April/May 2008
WPO launches in London
 New York, NY - The Women Presidents’ Organization (WPO) has started a new chapter in London, England. This is the first introduction of the WPO in the UK.
The WPO is an organization for accomplished woman entrepreneurs whose businesses gross at least $2 million in annual sales, or $1 million for a service-based business, or the equivalent in local currency.
The presence of the WPO in the UK will support the growth of accomplished women presidents and encourage female entrepreneurs, notes London chapter facilitator Sue Stockdale.
The number of women entrepreneurs in the UK is currently growing at only half the rate for men, Stockdale points out. WBEs account for just 12 to 16 percent of all UK businesses. But she hopes that through the WPO, women presidents will make connections that will help them advance their businesses.
In ten years, WPO has grown to some seventy-eight chapters and 1200 members in the U.S., Canada, Peru, and now the UK. Stockdale is one of the professional facilitators who coordinate local WPO chapters. She is also the founder of Mission Possible (www.missionpossible.co.uk), a resource organization for UK women entrepreneurs.
“We are so proud to be able to connect women presidents and CEOs from across the globe,” says Dr Marsha Firestone, president and founder of the WPO. “The growth of the WPO internationally is a testament to the success of, and increase in, women-led companies worldwide.”
Turner awards $1.3 B
 New York, NY - Turner Construction Co, a major national general construction firm, awarded 3,000 contracts totaling $1.3 billion to minority- and women-owned business enterprises during 2007. This is the third year in a row that the company has awarded more than $1 billion in contracts to M/WBEs.
“We are very proud to have achieved this milestone as we celebrate the fortieth anniversary of Turner’s formal community affairs program,” says Hilton Smith, Turner SVP for community affairs.  “Our longstanding record of achievement in expanding opportunities for minority- and women-owned contractors across the country is critical to the success of Turner and of our industry.” Since 1979, Turner’s total number of contracts withM/WBEs has surpassed 47,000, at a value of more than $16 billion.
For example, for a recent $107 million Turner project for Clarian Health (Indianapolis, IN), 27.6 percent, nearly $28 million, was awarded to M/WBEs, Smith notes.
New MBE created
 Dearborn, MI - WorkforceLogic and ASG Renaissance have joined together to create Workforce Renaissance, a management services company that will combine payroll, vendor management and HR consulting services with minority recruiting and retention and management of diversity spending.
Workforce Logic, a WBE, provides payroll processing, HR consulting and supply-base management services. ASG Renaissance, a woman- and Hispanic-owned business, provides integrated marketing communications, human capital, consulting and diversity services.
Workforce Renaissance will also offer the services of Mosaic Advantage, a group of minority- and service-disabled-veteran-owned businesses offering a variety of technical services. “We formed Mosaic Advantage to highlight and promote the combined services and capabilities of these proven program participants,” says Lizabeth Ardisana, CEO of ASG Renaissance.
Disney names Campbell
 Lake Buena Vista, FL - Eugene Campbell was recently promoted to VP of community relations and minority business development at the Walt Disney World Resort.
Campbell joined the Walt Disney Company in 1999 as a senior manager in the alliance development organization. He became director of the Walt Disney World minority business development department in 2003, where he achieved the goal of using 100 percent minority-owned firms for the construction of the “Echoes of Africa” exhibit at Epcot Center.
Last year, Campbell became director of community relations. His new role expands his previous appointments.
Campbell is active with the National Black MBA Association, where he is Central Florida chapter president emeritus, and with Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. He also chairs the board of directors for the Minority/Women Business Enterprise Alliance, Inc, and for the Disney entrepreneur center.
Solidus Technical Solutions to supply MIT Lincoln Lab
Leominster, MA - WBE Solidus Technical Solutions was recently named a supplier on MIT Lincoln Laboratory’s blanket contract. Solidus will provide engineering, programming and administrative support services on a laboratory-wide basis, as well as engineering staff with expertise in EE, physics, math and CS.
Solidus is noted for strength in real-time systems engineering and software development.
Its areas of expertise include radar systems, signal processing, modeling and simulation, massively parallel processing and systems integration, as well as air traffic control, fault tolerant systems, battle management, mission planning, intelligence systems and
homeland defense.
