WBENC Announces America's Top Corporations for WBEs of 2006

16 Corporations Attain World-Class Status in Supplier Diversity

Washington, March 1, 2007 — On the threshold of its second decade as the leading advocate for women’s business enterprises (WBEs) as suppliers to the nation’s corporations, the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC) today announced its annual listing of America’s Top Corporations for Women’s Business Enterprises, the only national award honoring corporations for world-class supplier diversity programs.    

The 2006 award recognizes 16 corporations for their companywide programs offering equal access for WBEs in competing for, and winning, corporate contracts for goods and services. The corporations are:

AT&T
Avis Budget Group, Inc.
Bank of America
BellSouth Corporation
Chevron Corporation
The Coca-Cola Company
Exxon Mobil Corporation
IBM Corporation
Johnson & Johnson
Office Depot
PepsiCo, Inc.
Pfizer Inc
Shell Oil Company
TXU Corp.
UPS
Verizon

“These companies are leaders in enriching the value chain by working with innovative and highly competitive women’s business enterprises,” said WBENC Interim President Linda Denny.  “By leveling the playing field for women’s businesses across their organizations, they are rewarded with outstanding products and services that benefit their customers and their shareholders.”

The America’s Top Corporations for Women’s Business Enterprises Breakfast and Awards presentation will take place on Friday, March 30, 2007, in Dallas, Texas. The event will be the culmination of a series of WBENC 10th Anniversary celebrations, including the 2007 Salute to Women’s Business Enterprises: The Enterprising Economy and the 2007 WBENC Founders’ Dinner on March 28.

TXU Corp., UPS, and the new AT&T (1) , including its predecessor companies, have been recognized by WBENC every year since the award was created eight years ago. Avis Budget Group, Inc. and Chevron Corporation, including its predecessor companies, have each won the award seven times.  Office Depot and PepsiCo, Inc. have each won six times; and Bank of America and Shell Oil Company have each won five times. IBM Corporation has won four times.

“This consistency of excellence demonstrates that once a company embeds best practices in its organization and its culture, it can sustain and enhance its success year after year,” Denny added.

Women Beating the Odds

A 2006 benchmarking study commissioned by WBENC and conducted by the Center for Women’s Business Research found that women-owned businesses are beating the industry average of keeping and growing corporate contracts. The results revealed that 40 percent of WBENC’s corporate members increased their spending by at least 10 percent over the last three years with women-owned firms, compared with 24 percent of corporate members who increased their spending with suppliers overall. 

The study found that women’s business enterprises were also losing less when budgets are cut or the supply chain tightened. On average, 24.5 percent of corporations decreased their spending with suppliers, but only 14 percent cut contracts with women-owned providers, the study said.  

There are 7.7 million majority-women-owned firms, or those with 51 percent ownership by women, employing 7.1 million people and generating $1.1 trillion in sales, according to the Center for Women’s Business Research. Over the past two decades, majority-women-owned firms have continued to grow at around two times the rate of all firms.

In addition to the March celebrations, WBENC provides resources and business-building matchmaking and networking opportunities for corporations and women’s business enterprises. 

WBENC will present its national conference and business fair, Women in Business 2007: Launching a New Decade, on June 25-28, in Los Angeles, California.  This is the nation’s largest conference and business fair for WBEs and is expected to attract more than 2,500 participants this year. 

About the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC):

• Founded in 1997, WBENC is the nation’s leading third-party certifier of businesses owned and operated by women, and the leading advocate of women’s business enterprises (WBEs) as suppliers to corporate America.
• The average WBENC certified company has revenues of $7.7M, 45 employees and 14 years of experience.
• Approximately 50 WBE firms have revenues in excess of $100M, and six certified WBE companies have revenues in excess of $1 billion.
• 238 U.S. corporations are active members of WBENC and representatives of 36 corporations sit on the WBENC Board of Directors, along with nine representatives of its partner organizations and nine WBEs.
• WBENC certification is accepted by more than 700 corporations, representing America’s most prestigious brands, as well as government entities at the state, local and Federal levels.
• WBENC also has developed several highly regarded initiatives for recognizing excellence in corporate supplier diversity targeting WBEs (America’s Top Corporations for Women’s Business Enterprises, The WBENC Applause Awards) and women’s business enterprises (WBENC’s Woman-Owned Business Stars).
• WEBuy@wbenc.org is an online marketplace where corporations and government agencies, as well as WBEs, post RFPs, sources sought, and RFIs.
• WBENC is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that seeks and accepts donations from corporations, foundations and individuals that support its mission and programs. 
• WBENCLink is an Internet database, accessed by WBENC corporate members and certified women's business enterprises (WBEs), which contains information on certified women's businesses for purchasing managers nationwide.

For more information, contact info@wbenc.org or visit our website at www.wbenc.org.

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For press inquiries, please contact Lynthia Romney at RomneyCom, WBENC's national press consultant at
romneycom@aol.com or (914) 238-2145.