|
|
Kathryn Eshelman, President and Co-Founder of Columbus,
OH-based Grade A Notes and Owner and Co-Founder of PatrioticJewelry.com, and
Rebecca Congleton Boenigk, CEO and Chairman of the Board of Bryan, TX-based
Neutral Posture, Inc., have been appointed to three-year terms on the National
Women's Business Council.
Eshelman will represent the Women Presidents’
Organization (WPO), of which she is a charter member. In addition to her
contributions to WPO, Eshelman has participated in several women’s
entrepreneurship events, including a panel discussion during the Women’s
Entrepreneurship in the 21st Century Summit hosted by the U.S. Department of
Labor in March 2004. She has over 20 years experience in the business, civic
and political communities.
In 1989, Boenigk and her mother Jaye Congleton started
Neutral Posture, a leading manufacturer of ergonomic seating, in her garage.
She has received numerous awards, including 2005 SBA Small Business Person of
the Year for the State of Texas and the 2002 Office Depot Business Woman of
the Year, and sits on the boards of several women’s business organizations.
Boenigk is a frequent speaker at women’s business events and is featured in
the new book “The Martha Rules: 10 Essentials for Achieving Success as You
Start, Grow or Manage a Business” by Martha Stewart.
Click
here to learn more about Kathryn Eshelman or Rebecca Boenigk.
Return to Top
Earlier this month, the NWBC launched a redesigned
web site to assist women-owned businesses with federal government
contracting. The web site,
www.womenbiz.gov, provides valuable information and tips specifically
targeted to women-owned businesses. With links to many other government
procurement resources, the redesigned Womenbiz.gov web site serves as a
first stop for women business owners interested in doing business with the
federal government.
“Government contracts can be a great source of
business revenue for both new and established businesses,” said NWBC
Executive Director Margaret Barton. “The redesigned Womenbiz.gov will help
women business owners understand the government procurement process and
learn how to navigate it successfully.”
Return to Top
The National Women’s Business Council recently
published a report highlighting best practices in federal procurement
assistance programs offered by federal agencies through their Offices of
Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization (OSDBU). The report, “Best
Practices in Federal Procurement: A Study of the Successes and Barriers for
Women-Owned Business,” is based on interviews with OSDBU offices and women
business owners and includes recommendations intended to improve outreach
and procurement practices within federal government agencies.
With this new report, the Council offers policy makers
and government agencies a detailed analysis of current outreach efforts as
well as recommendations for improving federal contracting assistance
programs in the future. Some of the best practices identified in the
study include vendor outreach sessions, where program and procurement
officials meet directly with small businesses, increased use of technology,
including nationwide conference calls and video conferencing, and regional
meetings and training for small businesses seeking procurement
opportunities. The report also serves as a guide for women business
owners interested in federal contracting.
Click
here to download the full report and executive summary. To request a
copy of the report via email, please contact NWBC at 202-205-3850 or
info@nwbc.gov.
Return to Top
The National Women’s
Business Council recently updated several fact sheets on the growth of
minority women-owned businesses based on numbers from the 2004 U.S. Census.
The new data from the U.S. Census Bureau, in addition to data from the Center
for Women’s Business Research, indicate that there has been considerable
growth in firms owned by African American, Latina, Asian American, and Native
American/Alaska Native women since the fact sheets were first issued in 2002.
The updated fact sheets are available on NWBC’s
web site.
Return to Top
The National Women's Business Council will host a Web
Cast on September 12 to discuss the policy priorities of women business
owners. During the event, Council members and other policy leaders will
address public policies affecting women-owned businesses and the outlook in
Congress. This event, being held in Washington, DC, will also be broadcast
live over the Internet. The NWBC web site will be updated shortly with
additional information, including time, location and log-in instructions.
Please contact the National Women's Business Council at 202-205-3850 or
info@nwbc.gov with any questions about the upcoming Web Cast.
Return to Top
NWBC’s Executive Director
Margaret Barton attended the “Contacts to Contracts” Conference hosted by
the Women’s Business
Enterprise National Council (WBENC) in Miami, Florida, June 25-29.
Founded in 1997, WBENC is the largest third-party certifier of businesses
owned and operated by women in the U.S. WBENC’s President Susan Bari serves
on the Council.
Over 3,000 women business
owners certified by WBENC attended the conference seeking contacts and
contracts with participating suppliers, such as Home Depot, Coca-Cola,
Target, Toyota, and Microsoft. The conference program included speakers,
panel discussions, workshops and matchmaking opportunities.
While at the conference,
Barton met with leaders in the women’s business community, angel investors,
and suppliers, as well as women business owners who are just starting out.
“This conference provided something for every stage of women-owned business
growth in a stimulating and supportive environment,” said Barton. “While
getting certified as a women-owned business is not always required to win
contracts, this conference clearly indicates that gaining certification can
provide a leg-up to many women entrepreneurs.”
Return to Top
For the third year, the National Women’s Business
Council sponsored the Best Paper Award for Women’s Entrepreneurship at the
2006 International Council
for Small Business World Conference in Melbourne, Australia.
Presented June 21 by former NWBC Executive Director Julie Weeks, the award
went to Dr. Eleanor Shaw from the University of Strathclyde Business
School (Glasgow, UK), Dr. Wing Lam from the University of Central
Lancashire (Lancashire, UK), Professor Sara Carter from the University of
Stirling (Stirling, UK), and Professor Fiona Wilson from the University of
Glasgow (Glasgow, UK) for their paper Theory, Practice and Policy: An
Integrated View on Gender, Networks and Social Capital. Founded in
1955, ICSB was the first international membership organization to promote
the growth and development of small businesses worldwide. For more
information, visit
www.icsb.org.
Return to Top
On July 10, Steven C. Preston was sworn in as the 22nd
administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA) after being confirmed
by the U.S. Senate last month. Preston succeeds Hector V. Barreto, who
stepped down after serving the SBA for five years to become the national
chairman of The Latino Coalition, a well-known Hispanic advocacy organization
based in Washington, D.C.
Preston comes to the SBA from Downers Grove, Illinois, where
he has been Executive Vice-President for ServiceMaster, a home-services
company which owns Merry Maids, Terminix, and TruGreen ChemLawn. He has also
previously served as ServiceMaster’s Chief Financial Officer, the Senior
Vice-President and Treasurer of First Data Corporation, and as an investment
banker at Lehman Brothers.
Return to Top
|
|