February/March 2008
Toyota holds 2007 Opportunity Exchange
Cincinnati, OH - Last November, nearly 800 M/WBEs attended the eighteenth annual Toyota Opportunity Exchange minority business conference and trade fair. The event gives MBEs from across the nation the chance to network with each other and to develop relationships with some 300 Toyota tier 1 suppliers. Since 1990, the Opportunity Exchange has generated more than $100 million in new contracts.
Bob Johnson, founder of Black Entertainment Television, was the keynote speaker.
Merrill Lynch gives Business Consortium Fund $1 million for MBE loans
New York, NY - Last fall, the Business Consortium Fund (BCF) received a $1 million grant from Merrill Lynch. The nonprofit fund is affiliated with NMSDC, and the loans will benefit minority businesses.
"We were proud to present
this grant to the Business Consortium Fund, an
invaluable source for minority entrepreneurs," says Sandye Taylor, VP of supplier diversity at Merrill Lynch.
NMSDC president Harriet R. Michel declares that "Merrill Lynch recognizes the value of minority suppliers and the importance of their ability to obtain adequate financing to grow their businesses. This contribution will help Asian, black, Hispanic and Native American business enterprises to build capacity and create jobs."
Entrepreneurs interested in learning more about the Business Consortium Fund can visit www.bcfcapital.com or contact their local NMSDC regional councils. A list of councils is available at www.nmsdc.org.
NRC exceeds diversity spend goals in 2007
Washington, DC - The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) reported that in fiscal year 2007 the agency exceeded its annual goals in four targeted categories for small business procurement. In that period the commission spent some $61.9 million with small businesses. Small disadvantaged businesses received contracts totaling $19.6 million; WBEs got $12.9 million, and HUB Zone small businesses $6 million.
An agency analysis shows that the NRC has contributed significantly to the growth of at least thirteen minority-owned firms large and small over the past three years; these firms continue to provide valuable services to the agency.
The NRC's office of small business and civil rights oversees its small business procurement program. "Diversity and equality can only be achieved by full participation of everyone in the small business community," says Luis Reyes, executive director for operations.
Through its small business program, he explains, the NRC seeks to identify qualified firms, provide them with appropriate business opportunity information and advocate within the agency for their participation. For more information contact Mauricio Vera, NRC small business program manager, at mxv@nrc.gov.
WBENC announces new directors
Washington DC - Last November the Women's Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC) announced the appointment of eight new members to its board of directors.
The three new corporate members are Shari Francis, manager of vendor development for Office Depot; Melinda Painter, director of worldwide procurement at Dell; and Diane Pinkney, senior manager for purchasing quality and compliance at Philip Morris USA.
The new WBE members are Donna Mullen Good, CEO of the Center for Women and Enterprise; Ella Koscik, CEO of Management Decisions; Gail Warrior-Lawrence, president and CEO, The Warrior Group; Roz Lewis, executive director of the Georgia Women's Business Council; and Pamela O'Rourke, president, ICON Information Consultants.
Founded in 1997, WBENC is the nation's leading third-party certifier of businesses owned and operated by women. The average WBENC-certified company has revenues of $7.5 million, forty-nine employees and fourteen years of experience. More than sixty WBE firms have revenues of more than $100 million, and seven certified WBEs bring in $1 billion and higher.
Nearly 250 U.S. corporations are active members of WBENC. Representatives of thirty-six corporations sit on the WBENC board of directors, along with nine reps from its regional partner organizations and nine from certified WBEs.
December 2007/January 2008
Michigan women put on business conference and expo
Ann Arbor, MI - Organized by the Michigan Center for Empowerment and Economic Development (MICEED), the seventh annual Michigan women's business conference and expo took place this past October at the Rock Financial Showplace in Novi, MI. Reps from more than a hundred large corporations, seventy-five certified WBEs, fifty women's organizations, agencies of local and state government and university personnel attended.
The two-day event included workshops, a leadership forum and a full day of company-to-company networking where WBEs got to meet purchasing reps from the attending firms. There was also an auction where WBEs bid on one-on-one business lunches with decision makers from a dozen big companies, including GM, Ford, Chrysler, Toyota, Kellogg Co and Charter One Bank.
NMSDC presents supplier diversity awards
Miami, FL - Many companies were recognized for their work in supplier diversity at the thirty-fifth NMSDC annual conference this past October.
