Mayor Melvin “Kip” Holden this week received the Partner America Small Business Advocate Crystal Award for his support of the Baton Rouge area’s small business community.



The award was presented by Partner America, a public-private partnership that was created by the U.S. Conference of Mayors and American Management Services Inc. to assist mayors in providing the resources and information that small businesses need to thrive within their local communities and the global economy.



The award was presented Tuesday night by George Cloutier, founder and CEO of American Management Services and co-chair of Partner America, during a program dedicated to the plight of small businesses. The program focused on practical ways for small businesses to improve sales and their bottom line.



Cloutier is a magna cum laude graduate of Harvard College and has a master’s business administration from Harvard Business School. He is one of the nation’s leading experts on small business, and is the author of the national best-seller, “Profits Aren’t Everything, They’re the Only Thing.”

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