Vincentian businessman publishes book ‘One Hundred Pennies’

A Vincentian businessman, who missed out on an opportunity to offer financial advice to President Barack Obama, has written a book which he hopes would encourage other entrepreneurs.{{more}}

Michael Robinson was invited to represent small businesses at a White House meeting with President Obama, but at the last minute, was omitted because of a cut back on presenters.

“Having diligently prepared various concepts to stimulate economic growth, including government “internships” for welfare recipients, ambitious veterans re-tooling programs, and hiring incentives for employers, to name just a few, Robinson began reaching out to government officials in his adopted city, starting with the Mayor’s office.

“I was eventually ‘trickled down’ to aides to the City Council Speaker. And while I welcomed the eventual audience that I received, I concluded that the meeting amounted to not much more than polite head nodding and note taking. That’s when I felt compelled to write ‘One Hundred Pennies’.

“I wanted to kick off a critically needed, national dialogue about the importance of the small business sector to the health of our economy,” Robinson indicated in a press release.

The title of Robinson’s 160-page book was inspired by a United States Department of Commerce statistic, which claims that for every one hundred pennies generated from the GDP, almost 60 pennies come from small business.

“So why does it seem like small businesses are treated as an afterthought by both our government and big businesses, especially during difficult economic times,” he questions.

Robinson, the founder and CEO of New York Staffing Services, Inc, migrated from St Vincent and the Grenadines at the age of 19 years, and settled in New York City, where he had aspirations of pursuing a career in the arts.

“He quickly changed his focus and landed a job on Wall Street as a financial analyst for Barclays Bank PLC, while putting himself through Brooklyn College, where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Management and Finance,” the press release said.

After advancing his career through various Wall Street investment banks, Robinson founded his staffing business, initially working from his Brooklyn apartment. Today, his multi-million dollar business has a presence in over 12 states and provides employment for thousands of people annually.

He also owns Microbin, an Internet based Workforce Capital Management firm with onsite capabilities which streamlines the staffing process, while saving clients time and money.

Also recognized for other achievements in the financial sector, Robinson says that he hopes his book would be of some benefit to small business and seasoned business owners to cope in an environment where these smaller companies struggle for the most part on their own, without the assistance of government.

One Hundred Pennies is available through Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Microbin Publishing.(JJ)