May 29, 2012


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. 
Congratulations to  Tatiana Paredes - 10 year anniversary 
with the GNEMSDC
Tat
On behalf of the GNEMSDC Board of Directors, the GNEMSDC corporate members and our outstanding MBEs, we congratulate Tatiana Paredes for her 10 year anniversary with GNEMSDC.  
 
Time flies.... 
 
Governor Deval Patrick to Attend 2012 MED Day 
Conference and Expo, June 7
Governor Patrick
The Honorable Deval Patrick will attend and speak at the 2012 New England Minority Enterprise Development (MED) Day Conference on June 7, 2012 at the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center?

Mark your calendars for Thursday, June 7.  The GNEMSDC along with the Boston MBDA Center and several strategic partners are organizing New England MED Day 2012 at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center.  MED Day is the premier event for minority enterprises and the public and private sectors. MED Day will offer the opportunity for MBEs to access information, tools and resources to grow their businesses both domestically and internationally.  This year the event is FREE and open to the public.  We have a limited number of tables available to large buying organization that would like to meet with some of the largest and finest Minority Business Enterprises in New England. 

This conference will also introduce the new U.S. Department of Commerce's Boston Minority Business Development Center, a powerful tool for MBEs who want to grow.  Attendees can expect networking, business-to-business matchmaking sessions with corporate procurement officials and capital providers and workshops. This free event includes continental breakfast and luncheon. . .
Space is limited, so please REGISTER by Friday, June 1.

This year we are going to present the Schwartz Award for Minority Business Development to Mr. Heyward Davenport, the New England Regional Director for the Minority Business Development Agency.  Mr. Davenport has spent over 30 years in the "struggle" for minority business inclusion and development.  Congratulations Mr. Davenport. 

Dr. Fred will be address the group in the morning on the topic:  "What Does Success Look Like?" 

Large corporations can expect to meet Small Disadvantaged Businesses (SDBs) and MBEs to achieve their federal government goals. Buying organizations interested in participating in the afternoon match-making session should contact Sarah James at 617-578-8900 or sjames@gnemsdc.org   
GNEMSDC  Massachusetts Supplier  Diversity Golf Classic - 
Sold Out!
golf
The GNEMSDC Massachusetts Supplier Diversity Golf Outing is coming to
Ferncroft Country Club on Monday, June 11. SOLD OUT!
We are very pleased to announce one of our celebrity MBEs will be in attendance and playing at the Boston event:  Hall of Fame great, Gayle Sayers of Sayers40 will be  joining us this year. 

If you are an annual sponsor and have not submitted your names, you are in danger of losing your spots.  Thank you for your donation if that is your intention, but if it is not, please contact the office by June 1.

Another great way to support the Golf outing is to donate something we can sell at the silent auction at the luncheon on June 11.  If you would like to donate any items for our very popular fundraising event, please contact the office (888-874-7114).  These will be greatly appreciated and all the proceeds go to great cause, our MBE Scholarship program.  This year thanks to your support, we were able to pay for 8 full scholarships to Tuck and Kellogg.  Our goal is to make it possible for every certified MBE with 3 or more years of consecutive certification to get executive education.  

Need to place to stay night before June 11th?  We made it easy!  
Call (978) 750-7987 and reference the Greater New England Minority Supplier Development Council Golf Outing... or book online using the group promotional code: GNE. CoCoKeyBoston.com
                                             
***Volunteer  Opportunity  available for July 13, CT  - Contact Volunteer Coordinator*** 
 Business Card Exchange 
at Medtronic, Inc. Cardiovascular, June 12   
MI
Business Card Exchange hosted by Medtronic, Inc. Cardiovascular, June 12, from 5:30 to 7:30 pm. 
 
Please join us to meet with Medtronic procurement team from MA and to meet other Corporate Members/MBEs to do a card swap and network.  This event is part of the GNEMSDC efforts to bring MBEs and Corporate members together in a relaxing atmosphere to network and have fun.   
 Register Now!

