Candace Waterman

Women Impacting Public Policy

President and CEO

Candace Waterman is President and CEO of Women Impacting Public Policy (WIPP). With over 35 years of experience, spanning across both the private and public sector; she has owned three successful companies in the medical, real estate and hospitality industries; and worked as an executive for the ambulatory services division of a hospital system in Michigan overseeing OB-GYN, hematology, radiology and oncology operations and programs.

In her current role, she heads the leading national non-partisan policy organization on the Hill for women in business. Serving as the voice for the over 12 million women owned companies in the U.S., she works in a bipartisan manner with lawmakers to impact and influence policy that provides economic equity, procurement inclusion and access to the global marketplace.

Prior to joining WIPP, Candace served as the Vice President and Chief of Staff for the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC), the nation’s leading third-party certifier of Women’s Business Enterprises (WBEs) and Woman Owned Small Businesses (WOSBs). During her tenure at WBENC, she was responsible for effective operational management of all WBENC CORE processes and specifically, served as the SME globally, for the WBENC WBE and WOSB certification programs. Under Candace’s leadership, her team implemented the digitization of WBENCs certification program, one of the largest projects in WBENCs history.

Additionally, she worked to achieve acceptance of WBENC’s certification by government entities across the U.S.; and assisted in driving initiatives and policies which affect international certification.

Currently serving as a U.S. Delegate of the W20, Candace is recognized as a global thought leader and subject matter expert. Her commitment to diversity, inclusion and operational excellence has earned her numerous awards and recognition including 2019 WBE Hall of Fame Recipient and the 2019 Top Executives in Diversity. Additionally, she has held seats on the American Contract Compliance Association (ACCA) Board of Directors and the Essence Entrepreneurial Advisory Council for Essence Magazine.