As recipient of Oklahoma’s Small Business Person of the Year award from the U.S. Small Business Administration, Shawn Collins was squarely in the spotlight Wednesday.

But it took an assist to get him there.

“As far as the Tulsa Regional Chamber, I would not be here if they hadn’t prodded me a year ago to join the small business group,” Collins, president and CEO of the civil engineering and surveying company Sisemore & Associates, said of the Chamber-led Tulsa Small Business Connection.

“I love the interconnections and all the working together. I’m here because of my staff and not necessarily because of me. I’m just the face of the company. They are the team behind me that is keeping me going.”

Collins accepted his award at a Tulsa Small Business Connection meeting at the Chamber offices. He captured the same recognition in September at the Chamber’s Small Business Awards.

Wednesday’s ceremony was part of National Small Business Week, kickoff festivities for which Collins recently attended in Washington D.C.

“When I stepped into the ownership role, I never thought it would take me where I am right now,” Collins said.

Sisemore & Associates is celebrating its 30^th anniversary this year.

“The winner today is a champion who is a subject matter expert who has done the hard work and put in the time and effort to get where he is,” said Matthew Jock, deputy district director of the Oklahoma office of the SBA.

“It (surveying) is not an easy job. It’s not something you just get into it…Visiting with our winner today, he understands that and wants to help generations behind him do the same.”

The United States is home to 34 million small businesses, which account for two of every three jobs in this country, according to Justin Crossie, South Central regional administrator for the SBA.

 “Small business plays a huge role in the economic ecosystem here in Tulsa and across the state of Oklahoma,” Tulsa Mayor Monroe Nichols said. “It’s not lost on us at city hall that if you’re going to grow and sustain a thriving economy, it starts with small businesses.”