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McKissack & McKissack Notches Leading Role on $7 Billion JFK Terminal One Also in this issue Ebony Construction Still Going and Growing
Risco Champions Diversity and Mobility at TARC Watson Inspires Passion and Action as ACCA Board Member Attacks on Affirmative Action
Erby’s Perseverance Drives Creation of St. Louis County MWBE Program / FALL 2019
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Your Career Journey Begins with Us The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA) offers small businesses and job seekers a place to grow. The Department of Supplier Diversity is strongly committed to maximizing the inclusion of small businesses in MWAA's contracting opportunities. To learn more about small business certifications, outreach events, current and upcoming contracting opportunities, the Airports Authority Small Business University, and conducting business with the Airports Authority, please visit http://www.mwaa.com/supplierdiversity.
Reagan National Airport
Dulles International Airport
We hope you will choose to start your career journey with us! We believe in diversity, our workforce is our strength, comprised of an array of backgrounds, cultures and interests which only makes us stronger. We offer a competitive total rewards package. Join our team: http://www.mwaa.com/careers. Dulles Corridor Metrorail
MWAA.COM Your Journey Begins with Us Dulles Toll Road
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Our buildings change skylines. Our people change lives. Turner was the first major construction firm to establish a full time community outreach department within its organization during the early 1960s, with the major goal of raising the economic viability of traditionally under-represented businesses. In 2018 Turner awarded $1.64B in volume and 3380 contracts to under-represented businesses.
650 individuals graduated from the Turner School of Construction
Management in 2018. This nationally recognized training program is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. The program helps UBE’s build networks, establish joint venture partnerships, and form long-lasting relationships.
www.turnerconstruction.com
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Features
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McKissack & McKissack Notches Leading Role on $7 Billion JFK Terminal One
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Risco Champions Inclusion and Mobility at TARC By Sarah Magargee
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Watson Inspires Passion and Action as ACCA Leader Attacks on Affirmative Action and Inclusion By Colette Holt, J.D. & Joanne Lubart, J.D.
DBE Power Player
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Ebony Construction Still Going and Still Growing By Jordan Taylor
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DBE Program Spotlight
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Erby’s Perseverance Drives Creation of St. Louis County MWBE Program
Transportation
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Airports
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Transit
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Civil/Highway
RDU Airport Recruiting DBE & ACDBE Firms as Part of Vision 2040 Program
CTA Launches ‘CTA Building Small Businesses Program’
Omishakin in Rarefied Air as New Director of Caltrans
Business Development
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Do You Know Your ROI on Training? By Carolyn Milliron
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18 Fall 2019 Volume V - Issue 4 Publisher Shelton A. Russell
Branding Campaigns
Managing Editors PR PROS, LLC
Crisis Communication
Copywriting & Editing Graphic Design & Layout
Creative Director Pan II Creative
Media Coaching & Training Public Relations & Media Relations
Digital Media Premier Web Design Solutions
Research & Strategic Planning Social Media Management
Editorial Colette Holt, J.D. & Joanne Lubart, J.D. Sarah Magargee Carolyn Milliron Philip D. Russell Jordan Taylor
Strategic Communication Video Production Services
Headquarters 514 Daniels Street, #186 Raleigh, NC 27605 Website www.AmericanDBE.com About American DBE Magazine American DBE Magazine is the premier industry resource for individuals and stakeholders who work within the federal Disadvantaged Business Enterprises program administration. American DBE Magazine is published quarterly and distributed in all 50 states — plus Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands — to DBE program administrators, business owners, and professionals in the Aviation, Highway Construction and Public Transit industries.
Subscriptions American DBE Magazine is published quarterly in Fall, Winter, Spring and Summer editions. The annual subscription rate is $24.99 including online editions, special industry reports, and four issues: single copy list price is $6.99 plus postage originating from Raleigh, North Carolina.
Advertisting Sales editor@AmericanDBE.com (919) 741-5233 (Office)
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Upcoming National Events Transportation Research Board (TRB) 99th Annual Meeting January 12–16, 2020; Washington, D.C. http://www.trb.org/AnnualMeeting/AnnualMeeting.aspx
Airport Minority Advisory Council (AMAC) 2020 Airport Business Diversity Conference June 23 – 26, 2020; Atlanta, GA https://amac-org.com/annualconference/info/
National Assoc. of Black Women in Construction (NABWIC) 2020 Annual Meeting January 22-25, 2020; Atlanta, Georgia https://nabwic.org/page/Events
Conference of Minority Transportation Officials (COMTO) 49th National Meeting and Training Conference July 18-21, 2020; Hollywood, Fl https://members.comtonational.org/page/2020-conference
Associated General Contractors (AGC) 2020 AGC Annual Convention March 9-12, 2020; Las Vegas, NV https://convention.agc.org/
American Contract Compliance Association (ACCA) National Training Institute August 25-30, 2020; San Antonio, TX http://accaweb.org/nti/2020nti.html
Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) ABC Convention 2020 March 23-25, 2020; Nashville, TN http://abcconvention.abc.org/Key-Events
American Public Transportation Association (APTA) TRANSform Conference & Expo 2020 October 11-14, 2020; Anaheim, CA https://www.apta.com/conferences-events/future-meetings/
American Association of Airport Executives (AAAE) 92nd Annual AAAE Conference & Exposition May 10-13, 2020; Denver, CO https://www.aaae.org/aaae/200501/Default.aspx
American Association of Highway Transportation Officials (AASHTO) 2020 AASHTO Annual Meeting November 4-8, 2020; Baltimore, MD https://meetings.transportation.org/overview/ 2020-aashto-annual-meeting/
Helping Small Business Move Forward
How We Help • • • • • •
Bonding Education Program Women & Girls in Transportation Initiative DBE Certifications Procurement Assistance Capital Access Program Counseling and Technical Assistance
South Atlantic Region
DC Metro Area • Kentucky • North Carolina • Virginia • West Virginia
For additional information contact: Alyssa Mako, Project Director amako@TheInstituteNC.org (919) 956-2331 U.S. Department of Transportation Small Business Transportation Resource Center
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www.TheInstituteNC.org
HAMPTON ROADS BRIDGE TUNNEL EXPANSION
REGISTER ONLINE vakickoff2020.eventbrite.com
US DOT PROGRAM
The Bonding Education Program (BEP) is a collaboration between the U.S. Department of Transportation (US DOT), Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT), and the Hampton Roads Connector Partners, designed to help DBE and SWaM businesses become bond-ready.
KICK-OFF MEETING: JAN 14, 2020, 9:00 a.m.—Noon BEP CLASS DATES: FEB 4, 6, 11 & 13, 8:30 a.m.—1 pm VDOT Hampton Roads District Office 7511 Burbage Drive Suffolk, VA 23435
BENEFITS OF PARTICIPATING One-on-one meeting with bonding agent Connections with industry experts Professional advice to strengthen your business Learn about upcoming opportunities on the Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel Expansion Project NO cost to attend FOR MORE INFORMATION: Alyssa Mako, Project Director amako@TheInstituteNC.org (919) 956-2331
/ FALL 2019
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From the publisher
From Tokenism to Diversity & Inclusion “True diversity changes the culture and personality of any organization, as it should...”
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e have reached the time in America to retire statements that begin with “the first” as it relates to Diversity & Inclusion. Statements beginning with this phrase were exciting and inspiring in the 20th century. Seeing the first black CEO of a major corporation, or the first woman board member of a national organization, or the first Hispanic executive of a government agency were signs of progress and success in the last century; now they are signs of resistance since more than 55 years have gone by since the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The struggle of the first part of the 21st century has been and continues to be diversity vs. tokenism. The challenge is present in all aspects of our society. In entertainment, most television shows or movies will have one or two diverse characters in a supporting or sidekick role – cue the black or brown high school friend or administrative assistant. In government and business, the one woman and/or one black senior-level position has become a 2030% target for diversity in leadership. In these instances, the goal is to give the appearance of diversity, while not disturbing the tone, tenor and agenda of the organization as it stands.