UPS was named corporation of the year. Its spend with minority businesses in 2006 rose to $341 million, an 82 percent increase over its 2005 spend. The company contracted with 1,342 certified first-tier MBEs in 2006.
Michael Robinson, director of global supplier diversity at IBM Corp, was named minority supplier development leader of the year. The award recognized innovative development activities and leadership across industry groups and around the country.
Four MBEs were recognized as national suppliers of the year for excellence in business acumen and community service. They are: JOBS Training and Placement, Los Angeles, CA (businesses with sales less than $1 million); Metasys Technologies, Inc, Duluth, GA (firms with $1 million to $10 million in sales); Eclaro International, New York, NY (businesses with sales between $10 and $50 million; and Dakkota Integrated Systems, LLC, (firms with sales greater than $50 million).
To read all about it, check out www.nmsdcus.org.
October/November 07
U.S. Hispanic Chamber appoints new board members
Washington, DC - The United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (USHCC, www.ushcc.com) recently appointed six new members to its board of directors. This year's appointees are Elizabeth Vasquez Gallagher, president and CEO of SAVI Construction; Sally Fernandez, president and CEO of various Tucson, AZ-based technology and marketing companies; Nina Vaca, CEO of Pinnacle Technical Resources, Inc, an IT services provider to Fortune 500 enterprises; Juventino Cano, CEO of Cano Container Corp; Alex Garcia, CEO of El Taller Colaborativo, which provides architectural, engineering, planning, landscape architecture and construction management services; and David Hernandez, CEO of energy retailer Liberty Power Corp.
The USHCC represents the interests of more than two million Hispanic-owned businesses in the U.S. It also serves as the umbrella organization for 200 local Hispanic chambers in the U.S., Canada, Puerto Rico and Mexico.
SDG&E announces high supplier diversity goals
San Diego, CA - In 2006, Sempra Energy and its utility subsidiaries SDG&E and Southern California Gas Co (SoCalGas) spent a combined total of $251 million, more than 23 percent of purchases, with M/WBEs. Now Debra L. Reed, president and CEO of SDG&E and SoCalGas, has announced a new plan calling for 30 percent of Sempra's annual procurement allocation to be spent with diverse suppliers by 2015.
"We are proud that SDG&E and SoCalGas combined to achieve the highest percentage of diverse-supplier spending of any natural gas or electric utility in the state of California last year," Reed notes. "We are implementing this new plan because it is good for our business, our employees and the communities we serve."
For more information on Sempra Energy's diversity programs, visit www.sempra.com/diversity.htm.
Workforce development group adds leader to board
Schaumburg, IL - The National Alliance for Partnerships in Equity Education Foundation (NAPE, www.napequity.org.) has added Sandra Westlund-Deenihan to its board of directors. Westlund-Deenihan is president of Quality Float Works, Inc, a manufacturing firm, and an ardent proponent of new solutions to close the skills gap in the manufacturing industry.
NAPE is a consortium of state and local agencies, corporations and national organizations that collaborate to improve the achievements of students.
Indira Vishnampet gets award
Houston, TX - Indira Vishnampet, CEO and founder of Hydus, Inc, has received the outstanding woman entrepreneur of the year award from the Indo American Chamber of Commerce of Greater Houston.
Hydus is a multinational corporation that provides IT solutions in enterprise apps integration, composite business apps and information architecture. With delivery centers in Houston, TX, Vancouver, BC, Canada and Hyderabad, India, the company has successfully implemented projects for Fortune 500 companies since 2000.
Within three years of startup Hydus became a multi-million dollar firm; it has grown 600 percent in the last three years.
August/September 07
Chrysler named corporation of the year by Native American Business Alliance
Auburn Hills, MI - The Chrysler Group was named corporation of the year by the Native American Business Alliance (NABA) during its annual conference this past April. The company was recognized for its mentorship and development of Native American business enterprises.
"We are proud to be a member of NABA and to be recognized as its corporation of the year," says Jethro Joseph, Chrysler Group senior manager of diversity supplier development.
Boeing joins Billion Dollar Roundtable
Chicago, IL - This spring Boeing joined the Billion Dollar Roundtable, the organization for corporations that spend at least $1 billion a year with M/WBE suppliers. Boeing spent more than $2 billion with M/WBEs in 2006.