More information and registration contact: Julia Thomazoni at gnemsdcintern@gnemsdc.org
Events That MBEs Should Not Miss  
There are several events coming up on our calendar that are designed specifically for MBEs to learn about corporate opportunities.  In order to help you organize your own calendars and keep things straight, we have begin sending out invitations using Constant Contact.  This way we can include directions, agendas, share with you who else is attending and allow you to register.  If it seems like we are busy, it is because we are.  As I like to tell people, business is a contact sport.  We know how busy everyone's schedule is, but these are events often hosted by our corporate members with the expressed purpose of finding out more about you and your business with the ultimate aim, to make you a valuable supplier to their companies.  Here are some events you should consider:
New GNEMSDC Corporate Member - St Francis Hospital
SFHOn behalf of the GNEMSDC Board of Directors, I welcome the St. Francis Hospital as a new corporate member of the GNEMSDC.  

Saint Francis Hospital was founded in 1897 by Mother Ann Valencia Ailloude,  C.S.J., and a small group of Sisters of Saint Joseph who came to Hartford from  Chambery, France at the invitation of Bishop Michael Tierney.

The original hospital was established in the former home of Bishop Tierney,  located at the intersection of Collins and Woodland Streets, in Hartford's Asylum Hill neighborhood. When it opened, the hospital could accommodate 30 patients in its wards and it had two private rooms.

 A year after its founding, the hospital started its own school of nursing. In all, 5,818 registered nurses graduated from the school during its 98-year history.

In 1899, Saint Francis began an ambitious construction program, adding additional buildings and facilities, which permitted the introduction of new, specialized services.

Today, Saint Francis is licensed for 617 acute inpatient beds and 65 bassinets. The hospital's newest building, the 10-story Patient Care Tower, was completed in 1996. This modern structure contains three floors of outpatient services, critical care and surgical units and a women's pavilion.

Throughout its 104-year history, Saint Francis has responded to the medical needs of the region. In 1903, during a scarlet fever outbreak, Sisters from the hospital set up a temporary isolation unit on Sisson Avenue.
In 1919, Saint Francis was named an Army Reserve Hospital.When World War II started, Saint Francis was the first hospital in Hartford to initiate a Volunteer Red Cross Nurse Aide course. During the polio outbreak of the 1950s, Saint Francis was the first area hospital to establish a post-polio program.

Continuing its growth with the addition of ambulatory care services not previously provided by acute care hospitals, the institution, in 1976, changed its name to Saint Francis Hospital and Medical Center, reflecting its expanded 

We look forward to working with the St. Francis Hospital!    
NMSDC Success Story - AT & T Inc. and Group O, Inc.
attO
Group O is a diversified business services outsourcing provider that helps optimize their operations through marketing, packaging and supply chain solutions.   Founded by Bob Ontiveros in 1974, Group O is now led by his son, Gregg, and is the ninth-largest Hispanic-owned business in the United States-employing more than 1,500 individuals nationwide. Group O is a certified Hispanic minority business enterprise (MBE), an NMSDC Corporate Plus member, and works with many regional and national councils and associations.

Since 1999, Group O has worked with AT&T managing its consumer wireline rewards program-handling more than 9 million customer interactions over the past three years. Additionally, Group O's Information Sciences and Analytics group, based in San Antonio, Texas, provides technical support and analysis for a variety of consumer and business programs.

More recently, AT&T has worked with Group O on developing a mobile device logistics program to realize inventory and supply chain efficiencies. Group O purchases, receives, inspects, inventories and delivers the mobile handsets within a 10-day inventory window AT&T locations across the country. The program has processed and shipped more than 8 million handsets.

It's important to also note that all three of Group O's operating units have achieved conformance with the ISO 9001:2008 standard for quality management systems.
Group O is also certified for TL 9000-the telecom industry's unique extension to ISO 9001:2008, aimed at ensuring critical supply-chain quality requirements. Group O is also SSAE 16 SAS 70 Type II compliant and HIPAA compliant. These certifications signify that Group O has embedded quality management at the core of its service offerings. 