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In the minds of too many leaders, substantial diversity changes the dynamic and control of an organization in a manner that is unacceptable to those currently in power. However, the societal pressures faced by these leaders – and their own desire to “feel better” about themselves – lead them to use tokenism as a panacea, by strategically placing a few diverse individuals in honorary leadership positions, oftentimes with no real power or authority to effect change. This strategy allows the organization to avoid the wrath of being labeled racist or sexist, while maintaining the status quo of how the organization functions. True diversity changes the culture and personality of any organization, as it should. It creates a noticeable difference in how the organization behaves, due to the inclusion of voices, perspectives and ideas that were previously silenced or excluded. A truly diverse organization looks different, acts differently and creates different results than an organization where tokenism is the only objective. This issue of American DBE shares a cover story on McKissack and McKissack, a company founded in 1905 by Moses McKissack III, the first African American licensed architect in the United States. The company is currently led by Cheryl McKissack Daniel, his great granddaughter. McKissack & McKissack has evolved through generations to become a leading program and construction management firm in the New York City market and is serving as the lead program management consultant on the $7 billion Terminal One
Redevelopment at John F. Kennedy International Airport. This issue also highlights the work of Ferdinand Risco, CEO of the Transit Authority of River City (TARC) in Louisville, Kentucky. Risco rose through the transit ranks and served as executive director of the Office of Diversity and Inclusion at the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) before moving to an executive leadership role at TARC. He was appointed as CEO in 2019, after the former CEO retired. Another story in this issue profiles the determination of former St. Louis County, Missouri, council member Hazel Erby. She spent more than a decade pushing St. Louis County to establish a program to include minority- and woman-owned businesses in county procurement activities. Her results were ultimately successful and prove that bringing about civil rights sometimes requires struggle to make it a reality. There are many more great stories in this issue highlighting people and organizations addressing the challenge of moving past tokenism to true diversity and inclusion in society. I hope you enjoy this issue of American DBE!
Best regards, Shelton A. Russell, Publisher
+ 2018 - Professional Women’s magazine Best of the Best Top Supplier Diversity Programs + 2018 - NMSDC Corporation of the Year award, Class I runner-up + 2018 - TSMSDC Champion of the Year Award presented to Stan Williams, Messer Vice President, Chief Inclusion and Diversity Officer
Regional Impact. National Success. Building better communities is a key part of Messer’s purpose. We are committed to creating economic opportunities for Minority- and Women-Owned Business Enterprises (M/WBEs) across all 10 of our regions in the Midwest and Southeast.
+ Driving company purchases with M/WBEs
In 2018, Messer spent $154 million — more than 17% of our purchases — with certified M/WBE businesses.
+ Nationally-recognized best practices
To find out how you can register your organization as a subcontractor, visit messer.com/subcontractors/diverse-suppliers
+ Dedicated resources for strategic relationships
Building better lives for our customers, communities and each other
@messerwearebldg @messerei messer.com
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FEATURE
Cheryl McKissack Daniel, President & CEO, McKissack & McKissack, New York, NY (Photo credit: Regina Fleming Photography)
McKissack & McKissack Notches Leading Role on $7 Billion JFK Terminal One
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s McKissack & McKissack begins its leadership role providing project management oversight on the $7 billion Terminal One Redevelopment public-private partnership (P3) at John F. Kennedy International Airport, president and CEO Cheryl McKissack Daniel appreciates the journey that has brought McKissack & McKissack to this place in history. The McKissack & McKissack journey began as the first African American-owned architecture firm in America in 1905, when Moses McKissack III, Cheryl’s grandfather, started an architecture firm in Nashville, Tennessee, with his brother Calvin McKissack. Now, almost
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115 years later, the firm is still thriving under Cheryl’s leadership as a key member in the development of one of the largest airport projects in America. It’s fitting that a firm with this legacy has survived the challenges of entrepreneurship to become one of the largest African American-owned construction and project management firms in the country and a significant player in the rough and tumble New York City market. McKissack & McKissack’s success in the Big Apple personifies the iconic song lyric, ‘if you can make it there, you can make it anywhere … New York, New York!’
Cheryl McKissack purchased ownership of the Nashville-based McKissack & McKissack firm from her mother Leatrice McKissack in 2000 and merged the company with a similar firm she launched in her chosen hometown of New York City in 1991. At the time, she was commuting to Nashville to work alongside her mother in the family business and returning to New York on the weekends. The resulting business combined the history of the McKissack & McKissack name with the extensive opportunities of a large New York construction market. Although Cheryl says it has been a challenging task, she has directed the growth of the company as a fifth-generation leader; from working
Exterior rendering of JFK International Airport Terminal One Redevelopment
as a subcontractor to larger firms, to becoming a joint venture partner with larger firms, to now taking prime roles on major projects, like the Terminal One Redevelopment project. McKissack & McKissack’s latest milestone is leading the Project Management Office on the Terminal One project. “We are providing project management oversight,” McKissack said. The role includes the oversight of delivering the design and construction of the entire project to the developer and the New York/New Jersey Port Authority. The Terminal One Team represents a coalition of airlines, labor, minority- and women-owned businesses, and operating financial partners, including: The Carlyle Group, its dedicated airport platform; CAG Holdings; JLC Infrastructure; Ullico; and Munich Airport International. McKissack & McKissack is helping the P3 sponsors come to terms with the financial/commercial agreement and providing oversight of the design, construction and operations phases of the project. “It’s a big role for us and it is a game-changer for the company,” Cheryl said. Terminal One will be occupied by four airline partners united under the name Terminal One Group Association (TOGA). TOGA is a New York-based limited partnership that includes Air France, Japan Airlines, Korean Air and Lufthansa. The financial partners of the project are the Carlyle Group, CAG Holding, Ullico and JLC Infrastructure, an investment firm created by Magic Johnson Enterprises and Loop Capital Partners. Munich Airport International will operate the airport during the term of the P3 agreement.
McKissack & McKissack’s role on the Terminal One project also includes administration of the Minority and Women Business Enterprise (MWBE) program, with the goal of achieving significant participation from diverse firms in accordance with New York Governor Cuomo’s commitment to local diverse business inclusion. “Governor Cuomo has thrashed all the myths about minority participation in major infrastructure projects by insisting on a 30 percent standard throughout the project,” said JLC Infrastructure co-founder Earvin “Magic” Johnson in a Carlyle Group press release. “The old excuses – there are not enough minority contractors, not enough minority financing, not enough minority entrepreneurs – have all been tossed out the window with this project,” Johnson said.
Cheryl McKissack Daniel (right) meets with employees at a construction job site.
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also runs a successful construction and program management firm based in Washington, D.C., and her older sister Andrea is an interior designer. “I want to show women a different path and put a different face on architecture, engineering and construction,” Cheryl said. “I want to show that we’re not boring people and we have fun too. And you can build wealth.”
Interior rendering of the new Terminal One Redevelopment of John F. Kennedy International Airport
“We’re supporting TOGA to deliver a world-class travel experience,” said Peter Taylor, co-head of Carlyle’s global infrastructure fund. “TOGA has partnered with Labor and Minority- and Woman-owned Business Enterprises, including capacity building and training. TOGA’s MWBE goal is throughout the project, from engineering and architecture, to financial and legal as well as construction.” The project has already successfully achieved participation in the financing and project management aspects of the project. JLC Infrastructure is a Port Authority-certified minority-owned business and will provide a share of the financing for the project, while McKissack & McKissack provides significant minority participation to the project management team. PGAL, the lead designer, and AECOM Tishman, the lead contractor, are also well on the way to achieving at least 30% participation. The priority Terminal One has placed on minority- and woman-owned business inclusion fits squarely in the core values Cheryl has instilled in her firm. “I have a passion to employ the community and to have substantial MWBE participation on our projects,” she said. McKissack & McKissack has provided OSHA training to over 1,000 workers in Harlem because the training is required for employment on construction projects in New York City. The firm also makes
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it a practice to seek out opportunities to hire Hispanic and African-American workers to provide greater opportunity to underrepresented groups in the construction industry. “We’ve been able to impact our community in that way and we will continue to do that,” Cheryl said. Cheryl views the McKissack & McKissack role on the Terminal One project as confirmation that the strategy she started years ago to grow a firm in New York is working as planned. She also recognizes the difficulty MWBE firms face when trying to succeed. “Even with the legacy of the oldest architecture firm in the country, the early years were very much a struggle,” she said. “I truly feel for those companies that have to do it without the history to build upon.” As McKissack & McKissack has grown and matured in the New York market, Cheryl continues to make time to provide encouragement and mentoring for women considering careers in science, technology, engineering and math. Cheryl comes from a family of women in technical fields. While the first three generations of McKissacks in construction and architecture were men, the last two generations of family entrepreneurship have been led by women. Cheryl’s mother ran the company for 17 years after the passing of Cheryl’s father William DeBerry, before selling it to her. Cheryl’s twin sister, Deryl McKissack,
McKissack & McKissack now employs over 150 people and Cheryl values the impact she is making on the lives of her employees. “Our culture is one that allows everyone to reach their maximum potential within our framework,” she said. “We attract people and we keep them.” Cheryl also reflects on the journey the firm has traveled thus far and looks toward even greater accomplishments in the future. “It is really fulfilling now for me to be where we are; that the strategic plan worked,” she said. “To grow from being a subcontractor, to getting to know the New York market – which is extremely complicated when it comes to business, with a lot of moving parts and a lot of politics – makes me proud of where we are today.”
