| Greetings! The mission of the Greater New England Minority Supplier Development Council is to significantly increase business relationships between our corporate members and our certified MBEs. We believe that minority business development is a key component of reducing poverty, unemployment, increasing wealth, and integrating American society. You are receiving this email in order to keep you abreast of developments with the Greater New England Minority Supplier Development Council, Supplier Diversity Issues and Minority Business Development. If you like what you read please share internally and externally. |
| Awards Gala News and Updates |
|
| Anne Noble to Serve as Honorary Corporate Chair |
|
On behalf of the GNEMSDC Board of Directors, I warmly welcome and thank Anne Noble for agreeing to serve as the Corporate Honorary Co-Chair for the Awards Gala. Ms. Noble is President and CEO of the Connecticut Lottery Corporation. I am particularly humbled and thankful for Ms. Noble's work and commitment to increasing diversity spend with the CT Lottery and other State of Connecticut agencies. |
| GNEMSDC Annual Gala Singer |
| Elizabeth Lyra Ross |
 We are very pleased to have as one of our musical guests for the upcoming Awards Gala, Elizabeth Lyra Ross. Ms. Ross is a talented opera singer who has performed internationally and has four CDs to her credit. I am sure you will enjoy her talents on April 28th. |
| Special "THANK YOU" to our Sponsors |
 THANK YOU, THANK YOU. THANK YOU!!! We want to thank our sponsors for their support and all of our events and activities in 2011. I am happy to report that we have a record number of sponsors. To see the up-to-date list of current: Corporate and MBE Annual Sponsors
|
| Boston Red Sox are now a GNEMSDC Corporate Member! |
|
On behalf of the GNEMSDC Board of Directors, I warmly welcome the as new corporate members of the GNEMSDC. We look forward to working with the Red Sox in coming weeks and months.
Some of you know me as a Yankee fan, but now that the Red Sox are corporate members, out go the pinstripes and interlocking NY hat. Hey, business is business! |
| Upcoming Events and Activities |
If you have events and activities that you want to share with our network send us a PDF file at least two weeks before the event.
We reserve the right to publish or not publish events and activities. |
| GNEMSDC Second Quarterly Meeting May 11, 2011 Raytheon |
 The GNEMSDC Second Quarterly Meeting will take place at the Raytheon on Wednesday, May 11 from 1:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. The corporate host for this event is Raytheon. The event will take place at 1001 Boston Post Road East in Marlborough, MA.
Raytheon is a high security facility. We are asking that all interested attendees register prior to April 11. You will not be able to attend if you try to register after April 11. This Quarterly meeting will be different from previous Quarterly meetings because Raytheon will allow 20 MBEs to set up table top displays - a mini Trade Show at the facility for Raytheon buyers, engineers and Quarterly meeting attendees to visit that afternoon. Also Raytheon will have business unit buyers on hand to meet directly with MBEs. If you are interested in "exhibiting" at the Quarterly, please let us know. We encourage all MBEs interested in attending to visit the Raytheon website to get a better understanding of what Raytheon buys and sells.
Raytheon will have buyers set up to meet with MBEs in the following areas:
Please register for this event by calling the office, 888-874-7114 or emailing Jerilynn Clarke at jclarke@gnemsdc.org. |
| Opportunities with Corporate Members |
While we are not in the HR business, we are aware of opportunities with several corporate members for positions of employment. If you call the office we would be happy to share that information with you.
If you are a corporate member, and want the Council to spread the word about your opportunity we would be happy to do that for you anonymously and for free! |
| eNews Sponsor by Housing Authority of the City of Bridgeport |
 Housing Authority of the City of Bridgeport Request for Proposals (RFP) Annual Audit Services Solicitation Number: 004-EO-11-S Solicitation Date: March 21, 2011
The Housing Authority of the City of Bridgeport (BHA) is requesting proposals from qualified firms or individuals to provide public relations consulting services. As a result of this RFP process, the BHA intends to possibly award ceiling priced contracts for a one-year period with a one-year option to one or more selected firms based on the offers we receive in response to the scope of services.
Proposals must be submitted no later than 4:30 P.M., April 22, 2011 to: The Housing Authority of the City of Bridgeport, 150 Highland Ave, Bridgeport, CT 06604, Attention Mr. Eugene Sumter, Chief Contracting Officer. Late proposals will not be accepted.
A Pre-Submission Conference will be held on Thursday, April 7, 2011 at 2 p.m., in the Executive Conference Room, 150 Highland Avenue, Bridgeport, CT 06604. The conference will provide potential proposers an opportunity to discuss the contract requirements with BHA staff.
A complete copy of the solicitation, including proposed forms of contract and proposal requirements, can be obtained after 1 p.m. on Thursday, March 24, 2011 at the Purchasing Department, 301 Bostwick Ave, Bridgeport, CT 06605 Attention: Ms. Caroline Sanchez, Buyer, Telephone No. (203) 337-8820. |
| Two Full Scholarships to Kellogg Available NOW |
| The GNEMSDC has received two full scholarships for eligible certified MBEs to attend the Kellogg School of Business Advanced Management Education Program from June 5 through June 11. This program has been credited by a number of MBEs from around the country with being instrumental in taking their businesses to the next level.
MBEs interested in attending this outstanding program must complete a GNEMSDC Scholarship Application Form and return that completed form to the office by April 29.
This great opportunity is a $5,200.00 value! Think about the return on investment for your $150.00 recertification fee not even counting the value of the program to the development of your business. |
| And Finally... |
 It is hard work to build a successful business in this hyper competitive world. Consumers have what economists call "perfect information" regarding current market prices, qualities and availabilities of a wide range of goods and services. 'Just Google it' has become the mantra of millions of consumers and buyers for corporations around the world. There are increasing types of products and services that were once so specialized, so personal, so consumer specific that those markets were not subject to the technologically driven competitive forces we see today. Now all sorts of professional services are up on the reverse auction block. Yet there is one imperfect form of protection against these inexorable market forces; the quality of your relationships. Sometimes these relationships are built on transactional considerations. I read in this Sunday's New York Times how one up and coming medical device company (fortunately not one of our corporate members) made illegal payments to curry favor in the selection of their products over competitors' offerings. These relationships, like most financial transactions are fleeting either for ethical reasons or they simply get better "dealed". But relationships built on mutual respect can grow and withstand even the toughest challenges. These relationships are built often with very humble beginnings and take time to develop. One of the greatest assets associated with participating with the GNEMSDC is the opportunity to build these lasting relationships with professionals who might be in a position one day to assist you because they know and respect you. So I encourage both our corporate members and our MBEs to attend the Gala with the goal of starting in some cases, and building in other cases, relationships based on mutual respect that can last a lifetime.
In your service,
Dr. Fred |
