U.S.

Expansion of the business to do business internationally

Working capital to do business internationally

Purchase of another company

Payment of “ordinary” operating expenses

Payment of extraordinary costs (such as litigation-related costs)

Other (please specify):

34. How did your company obtain its capital injections in the last 3 years? Please check all that apply.

The company was not able to not able to secure additional capital injections within the last 3 years (SKIP TO QUESTION 38)

Bond issuance

Family and friends savings or assets

Personal/family home equity loan

Personal/business credit card

Business loan from federal, state or local government

Government-guaranteed business loan by Export-Import Bank or SBA

Other federal or state government-guaranteed business loan from a bank or financial institution

Business loan from a bank or financial institution

Business loan/investment from family/friends

Private equity or venture capital

Business profits and/or assets

Grants

35. What type of government-guaranteed loan was used?

(PROGRAMMING: ONLY DISPLAY QUESTION 35 IF THE ANSWER TO QUESTION 34 WAS "Government-guaranteed business loan by Export-Import Bank or SBA" OR "Other government-guaranteed business loan from a bank or financial institution". OTHERWISE, SKIP IT)

36. If your company obtained a loan or bond, what was the interest rate on the largest loan or bond secured within the last 3 years?

Interest Rate:

No loan or bond was obtained within the last 3 years (SKIP TO END)

Note: please enter the interest rate without the percentage sign. For example, if the interest rate was 7%, please enter 7

(PROGRAMMING: IF THE "No loan or bond was obtained within the last 3 years" OPTION IS SELECTED, THEN THE INTEREST RATE BOX MUST BE LEFT BLANK. IF IT IS NOT BLANK, DISPLAY ERROR: "You indicated that the company did not receive any loan or bond within the last 3 years, but also entered a number for the interest rate. Please verify this inconsistency and revise your answer as needed. If your company did not secure any loans or bonds within the last 3 years, please check that option and leave the interest rate box blank")

 

37. Do you feel that the interest rate on that loan or bond was fair?

Yes

No (SKIP TO END)

38. Why was your company unable to secure capital (check all that apply)?

Bank or financial institution loan was applied for and denied.

Government guaranty loan was applied for and denied.

Credit card was applied for and denied.

Private equity or venture capital was applied for and denied.

Did not apply for a bank loan because believed application would be denied.

Bond issuance was not sufficiently subscribed.

Other reason (please indicate):

 

END

Thank you very much for participating in this survey. Your collaboration will allow the research paper on Minority Business Contributions to the U.S. Economy through Global Commerce to be successfully completed.

16