“Even with the legacy of the oldest architecture firm in the country, the early years were very much a struggle. I truly feel for those companies that have to do it without the history to build upon.” - Cheryl McKissack Daniel
SEEKING DIVERSE SUBCONTRACTORS & CONSULTANTS
FOR THREE INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS FAM Construction, LLC
Transform 66 Outside the Beltway, Northern Virginia
This project will transform 22.5 miles of Northern Virginia’s Interstate 66 between I-495/Capital Beltway and U.S. Route 29 in Gainesville, VA into a multimodal corridor. The $2.3 billion design-build project will build two new express lanes alongside three general purpose lanes in each direction; auxiliary lanes where necessary, major interchange improvements, new expanded park and ride lots with more than 4,000 spaces, and multiple segments of a corridor-wide shared use path. Contact dbeinfo@fam66.us for contracting opportunities or more information
North Perimeter Contractors, LLC
Interstate 285/SR 400, Atlanta, Georgia North Perimeter Contractors (NPC) was selected by the Georgia DOT and the State Road and Tollway Authority to design, build and partly finance the I-285/SR 400 project. The contract sum is approximately $457 million. NPC will rebuild the I-285/SR 400 interchange and make upgrades to the adjoining I-285 and SR 400 corridors. Contact npcdbeinfo@ferrovial.us for contracting opportunities or more information
Grand Parkway Infrastructure
Texas SH 99 Grand Parkway Segments H, I1 and I2, Houston, Texas TxDOT awarded the design-build contract for two segments of SH 99 Grand Parkway to Grand Parkway Infrastructure – a joint venture between Ferrovial Agroman, Webber LLC and Granite Construction Inc. The segments begin north of Houston, TX in New Caney, TX and continue south for more than 52 miles to Baytown, TX; spanning four counties – Chambers, Harris, Liberty and Montgomery. The construction value of the project is approximately $900 million and has a 10% DBE goal. Contact info@gpi-99.com for contracting opportunities or more information
POTENTIAL CONTRACT OPPORTUNITIES* Barrier/Guardrail, Bridge Construction, Aggregate/Material Suppliers, Erosion Control/SWPPP, Concrete Structures, Drainage, MSE Walls/ Panels, Noise Walls, Misc. Design Services, Misc. Utilities Services, Traffic Control, Drilling (Sign Posts/Caissons), Utility Relocation Design**, Rebar , Flatwork, Electrical Work, Demolition- Exterior, Grading/ Earthworks, ITS and TCS Civil Work, Landscaping, Materials Testing, Lighting, Saw Cutting/Sealing, Striping, Steel Stud Walls, Utility Relocation**, Recycling/Milling, Paving, Excavation, Environmental, Geotechnical, Fencing, Misc. Concrete Work, Technical Design Engineering, Signage, Surveying, Ready-mix Concrete, Traffic Supplies/Signals, Trucking/ Hauling, Terrazzo, Masonry, Finishes (Tile, Carpet, Resilient Flooring), Framing, Drywall, Specialty Ceiling. *PLEASE NOTE: This list is not inclusive of all available opportunities, but a sampling of potential services that could be available on a project. The opportunities available on specific projects may vary depending on the type, scope and size of the project. ** Additional pre-qualifications may be required for these services.
Contact the email address for each project listed above for specific contracting opportunities. However, for general questions about the Ferrovial Agroman Diverse Business Program email DBEinfo@ferrovial.com / FALL 2019
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/ Fall 2019
FEATURE
The TARC executive leadership team visits a stop on the bus rapid transit line at a Kroger’s grocery store in Louisville. (pictured left to right: Assistant Executive Director Randy Frantz, Chief of Staff Janna Woodfork and Executive Director Ferdinand L. Risco Jr.)
Change Agent Risco Prioritizes ‘Mobility as a Service’ Ferdinand Risco Sets Ambitious Goals for TARC and DBE Program to Hyperdrive Growth By Sarah Magargee
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erdinand Risco is at his best during times of change – from changing jobs to restructuring departments, no challenge is too great. Today, Risco is moving the largest transit agency in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, Transit Authority of River City (TARC), in a new direction. As executive director of TARC, Risco is focusing on implementing an ambitious DBE Program, state-of-theart technological advances, and a military-style leadership that has the
group positioned to become a leader in “Mobility as a Service.” TARC provides over 40% of the Commonwealth’s transit, facilitating more than 15 million passenger trips covering 12 million miles annually. TARC runs 43 routes in five counties across two states. With 63% of trips taken for work, and another 20% for school, TARC is crucial in the region for delivering a qualified workforce to employers and for getting students to class.
“We are proud of our economic impact in the region,” Risco said. “We infuse almost a quarter billion dollars into our economy annually. We employ 700 people and indirectly impact an additional 1500 jobs across the region.”
Redesigning the DBE Program Risco joined TARC as assistant executive director in February 2017, where he worked alongside then / FALL 2019
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In the Commonwealth, reaching small businesses can be challenging, but it is not impossible. Risco is working with TARC Director of Diversity and Inclusion, Tracy Davis, to build a robust database of already certified DBEs and to alert them about opportunities as they arise. Davis and Risco are also organizing regular outreach events to educate other business owners on the opportunities that DBE certification brings, and on the steps to becoming certified. Ferdinand Risco (far right) congratulates panel discussion members at the APTA Regional Mobility Solutions Conference in Louisville. (pictured left to right Jeff O’Brien, Matthew Glaser, Sumithra Jagannath and Art Guzzetti)
executive director Barry Barker. When Barker retired in November, Risco stepped up as executive director. “TARC is only 48 years old, and Barry had been there for half of that,” Risco said. “Some say that those are big shoes to fill. I say that I’ll let him take his shoes with him, and I’ll bring new ones to the party.” Risco has ambitious goals for TARC’s DBE Program, which historically struggled with meeting nationally set standards. Under Risco’s guidance, TARC is looking at spending at every level and identifying new opportunities to engage DBEs. “We are peeling the onion back to ensure we have solid DBE participation across the board,” Risco said. “We are at the right point to redefine what we are and what we are not. How can we both comply with rules and guidelines while also educating the community about DBE opportunities at TARC? ... We want to be a leader at TARC. We are striving to set a different standard with our DBE Program where we go above and beyond the federally mandated DBE goal.” This year, Risco has set TARC’s DBE goal at an achievable 11%, which was determined by looking at federallyand state-mandated DBE goals. From there, Risco has established a highly ambitious long-term plan to grow TARC’s DBE Program by 7-10% annually for the next three years.
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While this might seem out of reach for some, Risco successfully implemented a similar plan for Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) in Atlanta, Georgia. When Risco joined MARTA in 2012, the agency’s DBE Program was struggling at 9% DBE participation. Risco worked tirelessly for nearly five years, building the program up through compliance, education and outreach. When he left the program in 2017, MARTA had a 58% DBE participation rate and had helped 5,400 businesses become DBE-certified.
Outreach is Key Risco’s notable success in Atlanta was due in part to a push to educate small businesses on the importance of becoming certified through the Department of Transportation as a DBE business – and to help outline the steps needed to gain certification. He said: “It is a challenge. How do you convince a small business owner who has limited time and resources to begin the very bureaucratic process of becoming DBE certified? You have to show them the value. At MARTA, we automated the certification process and hosted ‘Get Ready for Transportation’ events to teach business owners how to get ready for those billions of dollars of opportunities.”
Additionally, TARC is partnering with organizations that are established in the industry and skilled at outreach to minority business communities. As an example, TARC is working with the Conference of Minority Transportation Officials (COMTO), a nationwide organization that mentors small businesses and assists in eliminating contracting barriers related to the transportation industry.
Giving DBEs a Voice Davis emphasized the importance of diversity and inclusion. “Diversity is too often just a check in a box,” Davis said. “Diversity is giving someone a seat at the table; inclusion is letting them have a voice. Inclusion is where the magic happens, and your team begins to think and address the needs of those you serve.” Davis noted that historically, the Hispanic population had been under-represented at TARC. “The largest buying power in the country is the Hispanic community. If we are not looking at that population and addressing their needs, we are missing out on opportunities. You do this by giving them a voice and a chance to participate; this is diversity and inclusion.” Risco also brought diversity and inclusion into TARC as he built his leadership team. Today, TARC employs a 50/50 minority/majority and a 60/40 female to male leadership team. “I am very proud of the reflection of our community in our leadership team,” Risco said. “For me, it is critical to have our team be reflective of the community it serves.”
