The win-win of supplier diversity and making global connections:
Big and Small Businesses Learn How at the 6th Annual Global Supplier Diversity Conference
Supplier diversity initiatives help large companies find innovative products and services, create a more flexible supply chain, meet DEI goals, help small businesses grow, and expand the impact of underrepresented founders.
Increasingly important, even start-ups can take advantage of growing opportunities to tap into international markets through connections with global companies.
Because they tend to swim in very different ponds, however, big and small companies often need help finding one another and learning how to engage in mutually beneficial ways. That’s the purpose of the Monica Motivates Sixth Annual Global Supplier Diversity Conference (GSDC). We bring large and small companies together and teach them how to work with one another across borders and cultures for maximum benefit on both sides. The 2023 GSDC is September 21, live in London and streaming live worldwide.
Good for big business
When large companies commit to increasing the use of woman-owned and diverse-owned businesses as vendors, they send a clear message to stakeholders that they are serious about ESG and DEI commitments. They also reap benefits to their processes and bottom line, such as:
- Access to more innovative products and services.
- Access to potential new markets and clients, including those in parts of the world where they currently have little or no presence.
- Collaboration with agile vendors who can pivot quickly to meet changing needs.
- Supply chain flexibility and resilience with less reliance on just a few prominent vendors.
- Increased competition in the supply base that facilitates higher quality and potentially decreases costs.
- The ability to tap into emerging technologies and practices often pioneered by smaller start-ups.
Great for small businesses, too
Working with the big guys can also benefit small, diverse suppliers in many ways, such as:
- Opening doors to new markets and providing entre to global business opportunities.
- Securing larger contracts with greater efficiencies and margins.
- Increased visibility, networking, and referrals.
- Gaining new business that drives growth and can increase impact in local communities and among marginalized populations.
GSDC spurs mutual understanding
The key to realizing the many benefits of supplier diversity programs is to increase the level of understanding between the players. Small suppliers must understand how to compete for large contracts and how large organizations operate. They must expect longer lead times working with big companies and be careful about over-committing products and services or deadlines they cannot realistically meet.
Similarly, large organizations must understand the challenges small business owners face and the types of support they will need to serve them best. Corporations with the most vibrant supplier diversity programs often invest in their small business partners to actively help them scale to meet their needs and increase their impact in their communities.
The sixth annual Monica Motivates full-day Global Supplier Diversity Conference (GSDC), September 21, 2023, is designed to launch new vendor partnerships worldwide and increase the number of successful small business suppliers. This business-expanding event will feature expert speakers who are senior leaders from major companies, as well as small business owners and entrepreneurial experts. Participants will learn how to:
- Build a strong presence and position in their field so companies can easily find them.
- Understand and articulate their value proposition and connect it to the needs of specific companies.
- Make data-driven decisions.
- Compete effectively in the RFP process.
- Forge strategic partnerships that fulfill the interests of both organizations.
- Scale their business beyond local markets.
- Activate a strategic framework to close deals.
Applying the strategies and networking shared at the GSDC will give you the framework to take advantage of exciting opportunities unfolding for diverse suppliers and scale your business to the next level.
Register Now!
Our impressive roster of speakers includes senior executives from multi-national organizations with a broad range of expertise. This year’s speakers include Pauline Miller, Chief Equity Officer, EMEA, denstu; Jo Portlock, VP of Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging for Lexis Nexis Risk Solutions; Sarah Fidment, Professor of Leadership and Management at the Manchester Metropolitan Business School; Mike Sealy, VP of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion for Informa Markets; and Felicia M. Warren, Team Lead, CDC, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
REGISTER now for in-person attendance in London (The Orchard, Level 8, 1 Great Cumberland Place London W1H 7AL) or via live streaming.