Dr. Fred McKinney: November 15, 2010

· GNEMSDC Quarterly Meeting At UTC December 3
	The GNEMSDC Quarterly Meeting is coming up on Friday December 3 from 2:00 PM to 5:00 PM at United Technologies Corporation in Farmington, CT at Four Farm Springs Road. The agenda for this Quarterly will include showcases by three MBEs, a presentation on exporting goods and services to the BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China), and a presentation by the UTC supplier development team. The export presentation will replace the seminar scheduled on November 9. Here is a message from UTC Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Louis R. Chênevert: "United Technologies Corporation seeks the most innovative and competitive suppliers in order to maintain our competitive advantage. We spent the 1990s working on internal efficiencies and cost with great success. In the last several years we have worked aggressively with our supply base as real partners to eliminate inefficiencies, enable lower cost and deliver the highest quality to our customers. Diverse suppliers have been essential to our performance and will be for decades to come. We also require of our top suppliers and integrators the same supplier diversity commitments we expect from ourselves. Please browse this supplier diversity website where you'll learn how diverse suppliers are a priority for UTC and what your opportunities with our company may be." Following the Quarterly Meeting, we will have the annual CT Holiday Business Card Exchange at the Hartford Marriott, right around the corner from the meeting The HBC Exchange will start promptly at 5:30 and conclude at 7:30 PM. Please feel free to invite and bring a friend. This is a great way to end the year. This is another free event for certified MBEs, corporate members and their guests.
	Directions to UTC

· Boston Holiday Card Exchange Set for Monday December 13
	On Monday, December 13 at Darryl's Corner Bar and Kitchen at 604 Columbus Avenue (one block off MA Avenue). The event will go from 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM. This historic bar is part of the African American Boston tradition of great Southern Cuisine. Please RSVP by calling the office or sending Tatiana an email, tparedes@gnemsdc.org.

· 2010 GNEMSDC Annual Corporate Sponsors
	On behalf of the GNEMSDC Board of Directors, I want to thank our 2010 Annual Corporate Sponsors. Aetna Official Sponsor AT&T Gold Sponsor Bank of America Gold Sponsor BNY Mellon Gold Sponsor Cartus Official Sponsor Comcast Gold Sponsor Electric Boat Silver Sponsor Ernst & Young Silver Sponsor John Hancock Silver Sponsor Liberty Mutual Gold Sponsor Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation Foxwoods Official Sponsor National Grid Gold Sponsor Northeast Utilities Official Sponsor NSTAR Electric Contributor Pfizer Gold Sponsor Pitney Bowes Gold Sponsor Prudential Gold Sponsor Purdue Pharma Gold Sponsor Raytheon Official Sponsor Staples Sponsor Stop and Shop Silver Sponsor The Hartford Gold Sponsor The Metropolitan District Commission Gold Sponsor The TJX Companies Gold Sponsor The Walt Disney Company Gold Sponsor United Technologies Corporation Official Sponsor Yale New Haven Health Services Corporation Contributor We encourage all of our corporate members to consider becoming 2011 Annual Sponsors it is a great deal and it helps us to continue to provide the highest quality services to our network. Thank you.
	Corporate Sponsorship Package Details

· What Can Corporations Do to Promote Minority Business Development?
	Please take a look at my latest article published in the Boston Banner (11/11/10) on the topic "What Corporations Can Do to Promote Minority Business Development". Also feel free to comment and share.

· Advertise in the GNEMSDC e-News
	This past four weeks, Diggs Construction has advertised in this e-newsletter. The ad has generated 46 leads for Diggs Construction that we have turned over to them to assist in their marketing. These are companies and decision makers within our network of corporate buyers and supplier diversity managers who have visited the Diggs Construction website. If you would like to generate leads among our network, you should consider advertising with us. Call the office for details, 888-874-7114.

