About the Author

Laurel J. Delaney is founder and president of Chicago-based GlobeTrade.com, a management consulting company that helps entrepreneurs and small businesses go global. The United States Small Business Administration has recognized Ms. Delaney as a world-renowned global small business expert by naming her the Illinois Exporter of the Year. She is the author of Start and Run a Profitable Exporting Business and Exporting: The Definitive Guide to Selling Abroad Profitably, as well as numerous articles that have appeared in international and scholarly publications such as The Wall Street Journal and The Conference Board. She is the creator of The Global Small Business Blog (http://www.globalsmallbusinessblog.com), which is ranked No. 1 in the world for entrepreneurs and small businesses interested in going global, Women Entrepreneurs GROW Global (www.WomenEntrepreneursGROWGlobal.org) and Exporting Guide (http://www.ExportingGuide.com). She serves as the About.com Import & Export expert (http://importexport.about.com/), is a charter member and a board member by appointment of the World Entrepreneurship Forum, and a member of the International Council for Small Business. She also serves as the Chicago Chapter Chair for the Women Presidents’ Organization. Ms. Delaney’s passion for going global goes back to 1985, when she first started her business. Since then, she has devoted more than 60,000 hours of work in the area—from consulting to writing to teaching.

Ms. Delaney holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Advertising from Columbia College Chicago and a Master in Business Administration from Lake Forest Graduate School of Management.