Louisville region in real-time. Risco said: “This fall we hosted a MaaS summit to share our work with the greater transportation community. We talked about why we should want to connect communities and how we could connect remote areas of the state with cities. Los Angeles, Dallas and Denver are all looking into MaaS, and here is little old TARC leading the way. It is a revolution and an evolution.”
Secrets to Success
Ferdinand L. Risco Jr., Transit Authority of River City Executive Director
Mobility as a Service Today’s transportation needs are growing increasingly diverse, as well. Uber, scooters and bike shares are providing people with more ways to move about their community, and also creating more challenges in planning trips. With this shift in mind, TARC began offering Mobility as a Service (MaaS) with the launch of a unique Mobility App and Dynamic Trip Planner. The integrated mobility platform allows customers to seamlessly plan and book trips across multiple modes of travel, including TARC, Uber, Lyft, Bird Scooters, and LouVelo Bike Share. Spearheaded by DBE firm ZED Digital, the MaaS platform is revolutionizing the transit industry. Sumithra Jagannath, president of ZED Digital,
said, “A major distinguishing factor of ZED’s MaaS platform that powers the TARC app is that this is the first of its kind to provide analytics and real-time data on system usage, origins and destinations of trips per mode of travel, transportation cost savings to riders from app usage and more.” “TARC is completely re-orienting the transit industry,” Risco said. “We have taken the industry by storm with the launch of MaaS, and it has taken off: this is the roadmap for the future.” The app positions TARC to be a leader in the transportation industry and enables its transformation from a public transit agency to an integrated mobility solutions provider. Future updates will include adding various mobility modes and streaming of activities, entertainment, landmarks and parking availability in the Greater
A self-described “change agent,” Risco’s list of accomplishments in his short tenure at TARC is impressive. Risco credits his success in part to his experience in the military as a young man. In the Army, Risco developed a deep appreciation for structure, efficiency and getting his hands dirty. He said: “I don’t ask my team to do anything that I would not want to do. I have a very top-down, decentralized leadership style where I empower the experts. I often say that if I am the smartest person in the room, I need to find a new room. When I came to TARC, I made it clear that my mission was not to tear down the fence until we knew why it was built. Change comes at the speed of trust, so I wanted to make sure my team trusted me.” No matter what challenges and changes come, Risco and the team at TARC all agree that their real focus will always be the customers. “No matter what happens, we are going to open the door with a smile, and we are going to move this community forward,” he said.
“TARC is completely re-orienting the transit industry. We have taken the industry by storm with the launch of MaaS and it has taken off, this is the roadmap for the future.” - Ferdinand L. Risco, Jr.
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FEATURE
American Contract Compliance Association board member Renee Watson shares her vision for ACCA at the 2019 National Training Institute in San Diego, California.
Watson Inspires Passion and Action as ACCA Board Member
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ne of the initial impressions first-time participants notice when attending the American Contract Compliance Association (ACCA) National Training Institute (NTI) is the passion leaders and members of the organization have for diverse business inclusion and for supporting their
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fellow colleagues in the industry. This infectious enthusiasm has helped ACCA continue to grow throughout its 33-year history and provide training to thousands of supplier diversity and contract compliance professionals across the country. The organization has grown from fewer than 100 participants at its inaugural annual
training event in 1988 to more than 700 registrants at the 2019 session in San Diego. No member is more reflective of the passion and commitment of ACCA members than Renee Watson, director of the Bexar County Small Business and Entrepreneurship
Watson’s passion and commitment also energized her to become a leader in the ACCA organization. She was voted in as a board member at the 2019 NTI after previously serving two years as regional coordinator for the central region of the country. As a regional coordinator, Watson’s goal was to develop and increase membership, help establish local chapters and facilitate communication between states to support their chapters. CERM Managing Director Albert G. Edwards shares his experience as an entrepreneur with students in the Job Shadowing Program. (Photo Credit: Brittany Denton)
Renee Watson (center) and members of the Bexar County Small Business & Entrepreneurship Department Host the 2018 Bexar County Business Conference in San Antonio, Texas.
Department (SBED) in San Antonio, Texas. Watson joined ACCA in 2007 and has completed the three levels of training to reach the highest level of certification offered to members. Completing the three levels, Contract Compliance Administrator (CCA), Master Compliance Administrator (MCA) and Executive Certified Master Compliance Administrator (ECMCA), required Watson to complete 240 hours of classroom training (80 for each level), in various topics related to the effective administration of programs to support small, minorityand women-owned businesses. Watson discovered ACCA as she was seeking to find information and networking opportunities after she was hired to create Bexar County’s first program to support small, minorityand women-owned businesses. “I wanted to look at what other agencies around the country were doing that was working and bring that to what we could do here in Bexar County,” Watson said. One of the unique challenges Watson faced was how to build a successful program that did not include contract goals or good faith efforts. “My first ACCA conference was in 2007,” Watson said. “Then I began teaching
a course in 2008.” She still teaches at the annual NTI session and facilitates a course called “Managing a SMWBE Program Without Goals or Good Faith Efforts - Leveraging Your Stake Holders.” Watson said, “Teaching the class allows me to share my experience in Bexar County and also to learn from others what is happening in different places around the country.” In the 12 years since Watson joined ACCA she has advanced SBED by applying information gained through her membership and attendance at NTI sessions. Her department has grown to include five staff members. As staff have joined SBED, Watson has supported their completion of the ACCA certification program as well. “When I was hired at the County, it was just me for about five years, so I figured that if I gained knowledge through ACCA, in order to build a team, they would also need that knowledge.” Two of her former staff completed all three levels of certification and have since moved on to lead departments at other agencies. Two current employees are in the process of completing certifications with one employee completing the MCA curriculum in 2019, while another will complete the MCA program in 2020.
One of the contributions Watson hopes to make during her term as a board member is strengthening the Legislative Committee. She understands the importance of keeping members aware of the legislative agenda and the importance of having a means for ACCA members to connect with legislators who create policies on the local, state and national levels. “We need to be more active on the legislative side to know what is happening that can affect our programs and what policies are being considered so that we can provide input,” Watson said. Watson also plans to help ACCA prepare the next generation of supplier diversity and program compliance professionals by promoting training that gives young professionals the historical framework for these programs, while also meeting their need to incorporate new strategies to advance the mission. “A lot of our younger members were not around when these programs were created and don’t know what went into creating what we have today,” she said. “They also are very data driven and want the analytics.” She believes that the next generation of outreach and compliance professionals can use tools like social media and technology to better identify potential vendors and to track solicitation efforts for greater success. “For example, I have a person on my team now that is responsible for all of our social media and using technology to make sure that companies know about the opportunities at Bexar County. This is the way things are moving in the industry.”
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programs in Texas. She strongly believes there is an opportunity to engage purchasing organizations like the National Institute of Governmental Purchasing (NIGP) to invite its members to participate in the NTI.
American Contract Compliance Association Members receive their certificates of completion for the Contract Compliance Administrator at the 2018 ACCA National Training Institute.
Largely due to Watson’s leadership in the central region, San Antonio was selected to host the next NTI session in August 2020. Bexar County’s SMWBE Department will serve as the host agency and the planning teams hope to surpass the record attendance achieved in San Diego in 2019. “We’re going to do it like it’s a
church anniversary,” Watson said. “We want every member to bring someone else that needs to be there,” she said. Her plans include utilizing the collective force of several government, non-profit and private organizations in Texas to bring new members to ACCA and to ultimately strengthen the entire ecosystem of business diversity
“San Antonio is a tourist city, so we have that part down,” Watson said. “We also want to focus on getting new people to the training so that all the organizations have the same information and can work together more effectively.” The 2020 NTI will take place at the San Antonio Marriott Rivercenter Hotel from August 25-30. Information for the event is available on the ACCA website at www.accaweb. org and registration will open in early 2020.
