Today marks the first day of Black History Month. It is a significant time for us to reflect on Black Americans’ too-often neglected impact and achievements across U.S. history and society.
Moreover, it provides us a fresh reminder to take stock of where systemic racism persists and seize the opportunity to create fundamental changes. At NMSDC, we drive change by serving as a growth engine for NMSDC certified MBEs, and by being a strong voice for communities of color.
This Thursday, February 3, 2022, at 10 a.m. (EST), I will be providing congressional testimony to the U.S. House Financial Services Subcommittee on Diversity & Inclusion in a hearing titled “Building Opportunity: Addressing the Financial Barriers to Minority and Women-Owned Businesses’ Involvement in Infrastructure Projects.” I will be advocating for Access to Contracts and Access to Capital for our MBEs because we believe every business deserves an unbiased chance.
Please click here to join me for this critical discussion.
Today also rings in the Lunar New Year and kicks off the Year of the Tiger in my culture. The tiger is commonly known for courage, strength, generosity, a desire to help others, and being a force to seek justice. The Year of the Tiger is a year of profound significance for NMSDC as we celebrate our 50th anniversary and set a strategic direction for the next 50 years. We will have the courage, strength, and tenacity to elevate our MBEs, and we will be the force to enable our members to advance economic equity.
In mid and late February, I will be hosting webinars to share our strategic plan and seek your support and engagement. One week ago, at our annual board retreat, our board members dedicated their time to help us activate our strategic plan. Focus areas included technology enablement, public policy and thought leadership, branding, funding leadership, and the Journey to $1 Trillion in MBE revenue. We look forward to sharing with you their recommendations in the upcoming webinars.
We will also be sharing reimagined events and programming to celebrate our 50th year of driving economic equity. Please look out for your Webinar invite late next week and click here to view our 2022 Calendar of Events.
Let’s make history together as we celebrate Black History Month and Happy New Year of the Tiger!!!
Ying McGuire
Best Regards,
Ying
CEO & President
NMSDC