Joan Robinson-Berry, Boeing director of supplier diversity for the Integrated Defense Systems business, will represent the aerospace company on the roundtable's board of directors. "Boeing has a long-standing commitment to small and diverse businesses," Robinson-Berry says. "We have maintained a formal supplier diversity program for more than fifty years."
The roundtable was created in 2001 to promote and share best practices in supply-chain diversity excellence.
WPEO presents Done Deal awards
New York, NY - More than 350 WBEs, potential WBEs and corporate sponsors attended the seventh annual breakthrough breakfast of the Women Presidents Educational Organization (WPEO), an East Coast affiliate of the Women's Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC).
The event provided matchmaking opportunities and featured a Done Deal panel and Done Deal awards as well as a mini trade fair.
The Done Deal Challenge encourages both tier one and tier two business contracts for corporations and WBEs. For this year's challenge, both WBEs and corporate sponsors reported deals signed between April 1, 2006 and March 31, 2007.
Done Deal corporate leadership awards went to Pfizer, Citigroup, Novartis and Merrill Lynch.
WBE leadership awards went to Eriksen Translations, Baseline Design and Daystar Promotions.
The Access New York award was won by Camelot Communications Group, a tech management firm.
Rainbow PUSH honors General Motors VP Bo Andersson
Chicago, IL - Rainbow PUSH awarded its first trade advocate award to Bo Andersson, VP of global purchasing and supply chain at General Motors Corp. Andersson was honored for his efforts in assisting minority suppliers and his contributions to diversity in the automotive industry.
"As the industry goes through changes and supplier diversity efforts come under attack, GM continues to lead the way in its outreach and commitment to diversity," says Rev Jesse Jackson, Rainbow PUSH founder and president. "GM understands that access and opportunity are key to its growth."
Rainbow PUSH and GM are working to create growth opportunities for GM's high-performing diverse suppliers. GM was the first corporation in the auto industry to have a supplier diversity program. For almost forty years it has worked to improve the capabilities of minority businesses and bring them greater economic opportunities. In this time, GM has spent more than $62 billion with minority suppliers.
MGM Mirage reports supplier diversity increases
Las Vegas, NV - In May, MGM Mirage released its supplier diversity report for 2006. Notable in the report were increases in both the number of registered M/W/DBEs in the MGM supplier diversity program, and the company's total expenditures with these businesses.
Last year the company spent $1.3 billion on biddable goods and services. Of this amount, $150 million was spent with diverse enterprises, an increase of $7 million over 2005.
Of biddable goods and services purchases from M/W/DBEs, 23 percent was spent with Asian-owned enterprises, 23 percent with African American enterprises, 17 percent with Hispanic enterprises and 4.9 percent with Native American enterprises. A total of $34 million was spent with WBEs.
MGM Mirage has ongoing, nationwide development and capital improvement projects, the report notes. Its outreach efforts ensure that M/W/DBEs have opportunities to share in these contracts.
In 2006 the firm's total construction expenditures totaled $1.3 billion, of which $276 million was spent with M/W/DBEs; $71 million of that with WBEs. Of the construction total, 69 percent was spent with African American businesses, 24 percent with Hispanic-owned firms, 3 percent with Native American-owned firms and 3 percent with Asian-owned companies.
June/July 07
WBENC fundraiser brings in $1 million-plus; top WBE leaders and partner firms are named
Washington, DC - The Women's Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC) celebrated its tenth anniversary with the largest and most successful fundraiser in its history. "Salute to Women's Business Enterprises: the Enterprising Economy" raised more than $1.1 million and honored fourteen WBE leaders as 2007 business stars.
The women, all heads of certified WBE firms, were recognized for leadership in the business community and the inspiration they offer to other WBEs. They are Tara Abraham, CEO, Accel, Inc; Sarah Bates, president and CEO, New Technology Steel; Phyllis Godwin, chair and CEO, Granite City Electric Supply Company; Lynn J. Griffith, president, Welcome Florida; Janice Hamilton, president and CEO, JMH Education Marketing; Lisa Hanlon, managing partner, TelTech Communications; Dawn Magnan, president, n8 Solutions; Sheri Orlowitz, president, Shan Industries; Kanchana Raman, president, Avion Systems; Julia Rhodes, president, Kleenslate Concepts; Judy Ritter, president, Ritter Contracting; Deborah M. Sawyer, CEO and president, Environmental Design International; Karin Stevens, president, Edelweiss Enterprises; Gail Warrior Lawrence, president, the Warrior Group.
