Signalink find success with SBA resource partners and wins a Small Business Week award

Alice Lessmann and her spouse started their company, Signalink, in 2005 and in 2016, she became the CEO of the company. As the company continued to grow, she realized she needed some additional help, resources, and ultimately discovered the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) Women’s Business Center, the Catalyst Center for Business and Entrepreneurship (the Catalyst Center), located in Huntsville, Alabama. She started out by attending their free classes, and then started working closely with one of their counselors, Leigh Christian.

Leigh Christin, a founder of the Catalyst Center and Tech Rich 7(j) Project Manager, assisted Alice and Signalink through the beginning stages of government contracting. The company became a certified woman-owned, veteran-owned, and minority owned small-disadvantaged business for government contracting purposes. Leigh stated that since Alice became CEO, the company has obtained several large contracts and continues to grow. She has hired a great management team and has provided great leadership for them. The Catalyst Center helped Signalink grow on a professional level through their free training events, countless answers to questions, and overall mentorship. Alice and her employees were able to rapidly learn and understand so much more about business and government contracting.

Alice stated that Leigh has been a huge help. She put Alice in contact with great resources and coached her through some tough business challenges. She believes without a doubt, that Signalink would not be the outstanding company it is today without the friendship, knowledge, and resources of the Catalyst Center. To date, Signalink has already been given honors such as the 2019 Madison Chamber of Commerce Best Professional Services Award; the 2019 Madison Chamber of Commerce Best in Business Award; The 2020 Huntsville Madison County Chamber of Commerce Government Contracting Technology Business of the Year Award. Alice herself, is the winner of the 2021 Woman Entrepreneur of the Year; 2020 Madison Family of the Year; 2020 Madison Chamber of Commerce Excellence in Leadership, 2020 Graduate of the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses; and Alice regularly attends the National Center Veteran Institute for Procurement.

And now, in during Small Business Week, Alabama District Director, Thomas Todt, will be presenting Alice Lessmann and Signalink with the District Director’s Award. Each year, during Small Business Week, the Alabama District Director takes the opportunity to highlight the impact of an outstanding entrepreneur or small business owner. Every day, Alice works to grow her small business, create 21st century jobs, and drive innovation.