High-Quality, High-Impact Training for DBE/ACDBE/UCP Professionals
The Essentials of DBE/ACDBE Program Management + Title VI What You Will Learn:
February 25-27, 2020: Raleigh, NC DBE/ACDBE Program History, Background,
Purpose and Trends
3-DAY CLASS
Duties/Responsibilities of the DBELO/ACDBELO DBE/ACDBE Reporting The Airport Concession DBE Program Review of Joint Ventures for Concessions Counting DBE Participation/Commercially Useful Function (CUF) Compliance Monitoring & Reporting Goal Setting & Good Faith Efforts Federal Title VI Introduction and FAA/FTA Overview (1/2 Day) Register at www.natdbe-ti.com/registration/
National DBE Training Institute, P.O. Box 3113, Wilmington, NC 28406 Phone: 910.762.6297 | Fax: 910.762.5963 | Email: kwa-office@kwaplanning.com | Web: www.natdbe-ti.com
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BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT
The Attacks on Affirmative Action and Inclusion Continue: The Impact of Education and Housing By Colette Holt, J.D. and Joanne Lubart, J.D., Colette Holt & Associates Americans who had applied to Harvard, had been rejected, or hoped to transfer there. The suit claims that Harvard uses race as a predominant admissions factor and that it did not exhaust race-neutral alternatives before adopting the policy. SFFA argued that this policy violated Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination based on race and national origin by recipients of federal funds. The U.S. Department of Justice has sided with the plaintiffs.
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hen most people think of affirmative action, government contracts are not what typically come to mind. It is important however, for those of us who focus on this area, to understand the implications of issues in the fields of education and housing (along with employment, criminal justice and private sector contracts) on contracting affirmative action programs.
The recent ruling in favor of Harvard University’s use of race as one factor in its undergraduate admissions process is a case in point. In Students for Fair Admissions, Incorporated v. President and Fellows of Harvard, the plaintiff alleged that the University intentionally discriminated against Asian-Americans in its admissions process. SFFA, an anti-affirmative action non-profit organization, included Asian-
The federal District Court in Massachusetts found no perceived discrimination against Asian-Americans in Harvard’s “holistic” or whole person admissions process. SFFA failed to provide a single admissions file demonstrating discrimination against an Asian American applicant. Harvard provided voluminous substantive evidence supporting its policy, including descriptive statistics, metrics, and logistic regression analyses. Judge Allison D. Burroughs found Harvard’s evidence that there was no discrimination against Asian-American applicants to be “consistent, unambiguous and convincing.” In reaching its decision, the court followed four decades of Supreme Court precedent, including the case of Fisher v. University of Texas (pushed by the same anti-civil rights group) and concluded that the process passed constitutional muster. She found that race is only one factor in admissions ratings. Further, the educational benefits of a diverse student body constituted a “compelling governmental interest” that justifies the “narrowly-tailored” use of race. The court held that it was likely that the plaintiffs’ statistical analysis was flawed, and that the Asian-American penalty was overstated. She also faulted the plaintiffs for not presenting any Asian-American applicants as witnesses to testify about how they were discriminated against. SFFA has appealed. / FALL 2019
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statistical patterns establish a possible case of discriminatory outcomes. As a result, it would be more difficult to prove that, for example, banks are redlining Black homeowners or that zoning changes will disproportionately affect minority communities.
Following the lawsuit, the university made a significant effort to improve its policy. It issued explicit guidelines on the appropriate uses of race, and implicit bias training for its admissions officers is to be conducted. Other attacks include: • The U.S. Departments of Justice and Education have opened a joint investigation into whether Yale University discriminated against Asian-Americans by treating applicants differently based on race during the admissions process. • A lawsuit is also pending against the University of California system for admissions data that the plaintiff claims could reveal whether the system has secretly reintroduced race into admissions decisions, setting the stage for a direct challenge. California has banned affirmative action by constitutional amendment, called Proposition 209, since 1996. • The persons leading the Harvard suit are suing the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill over its admissions policies. A trial in that case is scheduled for next year. Many observers fear the Supreme Court will take up one of these cases to outlaw race-conscious decision making in college admission. While the plaintiff in the Harvard case tried to use statistical data to make its case against diversity and inclusion, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has proposed a new regulation that would make it much more difficult to use statistics to enforce civil rights in the housing market. HUD seeks to make it more difficult to prove “disparate impact” cases, where there is no smoking gun of discriminatory intent, but where
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Disparate impact theory is also used in other areas of civil rights law, including for DBE-type programs. In fact, disparity studies are the application of disparate impact analysis to contracting outcomes. Our studies ask whether the utilization of minority and women firms is in line with the availability of such firms; that is, whether there is a disparity between who received the dollars and who might have received the dollars. To simplify, if the answer is yes, then remedial measures may be supportable to address this disparate impact of current market forces. The Fair Housing Act has been interpreted since the 1970s to include the more subtle discriminations identified by disparate impact analysis. The new HUD rule rewrites an Obama-era regulation that increased the burden on defendants to explain any discriminatory impact of their practices. The new regulation shifts the burden to plaintiffs to show that any discriminatory effects could be averted by a different approach. Among other things, the rule presents defenses that can be used to defeat civil rights claims. Arguments include that the defendant’s practice is the industry standard or that the model was developed by an outside third party (hence defeating the idea that there could be discriminatory intent). This is likely to be a very difficult standard to meet, especially given that civil rights plaintiffs are unlikely to have access to evidence of proprietary algorithmic models. The comment period closed October 18, 2019, with over 45,000 comments received. No final rule has been issued. These cases and regulatory changes ensure there will be heightened scrutiny over the use of race-conscious initiatives in contracting affirmative action programs, including the U.S. Department of Transportation’s DBE Program and state and local MBE/WBE programs. It is also a cause of great concern that there are pending cases, brought by majority industry groups, against the programs in Shelby County, Tennessee, and the State of New York. Since these issues may ultimately be resolved by the Supreme Court, the confirmation of activist conservative justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh could tip the scales to outlaw affirmative action altogether.
Given the dire threats on multiple legal fronts, it is imperative that proponents and administrators of public contracting affirmative action initiatives take defensive actions. Review your program elements and processes with a keen eye on the legal standards. Make sure you have flexible standards, good data, clear policies and procedures, and well-trained people to implement your programs. Monitor your implementation and create understandable reports. Review and evaluate the objectives of the programs vis-à-vis their outcomes, and quickly make changes as necessary. Shore up any needed political support and educate your communities about the attacks and how to play defense. Conduct high-quality social science research and gather quantitative and qualitative evidence demonstrating the continuing need for remedial measures. No doubt, the trial court’s decision in the Harvard case was strengthened by a solid record of statistical data and analyses demonstrating the benefits and continued need for the current policy. D/M/WBE program proponents should take notice.
“Given the dire threats on multiple legal fronts, it is imperative that proponents and administrators of public contracting affirmative action initiatives take defensive actions. Review your program elements and processes with a keen eye on the legal standards. - Colette Holt, J.D. J.D., Colette Holt & Associates
DBE POWER PLAYER
Ebony Construction – Still Going and Still Growing By Jordan Taylor
Amy Hall, president of Ebony Construction Company, Inc.
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my Hall, president of Ebony Construction, attributes her early success with the company to three things: 1) Trusting her gut instincts; 2) Commitment to the company from its longtime employees; and 3) Wanting no regrets – because sometimes you don’t get do-overs. “I didn’t want to live with the woulda, coulda, shoulda,” she said. Sixteen years ago, Hall was living in Atlanta, Georgia, (newly married, with two children and a third child on the way) when her father, president of Ebony Construction at the time, unexpectedly passed away at the age of 58. Her parents were divorced at the time of his death, and she had no siblings, leaving her as sole heir to the family business. Hall said her father died on a Sunday, was buried on the following Thursday; and she
was named president of the company the next Monday. Prior to her father’s death, Hall’s job was selling pathology services to dermatologists and plastic surgeons. Immediately afterwards, she commuted back and forth between Atlanta and Toledo, Ohio, for a short time before her job in Atlanta was phased out and she made the decision to move to Ohio. Faced with the decision of whether to keep the company going or close it, Hall said she knew the right decision was to make the move. Hall said: “My gut said I had to come home. If these doors aren’t open, then my family’s not eating; and other people’s families aren’t eating. That was the year our company only made money because of my dad’s life insurance policy.”