WBENC also named top firms for outstanding company-wide supplier diversity programs. The 2007 winners are AT&T, Avis Budget Group, Bank of America, BellSouth, Chevron, Coca-Cola, Exxon Mobil, IBM, Johnson & Johnson, Office Depot, PepsiCo, Pfizer, Shell Oil, TXU, UPS and Verizon.
TXU, UPS, and AT&T, including its predecessor companies, have been recognized by WBENC every year since the award was created eight years ago. Avis Budget Group and Chevron, including its predecessor companies, each won the award seven times. Office Depot and PepsiCo each won six times; Bank of America and Shell Oil each won five times; IBM won four times.
Linda Denny, WBENC interim president, notes that "This consistency of excellence demonstrates that once a company embeds best practices in its organization and its culture, it can sustain and enhance its success year after year."
MGM Mirage seeks diverse CityCenter partners
Las Vegas, NV - MGM Mirage and Perini Building Co are seeking qualified minority, women and disadvantaged-owned business enterprises (MBEs/ WBES/ DBEs) to participate in a $7 billion construction project underway in Las Vegas. CityCenter is currently the largest privately funded construction project in the U.S.
The seventy-six acre development will include a 4,000-room hotel tower, casino and convention center as well as housing and retail.
"One of our primary goals is to include as many qualified diverse construction firms as possible as we build CityCenter," says Anderine Cowan, construction diversity manager for MGM Mirage.
Perini is the general contractor overseeing construction of the project. MGM Mirage and Perini have created a construction and business management training program for diverse contractors who are awarded work on CityCenter.
To be considered for contracts, MBEs/WBES/DBEs need a current letter of certification, a Nevada contractor's license, union affiliation and a surety letter from a bonding company. Check out www.perini.com for more information.
Time Warner launches second tier program
New York, NY - Time Warner has implemented a second tier supplier diversity program starting with forty first tier suppliers. The program requires the first tiers to report their M/WBE spending.
Pilot participants attended a half-day session that reviewed program requirements and demonstrated the reporting tool that will be used to track their second tier activity.
Greta Davis, TimeWarner exec director of supplier diversity, is coordinating the program. "In developing the plan to launch this new initiative we reached out to many of our key suppliers," she says. "We found that a majority of them already have advanced supplier diversity programs in place.
"We were inspired by the positive responses we received. We intend this momentum to generate and expand business opportunities for minority and women businesses."
To learn more about the program and for additional information, go to www.TWsupplierdiversity.com.
IBM recognized for support of Native businesses
Charlotte, NC - IBM has been named corporate advocate of the year by the National Center for American Indian Enterprise Development (NCAIED). Each year the organization's American Indian business achievement awards committee honors a company demonstrating "outstanding leadership in support of American Indian business and economic development."
This year's award recognizes the special help IBM's supplier diversity program gives Native business enterprises.
Kaitz Foundation hosts supplier diversity workshops
Las Vegas, NV - During Cable Show '07, put on by the National Cable and Telecommunications Association, the Walter Kaitz Foundation hosted several supplier diversity workshops for M/WBEs and major companies' procurement officers. All the programs emphasized increasing business with M/WBEs.
In sessions for procurement officers from large cable companies, Joan Kerr, director of supplier diversity at AT&T, spoke about "developing and growing a supplier diversity program for your company." Kaitz Foundation exec director Dr David M. Porter, Jr addressed supplier diversity best practices.
Sessions for M/WBEs were geared toward helping them increase business with the cable industry. One of the speakers was Mark Brogdon of N2U Creative Marketing, who discussed marketing strategies for a growing business.
MGM Mirage named for supplier diversity initiative
Las Vegas, NV - The Nevada Minority Business Council (NMBC), dedicated to increasing the purchase of goods and services from minority suppliers, recently honored the supplier diversity initiative of MGM Mirage for the second year in a row.
"Our supplier diversity initiative seeks to provide opportunity for minority- and women-owned businesses while supporting the company's growth and expansion," says Mark Stolarczyk, corporate purchasing VP."Diversity is a core business value for us. We are honored to receive this recognition."
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