Tag Archives: wbec-west certification

TOP 5 REASONS TO PARTNER WITH A CERTIFIED WOMAN-OWNED BUSINESS

Posted on Tuesday, 20 March
by Dr. Pamela Williamson

A certified woman-owned business is not a feat that is achieved overnight! Women-owned businesses undergo a thorough formal documentation and site visit from a third-party certifier (such as WBEC-West) before they are accredited.

The business is highly scrutinized and may take up to 6 months  just to complete the paperwork and receive certification. If that justifies the importance of being a certified woman-owned business, there are more advantages to partner with one. The top reasons are:

  1. Opportunities

This would be the primary and most important reason to partner with a certified woman-owned business.  The federal government sets aside opportunities (contracts) every year for qualifying women owned small businesses.  The number and size of these contracts varies by industry based on how well women are represented.  As you’d expect,  there are more opportunities available in industries  that are underrepresented in women business owners.

  1. Drives Competition

After partnering with a woman-certified business your company has access to other multiple avenues for goods and services. This allows you to compare prices with your existing vendors and service providers and drive them to offer you more competitive prices. This opens up channels to build new supplier alliances.

  1. Taps Women Customers

Apart from women being a growing economic force for the nation and in the world, women themselves have a great buying power. Women customers not only drive sales up by their purchasing power but also market the services and products they like by speaking about it to friends, family and colleagues. This no-cost word of mouth marketing can lead to spiking profits for the partnering company.

  1. Showcases Diversity

Diversity positively impacts the bottom line of any business. Working with woman-owned businesses sends a message to vendors, investors and potential customers that your company supports diversity. This in turn, enhances economic growth in local communities.

  1. Promotes Innovation

Woman-owned businesses, normally being smaller companies, are aware of the tough competition and hence try to bring more innovative and creative solutions to the table. Partnering with a smaller team provides the advantage of getting prompt customer service. They are also able to assist by making quicker course corrections and provide much faster turn-around times than their larger competitors.

As woman-owned businesses grow, it will boost the nation’s economy. Moreover, it will leave a lasting impression on your company profile, by being one which has assisted economic growth by partnering with local, diverse and minority communities.

Top 3 Benefits to Get WBE Certification for your Business with WBEC-West

Posted on Wednesday, 21 December
by Dr. Pamela Williamson

Thinking of getting your business certified? There are a few third-party certifiers when it comes to getting your WBE certification. But if you reside in any one of the Western States including, Arizona, Colorado, Southern California, Utah, Wyoming, Nevada, Hawaii and Guam then WBENC certification through WBEC-West may be right for you.

WBEC-West, a regional partner of the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC), implements the certification standards of WBENC all across the western states. WBENC certification is recognized all over America and honored by 10,000+ major corporations.

Here are top 3 benefits of getting your business WBE certified with WBEC-West:

Being a part of the WBEC-West Community

One of the biggest advantages of getting your business certified with WBEC-West is that you automatically become a member of the WBEC-West Community. The community is an indispensable resource empowering you with the ability to communicate with  other certified WBEs to share best practices and to grow WBE to WBE connections and corporate relationships. You also get the opportunity to mentor other WBEs or apply for mentorship through our Ambassador program.

Participating in Business Matchmaking Sessions

WBEC-West hosts corporate workshops around the year! Get the insider information you need to successfully engage corporations and increase your business exposure and opportunities. Participate in informal networking and face-to-face matchmaking sessions with WBEC-West Regional Corporate Members and WBENC Corporate Members in our coveted Annual WBEC-West Procurement Opportunity Conference & Awards Gala.

Procurement Buyers Database Access

As a certified WBE you also get access to a group of supplier diversity and procurement executives at hundreds of major U.S. corporations and federal, state and local government entities that accept WBENC certification. You also get automatic inclusion in WBENCLink, WBENC’s Internet database of certified WBEs, which is accessible by WBENC’s Corporate Members and other certified WBEs across the country.

You can also find out what’s going on with WBEs across the nation by reading our informative blog and get the know-how on how to procure corporate contracts ­and grow your business through our educational webinars.

Now that you know the benefits, click to learn how to qualify for WBEC-West Certification!

Find the Certification That’s Right for Your Business

Posted on Monday, 31 October
by Dr. Pamela Williamson

Which certification is right for me? You might ask yourself this question when looking for a competitive advantage and it can be confusing, so in this post we’ll go over a few basics to help you make an informed decision.

You’ve probably heard of the 8(a) Business Development Program which no doubt is a great program but it’s not for everyone. Acceptance is limited to businesses considered small as per the SBA requirements. Also you have to prove 51% or higher economic AND social disadvantage. If you don’t belong to any socially disadvantaged groups it will be hard to prove you are eligible for certification.

The Women-Owned Small Business Program is available to small business where a woman owns and controls 51% or more of the company. The word control is key here, and there are documents you will need to prove that you “control” a certain percentage of the business.

Third-party certifiers like WBEC-West empower women business owners to get the certifications needed to apply for procurement opportunities in the public and private sector. Major corporations align themselves with many third-party certifying organizations in their endeavor to expand their procurement efforts. If you are a WBE meeting the requirements for certification, getting certified can be a great way of getting your foot in the door for competing and winning federal and corporate contracts and making strong business connections with other certified WBEs.