Looking back on that tumultuous time, Hall said the best thing about the situation was that she didn’t really know what she was getting into; indeed, ignorance is bliss, she said. “I didn’t have time to think about it, I just did it.” Hall said, in retrospect, she was completely blessed not to know any different or how overwhelming the task before her could potentially be. Because things happened so quickly, she didn’t have time to think through the situation, but rather functioned on autopilot and simply moved forward. Ebony Construction is now in its third generation of family operations as a heavy highway construction company. It was founded in 1986 as a Minority Business Enterprise (MBE federal setaside program) by Hall’s mother with a primary focus of building catch basins, curbs and gutters. Her mom chose the name Ebony Construction because / FALL 2019
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of the color of asphalt. “She wanted a name that would let everybody know what we did and who we were,” Hall said. A few years after it started, Ebony Construction shifted its focus to asphalt and paving. In the early years, her father took over leadership of the company to leverage his minority status – subsequently when the MBE program was dismantled, and women were no longer considered a minority group in business. Ebony Construction became a certified Disadvantaged Business Enterprise in 1999, and Hall assumed leadership of the company in 2003. Hall has three sons, one of whom works in the business with her.
and material supply. In both 2002 and 2008, Ebony Construction was the recipient of Flexible Pavement of Ohio’s Smooth Pavement Award. Many of the company’s other recognitions derive from work on Interstate 75, with the Ohio Department of Transportation, and the Dayton International Airport, focusing on taxiways, runways and aprons. Hall said: “We work all through Ohio. We can mobilize anywhere. We are certified to work in Ohio, Michigan, Indiana and Georgia. We have a bonding capacity, so we’re able to take on bigger projects, [and] we’re able to offer a larger package for the people whom we work for.”
Ebony Construction has a core team of 50 employees, which scales up to 100 during the company’s peak season. “The year I took over, we had a bad year,” Hall said. “But we’ve never lost money since then.” Hall said that under her father’s leadership, the focus at Ebony Construction was all about maintenance, and not necessarily about growth. Hall said that after she took over running the company, there was a different energy. She said the company changed its internal processes to become less siloed, more integrated and to increase communication between team members. Hall said that coming in fresh, she was able to do a lot of listening and a lot of learning.
Hall said that she built her leadership style around caring about people – not just as employees – but as individuals who are vested in the success of the company. She said she has an opendoor policy, but is also comfortable having tough conversations when
Hall said that she feels each prior job and opportunity in her career taught her different skills and prepared her for the myriad challenges of business ownership. For example, she learned customer service as a flight attendant. She said: “With each job, life prepares you. When I was a flight attendant, I learned how to deal with people. You can do a lot with a smile.” Various other positions in sales and marketing taught her how to sell; how to build a business; how to plan your work and work your territory. Along the way, she also learned administrative and backoffice skills and how to start and build something. Over the last 10 years, Ebony Construction has expanded both its geography and its construction portfolio to include milling, trucking
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Need Description
Ebony Construction paving crews work on a project in Toledo, Ohio.
necessary. “Our company is wholeheartedly our employees,” she said. “Our employees make this company what it is. Our company has developed a culture of family, and I think that’s what makes us a little bit different. We invest in people.” Hall said looking back, she wouldn’t do anything differently. However, she’s learned some important lessons along the way: “As a DBE, we not only represent all DBEs in our industry, each one of us represents the group collectively. But I think there’s a different standard out there that we’re judged by. It’s unwritten and unspoken, but it’s very palatable. When we go to a job, we can’t just be OK. We have to
be better than OK. There’s a different standard out there that we’re judged by.”She also said that it takes time and it takes perseverance to build a successful company, and that there’s a delicate balance of planning for growth and for the future of the company. Hall said the DBE Program can sometimes feel like golden handcuffs, in that it’s difficult to be sustainable outside of the program. “You don’t want to grow out of the program too fast,” she said. “It’s that delicate balance of planning and growth; yet maintaining your current revenue base.” Hall highly recommends that DBEs join professional organizations where prime contractors are also members, to network and build relationships with individuals doing the hiring. She said that DBEs often join women-focused and minority-focused groups. “But you really have to join the organizations where people who own the work you’re going after belong to,” Hall said. She said it’s important to spend time getting to know contractors and building professional relationships so that when it’s time to bid on projects, you’re not just some random company sending in a quote. “You overcome a lot of the unspoken barriers because now you’ve developed a relationship,” she said. “People do business with people they know.” As part of her professional development, Hall currently serves as chairman of the board for Ohio Contractors, the state’s highway division within Associated General Contractors of America (AGC). She is also active with the national AGC office in Washington, D.C., serving on the Diversity & Inclusion committee and the DBE Task Force. In 2020, she will serve on the AGC executive board, the highest governing board within the organization. Hall said: “Our industry is extremely capital-intensive. These organizations are having the conversation about programs that affect us as DBE contractors. It’s our job as DBE contractors to be advocates for ourselves to the degree that we can be a part of the conversation. This industry is all about relationships.”
PROUD TO GIVE BUSINESSES A LIFT CATS is proud to provide opportunities for businesses to create local jobs through the advancement of transit projects. CATS also seeks to create an environment that gives small and socially or economically challenged local businesses the opportunity to compete for publicly funded contracts by participating in the Small Business Opportunity (SBO) and the Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) Programs. On the LYNX Blue Line project, for example, CATS spent $42.9 million with 38 DBE firms to build the new light rail system. As the major provider of public transportation to Charlotte and the surrounding region, CATS relies on the communities we serve to build and operate the service every day. By working together on these new opportunities, we can all keep our communities moving in the right direction. For more information, visit ridetransit.org.
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DBE PROGRAM SPOTLIGHT
Erby’s Perseverance Drives Creation of MWBE Program in St. Louis County By Janine Kyritsis and David Keen
The St. Louis County Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion hosted a Vendor Opportunity Fair in September 2019. Members of the office include (from left): Jack Thomas, Francoise Lyles-Wiggins, Hazel Erby, Shonte Harmon-Young and Nathaniel Adams.
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t is rare to find a government agency, especially one receiving transportation funding, without a legislated program for the development and inclusion of minorityand women-owned businesses. But such was the case in St. Louis County, Missouri, until last year. St. Louis County is the largest county in Missouri – with over 1 million residents –and encompasses unincorporated St. Louis County and over 80 smaller municipalities.
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The County is in the early stages of building a small, minority and women business enterprise program providing highly-sought business opportunities to companies in the Metropolitan St. Louis region. The County Council approved legislation creating the program in May 2018. Under the legislation, the County set goals of 24 percent for minority-owned business participation and 9.5 percent for women-owned business participation in construction; and 16 percent minority-owned
businesses and 15 percent womenowned businesses for architecture and engineering projects. The legislation also applies a 5 percent discount to bids from eligible minority-or womenowned businesses and establishes management positions within the county to develop programs for growth of minority- and women-owned businesses, along with staff to oversee contract compliance.
there is nobody that looks like our community out there working.’ I knew this was not right and we needed to do something,” Erby said. Erby went to work seeking to gain the support of the County Executive and her fellow County Council members to pass legislation creating a small, minority and women business program. However, for several years she found little support to get the program off the ground. Although Erby knew her fellow Democrats had a majority among Council members and the County Executive was also a Democrat, she learned that without support of the unions, none of her political counterparts would support the legislation. “The unions did not support the program, so council members that counted on the support of the unions would not support me,” Erby said.
Hazel Erby, St. Louis County Government Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and former County Council member.
The program came after more than a decade of political advocacy and negotiations championed by former County Council member Hazel Erby, who served on the Council from 2004-2019. Erby stepped down in May 2019 to assume the role of leading the program she worked hard to create, now serving as the Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion for the county under former Council colleague Sam Page. The County’s M/WBE Program is starting to make inroads to new business opportunities in the county’s procurement activities in the areas of Transportation, Parks and Recreation, Public Works, and Community Development. The effort to establish legislation to create the program began soon after Erby was first appointed to the Council in 2004. She was tapped to fill the seat left vacant when Charlie Dooley stepped in to serve as the County Executive, the highest office held in county government, after the sitting
executive died while in office. Erby was a well-known community advocate with a passion for the constituents of the sixth district that she was chosen to represent. Erby recognized the need for a diversity and inclusion program after citizens from her district expressed their concern over the absence of diversity in the County’s contracting and employment activities. These issues were especially highlighted in 2005 during the development and construction of the Express Scripts NorthPark Complex, located in a predominantly African-American area of the county. Express Scripts, a Fortune 100 company based in St. Louis County, was building its corporate headquarters complex, which required significant infrastructure development from the County. “People who lived around the Express Scripts NorthPark Complex were calling me saying, ‘We are watching this construction around the clock and
But after nearly a decade of pushing to gain support, the political winds began to change during the election campaign of 2014 when the creation of a minority- and women-owned business program became one of the major issues of the County Executive campaign. This election was taking place only months after Michael Brown was shot to death by a police officer in Ferguson, a municipality in St. Louis County – drawing national attention to racial tensions in the jurisdiction. The incumbent County Executive Charlie Dooley, an African American, had finally decided to support the legislation, as did the Republican challenger Rick Stream. This pressure also pushed Democratic challenger Steve Stenger, who eventually defeated Charlie Dooley in the Democratic primary, to support the legislation in order to gain enough support to win the election. After the election of 2014, Stenger made small efforts to create internal policies to support small, minority- and women-owned businesses, but the results were futile. Erby and other council members pushed the County to conduct a disparity study to serve as the foundation of establishing and highlighting the need for a program. The tide began to turn in 2016 when the County hired Griffin & Strong, / FALL 2019
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Erby demonstrated faith and confidence while striving to get the legislation passed. “I don’t give up. I just keep trying,” she said. Although she admits she isn’t an experienced program administrator, she’s confident the County has assembled a topnotch team to manage the day-to-day activities of the program. “I don’t know a lot about the terminology or contract compliance, but I know what is right and what is wrong; and I know that it is not right to pass construction sites and not see minorities and women working,” Erby said.
