Articles and News

Chicago, IL—Andrea Hill, founder and CEO of Hill Management Group business consultancy, has graduated from the National Fall 2021 Cohort of the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses Program. 

Hill, the former CEO of Rio Grande, started Hill Management Group in 2007, and has helped many small businesses in the fine jewelry industry improve and expand. She is a highly popular speaker at a wide variety of jewelry industry education conferences, and has worked with businesses in the industry ranging from designers to manufacturers to retailers, associations, and individual proprietors.

Participation in the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses Program required 100 hours of rigorous coursework delivered by Babson College—a leading business school for entrepreneurship—developed in collaboration with the Goldman Sachs Foundation. The program, to which Hill was nominated and invited to apply, is a highly selective program created to help promising small businesses scale, with the purpose of expanding the community benefits of small businesses through job creation, increased wages and the economic benefits that come from a strong small business base. Nominees go through an intensive application process that evaluates their financials, growth potential, personal character and business philosophy. 

“Healthy small businesses lead to healthy communities.” says Hill. “I started Hill Management Group with the express purpose of helping small-business owners implement the tools and techniques I had used as the CEO of successful medium-sized corporations. I am passionate about the potential for a nation of strong small businesses to increase opportunity for all and reduce income inequality and poverty. Together we can create avenues to success for all our children and grandchildren.”

Hill was one of only 164 business owners from 37 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico accepted into the prestigious program, of which 140 graduated. Participating scholars studied the financial, management, leadership, marketing, operational, and advocacy skills they must master to be competitive.

 “In my role as a small business adviser, it is my duty to continuously learn and improve my own skills. Things are just changing so fast, and business owners deserve advisers at the top of our game. Going through this learning experience with this exceptional peer group of business owners not only deepened my knowledge about how to make small businesses stronger, but it also filled up my personal tank after these past two years of unprecedented change,” continues Hill. 

One condition of graduation from the 10,000 Small Businesses Program is that each participant must produce a plan that demonstrates scalable, profitable growth and the creation of jobs. During their final week of coursework, which took place at the global headquarters of Goldman Sachs in New York City, scholars were challenged by Goldman Sachs executives to articulate and defend their growth plans, with a goal of graduating from the program with actionable next steps. As an alumna, Hill now has access to the education, capital, and business support services that are part of the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses network.

To learn more about Hill Management Group and access its brand sites, visit www.hill-management.com.