Tanya Pope Presents at Inspire Enterprises Inc.’s Black Business Owners Forum
Tanya Pope, Assistant Vice President of University Supplier Diversity, was among the expert panelists at a virtual event designed to support Black-owned businesses. Hosted by Inspire Enterprise, Inc., The Black Business Owners Forum 2020 "Primed4Success" virtually gathered 60 Black-owned firms on October 15, 2020 to discuss solutions for the systemic disparities that have affected minority-and women-owned business enterprises (MWBEs) and offer tools and resources for accessing procurement opportunities. Inspired by the Black Lives Matters movement and the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Black community, Primed4Success was designed to serve as a guide for MWBEs for accessing capital and develop key relationships through networking with other business owners, government agencies, and private institutions.
At the forum, Pope presented on how Columbia University has proactively responded to the barriers MWBEs face in securing procurement contracts. In response to the many challenges MWBE businesses and their staffs faced due to the COVID-19 outbreak, Columbia University Facilities and Operations hosted a virtual vendor town hall to provide helpful resources. Additionally, the CU Grow Vendor Development Program successfully transitioned all program events to an online format to continue offering the current cohort opportunities to learn more about upcoming University projects, network, and gain valuable resources to continue growing their businesses.
Joining Pope on the Equitable Procurement Leadership panel were Dr. Eleanor Ramsey, Principal, Mason Tillman Ltd., Carl Peters, Principal Business Analyst and Compliance Manager Port Authority of NY & NJ, and Carlos Bannister, Chief Diversity Officer, NYCDOT.
Committed to helping businesses maximize strengths and achieve goals, Inspire Enterprise, Inc., founded by Danielle Douglas, works with businesses, government agencies, and community organizations to provide MWBEs with expertise in the areas of strategy and execution, capacity building, community engagement, outreach, and recruitment. Danielle is also a coach in the CU Grow Vendor Deveolpment program where she helps vendor participants grow their businesses through exercises in critical thinking and decision making to improve their business strategy. To learn more about Inspire Enterprise, Inc., visit: https://www.inspiretovision.com.