St. Louis County Contract Compliance Specialist Nathaniel Adams speaks to participants at the county’s 2019 MWBE Vendor Fair.
P.C. to conduct a disparity study to determine the availability and utilization of minority- and womenowned businesses during the years of 2012-2015 in contracting either directly with the County or as subcontractors. The results of the study were eyeopening, finding that only 2.65% of prime contracts and less than 1% of subcontracts on projects awarded 2 to minority- and by the Table County went women-owned firms during this period. These results shed a light on the lack on diversity and inclusion in the County’s procurement activities. “Minority business owners had been saying for years that the County was not open for business if you were a minority or a woman,” Erby said. Although the disparity study found that the County had a significant deficiency in contracting with minority- and women-owned firms, some members of the County Council were still hesitant to create a program to reduce the disparity. But the clear and very public results of the disparity study placed a spotlight on the County, and members of the County Council began to shift their position due to community and political pressure. Erby’s work reached its peak in 2018, 13 years after she began advocating for the County to establish a small, minorityand women-owned business program, when legislation creating the program passed the Council unanimously with a vote of 7-0.
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Erby credits her support from many community members and partners to help develop the legislation and gain the approval of the public to ultimately win the battle. She relied on leaders like Adolphus Pruitt of the St. Louis County NAACP, Yaphett ElAmin of MOKAN, and Tim Person Jr. of Tim Person & Associates to provide support and insight to get legislation done. “We talked day and night about ideas for the legislation and what could be done,” Erby said. “With the tenacity of former Councilwoman Erby on our team, not completing the mission of inclusion of minority and female businesses was never an option,” MOKAN Executive Director Yaphett El-Amin said. MOKAN, a minority contractor advocacy organization based in St. Louis, has been on the forefront of pushing for greater inclusion for minority businesses for nearly 40 years. “Former Councilwoman Erby had before, and was willing to again, publicly call out any colleagues that said anything that resembled not closing the economic gaps and business inequalities within St. Louis County. She had the disparity study numbers to prove the past discrimination and was willing to roll over anybody that stood in her way,” El-Amin said.
The County hired Jack Thomas in July 2018 to administer the day-to-day activities of the program. Thomas is a respected and experienced DBE Program administrator, with prior experience at the City of St. Louis, St. Louis Lambert International Airport and the Jackson-Medgar Wiley Evers International Airport in Jackson, Mississippi. “I knew Jack’s experience, and I knew that anybody in St. Louis that mentioned Jack’s name, knew of him and of his work and integrity. He is the right person for the job,” Erby said. Over the past year, Thomas added three additional staff members to the department, with plans to add more staff in 2020. The team has already made strides toward increasing participation while still overcoming ongoing challenges in changing the internal support of the program. “Our biggest challenge is the culture and climate that has been created over many years,” Erby said. However, despite the struggle, the team is moving toward reaching its objectives. The County recommended more than $2.2 million (21.2%) in contracts to MBE firms from July 16, 2018 to December 31, 2018; and recommended $1.2 million (12.3%) in contracts to WBE firms.
AIRPORTS
RDU Airport Recruiting DBE/ACDBE Firms as Part of Vision 2040
Reagan National Airport exterior rendering of the new 14-gate concourse looking to the southwest. (Courtesy: Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority)
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hen the Raleigh-Durham International Airport developed its 25-year Vision 2040 master plan, airport leaders believed they had created a solid roadmap to direct the organization into the next couple decades of growth. However, what the leaders didn’t know was as soon as the roadmap to the future was uploaded into RDU’s navigation system, an update would be required due to the tremendous growth the airport is
Photo courtesy of RDU Airport
experiencing now and is expected to continue in the future. Vision 2040 contains over $4 billion in capital investments, with more than $1 billion of the improvements planned to occur by the end of 2025. But now RDU airport leaders are considering the need to accelerate the plan based on its current passenger levels already surpassing projections only a few years into the plan’s implementation. “We are already way ahead of our projections,”
RDU President & CEO Michael Landguth said. “We are already at levels not anticipated to occur until 2037.” This reality has required the airport to reevaluate the projects included in the Vison 2040 plan and how the airport will finance these projects much sooner than expected. The key component of Vision 2040 is the replacement of RDU’s primary runway, 5L/23R, with a new 11,500-foot runway that will expand the airport’s / FALL 2019
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Panelists and sponsors of the Raleigh-Durham Airport/AMAC Mixer: Concession Opportunities On the Rise celebrate a successful event in November 2019. (pictured l-r: Sheldon Poole, Anthony Barnes, Adrian Beard, David Freedman, Michael Landguth, Patrick Hannah, Thiane Carter and Mori Russell)
ability to attract airlines with direct international flights from RDU, with an emphasis on being able to serve destinations in Asia directly. The airport will continue to use its existing 10,000-foot runway until the design and construction of the new runway is completed in 2025, and then convert the old runway into a taxiway for the new one. Other major projects to support the airport’s growth and expansion include eventually adding as many as 23 new gates to RDU’s two existing terminals, building a new consolidated rental car facility with expanded parking, and building a new baggage handling facility. These new features will greatly expand the capacity of the airport and attract additional flights or new airlines to the Raleigh-Durham area. The plan also includes expansion and improvements to the airport’s main thoroughfare, John C. Brantley Boulevard, which will improve traffic and accessibility around the facility as growth continues.
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The expedited growth and investment requirements will provide opportunities for small and disadvantaged firms to do business at the airport. RDU leadership has made diversity and inclusion an essential part of its business values and has established a track record of providing meaningful opportunities to small and diverse companies. “We need to look like our community,” Landguth said. “We have a very diverse community, so we want to make sure we’re providing opportunities for minorities, women and small businesses from our community and across the nation to participate in the project we have as a part of the Vision 2040.” The airport encourages diverse business opportunities through its Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) Program, its Airport Concessions Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (ACDBE) and its Minority-/Womenowned Small Business (MWSB) Program. The airport has established
a DBE Program goal of 9.7 percent on design and construction projects funded by federal dollars from the Federal Aviation Administration, an ACDBE program goal of 26.4 percent of airport concessions revenues, and an MWSB Program goal of 10 percent minority-owned and 5 percent womanowned on procurement contracts funded directly by the airport. “We have a program to cover everything we buy at the airport,” Landguth said. “Our MWSB program covers everything that does not fall under the federal DBE Program. So, anything that we purchase, whether it’s a pencil, pad & paper or repairs, if it does not use federal dollars, we use our MWSB program to promote inclusion.” Airport improvements associated with Vision 2040 are already underway. The current 5L/23R runway is in the process of being rehabilitated with new concrete to maintain performance until the new runway is built. Airport roadways and parking surfaces are also being expanded and improved to
operators. Two food and beverage operators, Sheldon Poole, president of JQE Enterprises, and Adrian Beard, president of Whitman May Enterprises Inc., have developed successful businesses through direct leases and joint venture agreements at the airport. Beard’s company operates a twoconcept concession in Terminal One featuring two North Carolina-based fast food restaurants. One of the concepts is a Raleigh-based hamburger brand named Char-Grill and the other is a Charlotte-based Mexican restaurant called Salsarita’s Fresh Mexican Grill. After the successful operation of this location, Beard was awarded another location in Terminal One to open a restaurant/bar concept to service the new 4-gate activation in Terminal One that will open in 2020.
Thiané Carter, RDU director of small business programs speaks to guests at an RDU/AMAC mixer for concession business opportunities in November 2019.