Similar to the requirements for WBEs, Veteran-Owned Small Business (VOSB) and Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business Programs also exist. The 51% or better criteria applies here as well and it is imperative that over half the business is owned and controlled by a Veteran or service disabled Veteran. There are many third-party organizations that also certify veterans and if you meet the criteria, this certification might be right for you.

Now, let’s get back to the question – which certification is right for me?

If you are a fairly new company getting WBE or VOSB certified with a third-party certifying agency can be a good step to meet like-minded businesses and build business connections leading to partnerships and joint ventures. It’ll also help you build experience in the commercial sector with large corporations.

Also if you’ve never applied for a Federal contract, you might not need to dive into 8(a) right away until you’ve gained some experience.

If you’ve worked as a Sub for a Prime Contractor or want to partner with a Prime looking for a Minority/Veteran and Women-owned business to partner with getting certified can be a great idea.

See  how we can help you get WBE certified or learn more about the benefits of certification.

How Women-Owned Businesses Can Do Business with the US Government

Posted on Monday, 18 July
by Dr. Pamela Williamson

Did you know the US government spends trillions of dollars every year?

They buy everything from multi-million dollar jets to paper clips. So the question to ask yourself is, is the US government buying what I’m selling? The answer is most likely, yes.

If you’re wanting to do business with the Federal government, you may have already gone to websites that display procurement opportunities or taken some procurement courses or attended seminars that teach you how to do business with the government.

What did you find is the common denominator time and time again?

No matter where you go you’ll be told that building a relationship with the procurement opportunity contracting officer is essential. Of course there are other key factors that come into play like your past performance, capability statements and more – but without having any relationship with the contracting officer you may get lucky, but it’s more likely that you’re shooting in the dark and will miss your mark.

 

So how do you get in contact with contracting officers?

One way is to navigate The Federal Procurement Data System Database which my any means is not a simple system. It will no doubt show you who is buying what you have to sell, but you’ll have to do some digging. There are 60+ Departments in this database and once you drill down the relevant department you can find out the relevant Agency and keep digging until you discover a Contracting Officer and, more importantly, the right Contracting Officer with whom you can start to build a relationship with.

 

Another way is to attend procurement opportunity business matchmaking events that are attended by Corporate buyers and Procurement Managers. And the usual way to gain entry to these events is to get certified through entities that setup these events to connect Suppliers with Procurement Buyers, like WBEC-West, for instance.

 

WBENC certification offered specifically to women-owned businesses is one of the most broadly recognized and esteemed certifications in the US. The certification is accepted by hundreds of corporations nationwide including  a large number of federal, state, and local government agencies.

 

Often there are procurement opportunities reserved for WBEs and getting certified means you get a chance to apply to these contracts not available to you if you were not a WBE. Attending business matchmakers that match Federal Buyers with Suppliers like yourself is a great way to meet the people responsible for making buying decisions, face-to-face in a one-to-one or one-to-many meeting setup, depending on the event.

 

Getting certified is no doubt one of the best ways to get yourself in front of procurement buyers. To learn more click here.

Top 3 Questions You Need to Answer Before Applying for WBENC Certification

Posted on Wednesday, 11 May
by Dr. Pamela Williamson

You may have heard of WBEs or WBENC certification, but are not sure what exactly it means to be certified and how certification will help you. This post aims to clear some doubts and will help you determine if you are eligible to apply or qualify to be certified as a WBE.

 

Q1 – Do I qualify as a WBE?

A1 – A Women’s Business Enterprise, or in short a WBE, is an independent business that is at least 51% owned and controlled by one or more women who are U.S. citizens or Legal Resident Aliens; whose business formation and principal place of business are in the U.S. or its territories; and whose management and daily operation is controlled by a woman with industry expertise.  If you said yes to all of the above, you are eligible to apply for certification.  Also note that a WBE is the business, not the individual.

 

Q2 – What is the purpose of getting WBENC certification?

A2 – WBENC certification offered specifically to women-owned businesses is one of the most broadly recognized and esteemed certifications in the US. The certification is accepted by hundreds of corporations nationwide including  a number of federal, state, and local government agencies.

Often there are procurement opportunities reserved for WBE’s and getting certified means you get a chance to apply to these contracts not available to you if you were not a WBE.

Also by getting certified you can display a badge of certification on your website making it an important marketing tool for expanding your company’s visibility among decision makers in corporate supply chain diversity and procurement organizations.  Getting certified also gives you access to other WBE’s to do business with or partner with for joint ventures.

 

Q3 – Do I apply to WBEC-West directly and what are the fees?

A3 – If your business is registered in Arizona, Southern California, Colorado, Hawaii, Nevada, Utah, Wyoming or Guam you can contact us directly to start the certification process. For other States click here to see which territory you fall under and contact that RPO directly.

Fees are determined individually by each RPO so if you fall under the WBEC-West territory please contact us directly for fee details or any other questions you might have about the certification process at: http://wbec-west.com/contact-us/