With the overwhelming heatwave we've been experiencing the past week or so, you may have noticed that summer has officially arrived in Portland! Along with summer comes time for reflection and expanding our knowledge – which means summer reading (and/or listening) lists. We’ve asked some PCC SBDC Advisors to share what’s on their reading list this summer and thought we would share it with you. Some of these books are specifically focused on business, while some of them are more for personal pleasure and/or professional development. Here's what's on our reading lists this summer:

With his personal experience creating videos over the years, Bryan Cargill understands the value and impact video can make for helping build a brand. In August of 2019 he started Tactus Media to help elevate brand awareness and quality of digital assets in the community for small and mid size businesses. This is his story.

In February 2020 Jeff Inskeep started Hand Made Home. Hand Made Home remodels classic Portland homes with an eye toward historical details. His goal is to make homes more practical for the way we live today, but look like the new work could be original to the home.

A graduate of the National University of Natural Medicine with a Master of Science in clinical nutrition, Megan went on to earn the gold standard in nationally recognized certifications. She is credentialed with the Board of Certified Nutrition Specialists (BCNS®), currently one of only a few practicing in Oregon. 

As quality of life continues to improve here in the Portland area, the importance of high-quality pharmacies providing life-sustaining medicine grows with it. One of the key careers within pharmacies is pharmacy technicians, the staff who support the pharmacist and complete key tasks within the pharmacy. This career takes much less training than becoming a pharmacist, while still offering excellent pay and opportunities. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that pharmacy techs make on average $35,100 per year. However, since this profession is in very high demand, pay may come closer to $20 per hour. 

The internet is key to so many companies and industries, and every single website has to be created and maintained by someone with knowledge in web design. Learning web design, unlike some other computer-related fields, is incredibly straightforward. After a short course, you can launch a variety of careers in web design. After establishing expertise, web designers can continue learning new programming languages and new elements or software, building your skills to be more versatile and keep up with the times. 

Medical coders, also known as Medical Records and Health Information Specialists, are in high demand around the Portland area and beyond. With Oregon Health & Science University Hospital, as well as Adventist, Providence, and Legacy Good Samaritan, Portland is in many ways the healthcare hub of the state. Given the complexity of the healthcare and insurance world, these high-demand professionals have a relatively quick educational pathway to a job that makes on average $44,090 per year. 

Portland’s population is constantly expanding and with it, there is a steady rise in the need for excellent dental care in our community. While any given practice may have one or a few dentists, each practice has excellent paying jobs like Dental Hygienists or Dental Assistants that require less extensive training periods than going through a full dental program.  

The Portland housing and rental market is red hot, and rental properties can offer job opportunities. However, if you’re looking to manage rental property in Oregon, you must first obtain a property manager license. While this may seem like an inconvenient step to take, it’s one that will help Oregon residents stay in compliance with the law while entering a field that’s reliable and high-demand.