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October 16, 2024

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GMSDC helps grow Georgia’s thriving minority businesses

By Georgia Minority Supplier Development Council

For the fourth time, Atlanta — “The ‘City Too Busy to Hate” — is hosting National Minority Supplier Development Council Inc.’s (NMSDC’s) Annual Conference & Exchange. This year’s event takes place Oct. 20-23.

Ranked the No. 1 state for business for a decade by Area Development magazine, Georgia has seen substantial growth in business startups, entrepreneurial activity, minority business development and corporate diverse spend over the years. Founded in 1965, Area Development magazine is considered the leading executive magazine covering corporate site selection and relocation.

The Georgia Minority Supplier Development Council (GMSDC) — the NMSDC affiliate council for the Peach State — has likewise enjoyed an unprecedented run of achievement, growth and recognition that coincides with the state’s long run as No. 1 for business. It is no coincidence that both the state of Georgia and Georgia MSDC are experiencing such sustained excellence.

GMSDC is one of the leading affiliate councils in the NMSDC network, headquartered in a city that has the highest percentage of Black-owned businesses in a metropolitan area in the nation, according to financial platform LendingTree LLC. The Atlanta area is a thriving, highly diverse region that has practiced supplier diversity at the highest levels for more than 50 years.

Atlanta pioneered municipal supplier diversity with its Equal Business Opportunity (EBO) Program in the 1970s, which required 35% minority participation in city contracts. EBO set the tone for similar programs in other cities and laid the foundation for a culture of inclusion and opportunity that spread to the corporations that call Georgia home.

Today, the GMSDC community is comprised of more than 400 corporate partners and 1,300 minority business enterprises or MBEs that do $11 billion in revenue annually and project an economic impact of more than $20 billion across the state.

Stacey J. Key, president and CEO of GMSDC, has been at the helm since 2008. A veteran leader with executive experience at blue chip corporations and the former owner of an entrepreneurial family business for 15 years, she brought a unique perspective to the role. Having been on both sides of the supply chain equation — as both a purchaser and a supplier — she understands the subtleties of the relationship better than most.

In just a few short years, she helped turn around an office that was struggling to recover from the sudden passing of her predecessor and led a complete transformation that put GMSDC on a firm foundation for success. Thanks to her visionary leadership and a dynamic, talented team, she has presided over a sustained period of growth, expansion and productivity unparalleled in the Council’s nearly 50 years of existence.

“A culture of teamwork, camaraderie and outside-the-box collaboration fuels the spirit of excellence that drives GMSDC,” Key said. “We have been named NMSDC’s Council of the Year three times in the last 12 years, most recently in 2022.”

The companies whose leaders founded GMSDC in 1975 — AT&T, The Coca-Cola Co., Cox Communications, Delta Air Lines, Southern Co. and MeadWestvaco (now WestRock) — have all remained active supporters of the Council 50 years later and are dedicated advocates for its vision of inclusive procurement. Corporate Georgia is fully in step with the Council’s leadership team, frequently hosting opportunity discussions and “How to Do Business With” sessions designed to share upcoming requirements with the MBE community. When there is a need inside the GMSDC ecosystem — for volunteers, sponsorship, leadership development or in-kind support — the corporate side of the family always steps up.

“At Truist, our mission is to ensure our suppliers reflect who we are as a community and company. By partnering with organizations like the Georgia Minority Supplier Development Council, we are able to fulfill this mission and create lasting impact where it matters most,” said Lissa Miller, senior vice president, chief supplier diversity and sustainability officer at Truist Financial Corp., and former GMSDC chairman.

For any affiliate council to be successful, the engagement, certification and development of MBEs cannot take a back seat. A thriving business community — and its economic potential — depends on the presence of skilled, knowledgeable, adaptable and innovative suppliers. These are the companies that can quickly meet client demands and deliver exceptional results.

Georgia is home to some of the finest MBE firms in the nation, winners of awards and recognition both on the national stage and within NMSDC. On more than one occasion, GMSDC suppliers have repeatedly been honored as NMSDC Regional Suppliers of the Year, with some taking home National Supplier of the Year awards. Many of Georgia’s Class III and IV suppliers have ascended from Classes I and II in the past three to four years, a promising indicator of the state’s economic future.

A key component to GMSDC’s success is its educational nonprofit arm, Georgia Education Foundation Inc. It plays a pivotal role in fostering the growth and development of small and minority businesses through its cornerstone programs. These include the Georgia Mentor Protégé Connection, which pairs emerging businesses with experienced corporate mentors; Community Business Development Program, focused on building local entrepreneurial capacity; and Minority Business Internship Program, which provides hands-on experience to the next generation of minority business leaders. Together, these initiatives empower businesses with the tools and guidance they need to thrive in today’s competitive market.

The scope of the work of GMSDC extends far beyond the standard evaluations of revenue, diverse spend and economic impact data. The U.S. economy has long been driven by small business — the true engine of the American economy. While large corporations often have large numbers of employees, they still cannot compete with the aggregate of small companies nationwide. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration Office of Advocacy, small businesses employ 61.7 million Americans, totaling 46.4% of private sector employees. From 1995 to 2021, small businesses created 17.3 million net new jobs, accounting for 62.7% of net jobs created since 1995.

 In Georgia, the minority businesses served by GMSDC play a significant role in the state’s economic fortunes, which is among the reasons the state stays on top in business climate rankings.

In addition to her day-to-day leadership duties, Key has expanded her sphere of influence to better advocate for the GMSDC community. She is a frequent speaker and panelist on a variety of platforms, sharing her expertise on inclusive procurement, supplier readiness and all things diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI). She supports her community by serving on the State Transportation Board which is governed by the Georgia Department of Transportation.

GMSDC and others helped shine a spotlight on a dramatic disparity between the percentage of state contracts awarded to minorities and the population representation of minorities in Georgia, helping to spearhead Gov. Brian Kemp’s Executive Order 07.13.22.01 increasing outreach to Georgia-based small businesses across the state, with a focus on minority-owned, women-owned and veteran-owned businesses, and providing access to state purchasing opportunities, education and business support services.

In response to continued issues in critical areas of finance like access to capital and business credit worthiness, GMSDC launched an annual Financial Summit, with workshops, keynotes and one-on-one sessions with lenders — all designed to increase financial acumen among MBEs.

As Georgia prepares to play host to the supplier-diversity world at the Georgia World Congress Center, there is much to be learned from the sustained excellence and ongoing successes of Georgia MSDC. With state government renewing its commitment to invest in economic development, a strong economy showing no signs of slowing and an abundance of small and minority suppliers who are ready to serve, Georgia is on a positive arc toward a long-term position of national leadership. What most might not know is what a pivotal role GMSDC — and its members and constituents — play in the achievement of that status.

GMSDC is a less well-known — but no less important — element of Georgia’s success equation, and that is a legacy worth pointing out. There is a legitimate reason why Georgia is on everyone’s mind.

To learn more about GMSDC, visit gmsdc.org.