Along with its many accomplishments, Group O is involved in community service through financial contributions and participation in many community endeavors, including the Boys & Girls Club, United Way, Junior Achievement, Angel Tree, Toys for Tots and Living Lands & Water. Group O employees contribute thousands of hours of volunteer service annually. 

Additionally, the company's purpose tomorrow initiative educates and encourages Group O and its partners to embrace sustainable values and a zero-waste ideology.

Like his father, Gregg is also personally involved in a variety of organizations in his home community and nationwide, including NMSDC, the YMCA and several others.
Opportunities for MBEs
Research spending on University of Massachusetts campuses has increased to $586.7 million in 2011 compared to $387.4 million in spending in 2007, UMass reported Wednesday.
Research spending by campus in 2011, according to figures provided by UMass:
  • Amherst: $181.3 million
  • Boston: $57 million
  • Dartmouth: $25.6 million
  • Lowell: $60 million
  • Worcester: $262.7 million
The reason this information is important is that with Federal grants come goals to contract with MBEs, WBEs, Hub Zone companies and others.  UMASS is a corporate member of the GNEMSDC and they have been very supportive of our mission.  There are over 100 colleges and universities in Greater New England and most of them are tasked to utilize MBEs.  We know that most of these institutions have not been meeting their goals.  Some of the gap is because they are not well connected to resources like the GNEMSDC.  However, some and perhaps the biggest issue is that MBEs need to learn more about business opportunities in university research space.  Entrepreneurs need to look very carefully at opportunities in higher education.  The money to be made here is just as good as the money to made any where else.
  Employment Opportunities  
It is very important in business to be able to balance between staying close to your core competencies and meeting the needs and demands of your customers.  For many years I have resisted the offer to take employment ads, however at the risk of opening the flood gates, I will begin accepting offers for employment at MBEs and corporate members.  Even though the economy continues to improve unemployment is too high.  If we can play any positive role in connecting people to jobs, we will do so.   We reserve the right to publish.
  Great News to MBEs in Massachusetts 
Great news for MBEs operating in Commonwealth of Massachusetts.  The Massachusetts Growth Capital Corporation has a new expedited loan process for loans under $250,000.  If you are interested in an even faster response, give the GNEMSDC office a call.  We want to help you get the capital you need to grow your business.
Dr. Fred's Corner
Please take a close look at the information listed below.  The links will take you to detailed information.   
And Finally...
Fred in ohio
As the president and CEO of the largest minority business development organization in the northeast and a 35-year resident of Connecticut, I have to say that in this land of steady habits, improving the environment for minority owned businesses is not something that has been treated with a sense of urgency by successive administrations.

The Malloy Administration came into office on a wave of great optimism that finally 
things would change for the better, despite the very real and very significant budget problems facing the new administration. But while we are not quite half way through his first term, I have to admit that the optimism has been replaced with cynicism and despair.
 
The case for minority business development is tied to two interrelated phenomena: demographics and the state's economic trajectory. On demographics, minority population in the state continues its upward trend. As recently as 1990, Blacks, Hispanics, Asians and those of mixed races, and Native Americans comprised less than 17 percent of the state's population. According to the 2010 census, the minority population in the state exceeds 33 percent and continues to grow. In fact, had it not been for the growth in minority population over the past 20 years, the state's population would be declining. As an economist, we know that declining populations is a recipe for economic disaster.

Around 1990, the State of Connecticut conducted its first and only "disparity study". Disparity studies are used to justify intervention in markets that provide some value to businesses in certain demographic groups where it can be quantifiably demonstrated that a disparity based on racial, ethnic and gender exists. That study led to the creation of the State of Connecticut's Supplier Diversity program that sets aside 25 percent of state contracts to small businesses and 25 percent of that - or 6.25 percent - to businesses that are certified as minority- or women-owned.  Read more...
 
In your service,
Dr. Fred
Dr Fred QR