· Congratulations Valerie Cooper of Picture That
	Valerie Cooper of Picture That was recently named the 2010 Entrepreneur of the Year by the National Association for Female Executives. Congratulations to Valerie. Picture That was a former GNEMSDC Supplier of the Year and was recognized as the Supplier of the Year by the NMSDC for the Northern Region. Formed in 2002, Picture That supplies fine art, curates exhibitions, develops multicultural marketing materials and provides art advisory services to organizations worldwide. Her firm's clients have included CARTUS, Credit Suisse First Boston, DIAGEO, Day Pitney LLP, Deloitte, Bank of America, GE, GENWORTH, The Goldman Sachs Group, IBM, Northeast Utilities, Pitney Bowes, The Stamford Center for the Arts, Thompson Hospitality, UBS and numerous private individuals. Picture That, LLC is a certified Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) by the Greater New England Minority Supplier Development Council and also by the State of Connecticut.

· And Finally,
	In my spare time I like to read history and classic literature. I recently completed Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe. I remember reading to my children many years ago the abridged children's version of the story, but nothing compares to the original. While over 800 pages (on my I-pad), this long treatise of the survival of the human spirit against great odds left me with mixed feelings about the morality of the hero (he was on his way to purchase slaves in Africa when he was marooned on his island), but largely impressed upon me how the will to survive is the origin of creativity. With limited resources and no assistance for very long time Robinson Crusoe survived for over twenty five years on a deserted island. During that time he built canoes, domesticated wild goats and cats, learned to farm, build fortresses and to make all of the instruments needed for a semblance of normalcy. As I read this remarkable story I could not help but think of the ingenuity required to survive as a small minority business today. Business as much as it is our chosen profession is a hostile environment with many who would seek our demise for their own advantage. Yet there are also resources that if managed and aligned properly can assist in our survival and development. But the most important characteristic and factor that determines survival is the will to survival. The MBEs who have survived this difficult period have that will and though times are still difficult, hang in there. At the end of this book, Robinson not only survived and was strengthened in this crucible of circumstances, he succeeded beyond his dreams or the expectations of others. The same can happen for you, if you have the will to survive. In your service Dr. Fred

· Office For Rent at GNEMSDC Boston Office

The GNEMSDC is looking for a certified MBE to rent a beautiful large office within the GNEMSDC offices at Copley Plaza. The rent is $800 per month. The office is furnished and if you rent before November 1, 2010 we will provide wireless Internet and a computer for the office. Call 888-874-7114 for details.

Welcome Two New Corporate Members - Emerson College and Bostik Corporation

On behalf of the GNEMSDC board of directors, I want to welcome two new corporate members, Emerson College and Bostik Corporation.

"Emerson College, located in the heart of Boston, Massachusetts, is the only comprehensive college in America dedicated exclusively to communication and the arts in a liberal arts context.

Emerson is internationally recognized in its fields of specialization, which are communication; marketing; journalism; communication sciences and disorders; visual and media arts; the performing arts; and writing, literature and publishing.

Established in 1880, Emerson College is named for its founding president, Charles Wesley Emerson, an orator, preacher, and teacher. Over the years, the institution has evolved from a small New England school of oratory to a multifaceted college with an international reputation. President Elect Lee Pelton the 12th President of Emerson College is pictured above."

"Bostik is a company with a long and rich history. It was founded as the Boston Blacking Co. in Chelsea, Massachusetts, in 1889. It has its origins in the shoe industry and shoe adhesives. It was taken over by USM (United Shoe Machinery) in 1929 and was developed on a global scale, focusing on the shoe industry until the 1950's when the company embarked on international expansion and diversification. In 1990, Bostik was purchased by TOTAL, the French oil and gas company, which carried on expanding Bostik by merging it with its own adhesives affiliates and through a steady acquisition policy which gradually brought Bostik among the leading players."

"With a turnover over to 1.212 billion Euros in 2009, Bostik is one of the largest adhesive and sealant companies in the world today. The group designs, manufactures and markets adhesives, sealants and coatings to three key sectors: Industry, Construction and Consumer. Its products are used in a wide range of fields - from gas tankers and buildings to furniture and diapers."

"Bostik is a "global decentralized organization", headquartered in Paris and with production facilities and sales operations in 39 countries, with products sold in more than 50 countries. It has 51 production sites and 2 research centers and 10 applied research centers spread over the five continents. Overall, Bostik employs 4,650 people."

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November 15, 2010