Corporate and Government Procurement Offices Target a Portion of Their Business to Womanowned Suppliers. Want In?

By Wendy Lyons Sunshine

Without any furniture-industry background or business-management experience, Rebecca Boenigk and her mother, Jaye Congleton, launched Neutral Posture from their Bryan, Texas, garage.

“Mom put in $30,000, and I put in $20,000, and the first two years neither one of us took a salary,” says Boenigk. The women manufactured and sold innovative office chairs designed by Boenigk’s dad, an ergonomics expert.

After a few years, Neutral Posture employees were handling orders from clients such as Intel and United Parcel Service. To further expand the company’s marketing opportunities, CEO Boenigk submitted the paperwork to get

Neutral Posture certified as woman-owned by the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC).

The certification really showed its power when Boenigk started attending WBENC networking events. Suddenly, she was mingling with representatives of corporations she had been pursuing for years. Doors began opening.

“I called the gentleman from Texas Instruments who I had met at WBENC,” says Boenigk, “and he got me in to meet with the company’s procurement manager.” Six months later, Neutral Posture signed a contract with TI. Its value? A quarter of a million dollars.

Although certification cannot guarantee sales, it does provide opportunities. Certification has been the key for Boenigk’s company to gain access to corporate diversity procurement programs. Her company’s bottom line continues to grow as a result.

Corporate and government procurement offices—from city up to federal—target a portion of their business to qualified woman-owned suppliers. Before making a purchase, their purchasing agents typically want to confirm the supplier’s certification.

The basic requirement for WBE (women’s business enterprise) certification is that a woman own and control at least 51 percent of a genuine, established company, and that the employees recognize her as their company leader. Although an application costs only a few hundred dollars, the process can be daunting to entrepreneurs who cherish their privacy.

Applicants must submit a wide range of supporting documents, such as corporate filings, business history, tax records, personal assets and bank statements, all of which are kept confidential. There is also an on-site visit to verify the material.

A variety of organizations can provide WBE certification, but it’s important to know which specific certification is recognized by your target market.

For example, certifications offered by National Women Business Owners Corporation™ (www.nwboc.org) and Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (www.wbenc.org) are often accepted by buyers at Fortune

1,000 businesses. On the other hand, government-buying programs usually want their sellers to have a regional, state, or federal certification. A phone call to your regional economic development center can usually help clarify your specific certification options.

Annette Taddeo, president & CEO of Language Speak in Miami, Florida, is glad she went through the paperwork.

Thanks to her WBE certification, Taddeo’s translation firm won major contracts with Office Depot and ING Financial Services. The firm’s sales now exceed $3 million.

“It’s the best investment I ever made,” says Taddeo of certification. “It paid off tremendously.”