RDU Airport security checkpoint in Terminal 2 (Photo courtesy of RDU Airport)
keep pace with passenger growth. A four-gate activation in Terminal One, which primarily serves Southwest Airlines, is nearing completion and expected to open in 2020. The airport issued two Requests for Proposals (RFPs) in fall 2019 to select firms providing on-call environmental and engineering services. RDU plans to make selections for these two contracts in early 2020, and the selected firms will serve as key partners in designing many of the upcoming improvements expected within the next three- to five-year window. Meetings to inform the business community about Vision 2040 have been held over the past year to make sure companies seeking prime contractor or subcontractor opportunities on the upcoming projects have ample time to prepare for the opportunity. The first meeting was held in July 2019 and attracted more than 300 firms interested in doing
“RDU will always have a special place in my heart, because it’s where I started my business,” Beard said. “To have an airport the size of RDU that would do a direct lease is rare, and the direct lease has given us the opportunity to learn every aspect of the business. So, my experience at RDU has been amazing.”
work at the airport. A second meeting in September 2019 had an equal number of participants, particularly those planning to pursue work on the engineering and environmental on-call opportunities. The airport is also preparing for new concessions opportunities that will arise in connection with the growth of the terminal. RDU partnered with the Airport Minority Advisory Council (AMAC) in November 2019 to host a business reception for operators interested in upcoming RFPs for concessions opportunities coming available in 2020 and beyond. The Vision 2040 plan includes four additional gates being added to Terminal One, and a 12-gate expansion to Terminal Two within the next few years.
Thiané Carter, RDU director of small business programs speaks to guests at an RDU/AMAC mixer for concession business opportunities in November 2019.
Concessions opportunities have been an area of success in the airport’s inclusion efforts. RDU has consistently surpassed its 26.4 percent ACDBE goal for revenues earned by diverse / FALL 2019
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TRANSIT
Chicago Transit Authority leaders and stakeholders celebrate ground breaking of the Red & Purple Modernization project. (Photo courtesy of Chicago Transit Authority)
CTA Launches ‘CTA Building Small Businesses Program’ to Help Local Entrepreneurs Work on Largest Project in Agency History Source: Chicago Transit Authority press release and Walsh Construction press release
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s the Chicago Transit Agency begins the largest construction project in its history, the $2.1 billion Red and Purple Modernization (RPM) Phase One project, the agency also announced the launch of its ‘CTA Building Small Businesses Program,’ a new, innovative program designed to increase small business participation in RPM and other large-scale
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construction projects by ensuring local entrepreneurs have the financial guidance, support and resources to bid on City contracts. The CTA Building Small Businesses Program was developed to provide financial guidance to small businesses and other DBEs by offering direct loan placement and other supports so they can demonstrate the up-front capital needed to compete on large-scale
transportation construction and capital programs. “Chicago was built by small businesses more than 180 years ago, and if we want to continue building on sustainable, affordable and reliable access to transportation options in every neighborhood, we have to start by ensuring our local entrepreneurs are a key part of that vision,” said
Participants in the CTA Building Small Businesses Program receiving classroom training (Photo courtesy of CTA)
Mayor Lightfoot. “CTA knows first-hand that Chicago’s small businesses are the backbone of our communities, and I applaud [CTA] President [Dorval] Carter for launching a groundbreaking inclusive process to provide the resources and tools necessary to stay on the right track and work with the City on large-scale projects so we can continue building a better Chicago together.” For some small businesses, working on a large construction project requires resources that many firms don’t have, including cash flow that can allow them to purchase materials ahead of being reimbursed, access to loans and other forms of credit, insurance for larger jobs, and access to IT and administrative supports. Without these tools, it can be impossible for many Chicago-area small businesses to participate in construction projects. “We’ve heard from many small businesses that it can be extremely difficult and intimidating to bid on large projects,” said CTA President Dorval R. Carter Jr. “What is groundbreaking about the ‘CTA Building Small Businesses Program’ is its holistic, step-by-step approach to help DBEs build the
financial capacity and the business acumen to work on large projects for CTA and across the state.” The program was created through a partnership between CTA, RPM contractor Walsh-Fluor DesignBuild Team, and the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC Chicago). The program consists of free capacity-building workshops for small businesses that are certified as Disadvantaged Business Enterprises or that are interested in becoming DBEcertified. The RPM project and LISC Chicago partnership was one of 12 partnerships in Chicago that was recently identified for funding support from the Chicago Community Trust, The Coleman Foundation, JPMorgan Chase and Robert R. McCormick Foundation. The program provides one-on-one financial guidance and helps with prequalifying for loan packages. Firms that do not immediately prequalify for financing will be given access to direct loan placement for financial needs like mobilization, working capital for payroll, equipment and other cash flow needs. The program includes education on insurance and bonding. Qualifying firms can also receive back-
office support, technical assistance and other business training. Beyond helping DBEs compete, the program aims to grow the number of DBEs in the state, currently at about 2,000, and to encourage more of them to do business with CTA. The first in a series of these free programs was held in September and a second program was held Oct. 24-25. Already, 45 Chicago area small businesses have participated in fall 2019, and many are moving forward with LISC Chicago to build the capacity to be ready to bid for sub-contract work on RPM; including becoming loan-ready to build their business. Currently, multiple participants are
“We’ve heard from many small businesses that it can be extremely difficult and intimidating to bid on large projects...” - CTA President Dorval R. Carter Jr.
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pursuing loan opportunities and competing for work on the RPM Phase One Project. The CTA Building Small Businesses Program is made possible in partnership with LISC Chicago, a leading community development support organization. LISC brings a network of neighborhood financial opportunity centers and other partners to provide financial education, financial products to build credit and assets and a network of community partners to offer technical assistance for these small businesses. LISC is leveraging support for this program through its Entrepreneurs of Color Fund, a partnership with JPMorgan Chase, Fifth Third Bank, US Bank, Providence Bank and First Midwest Bank, to provide flexible and low-cost loan capital to minority entrepreneurs on Chicago’s south and west sides. In addition, the Businesses of Color Partnerships Fund led by
the Chicago Community Trust, The Coleman Foundation, JPMorgan Chase Foundation and Robert R. McCormick Foundation, is providing grant funding to support the program. The Walsh-Flour design-build team broke ground on the project in fall 2019 with the construction of a bypass bridge to ease congestion on the 100-year-old rail line in Chicago’s densely populated Lakeview neighborhood, on the city’s northside. Additional Phase One work also will include the reconstruction of nearly two miles of tracks and the replacement of four CTA stations. CTA trains will remain operational throughout the duration of the project. “The Red and Purple Lines are part of the daily lives of thousands of Chicagoans,” said Matthew Walsh, co-chairman of Walsh Construction.” “We’re committed to enhancing this vital transit link and delivering reliable,
safe and high-quality infrastructure to the citizens of Chicago.” Phase One of the Red-Purple Line Modernization Program is scheduled for completion by 2025. “The Walsh-Fluor team is working hard to help these small businesses succeed,” said project executive David Shier.
“What is groundbreaking about the ‘CTA Building Small Businesses Program’ is its holistic, step-by-step approach to help DBEs build the financial capacity and the business acumen to work on large projects for CTA and across the state.” - CTA President Dorval R. Carter Jr.
DBE/SWaM OPPORTUNITIES PROMOTED ON THE VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION’S HRBT EXPANSION PROJECT’S TUNNEL TALK PODCAST The Virginia Department of Transportation’s largest-ever construction project is in design. The $3.8 billion Hampton Roads BridgeTunnel Expansion Project will add twin bored tunnels to the existing Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnels, along with newbe I-64 This could aninterstate ad capacity between Hampton and Norfolk, Va. It is a Design-Build project with Hampton Roads Connector Partners (HRCP). The expansion work means significant DBE/SWaM opportunities. Left to right: Queen Crittendon (VDOT-Civil Rights), Malcom Kates (HRCP’s DBE and SWaM Compliance Mgr.), Paula Miller (VDOT Communications) and Bob Anderson (Anderson Productions) tape a podcast for HRBT Tunnel Talk. The podcasts can be found on ITunes and Apple Podcasts. Search for HRBT Tunnel Talk.
Learn more about the DBE and SWaM opportunities on HRBT Tunnel Talk podcasts, visit the project website at www.hrbtexpansion.org or contact Malcolm Kates at mkates@hrcpjv.com
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CIVIL/HIGHWAYS
Toks Omishakin in Rarefied Air as New Director of Caltrans airports, fund three of Amtrak’s busiest intercity rail services, and provide transit support to more than 200 local and regional transit agencies. The Caltrans website states: Omishakin’s transportation vision for California features a safe, sustainable and multimodal transportation system that builds on strong local partnerships. Transformative innovation will also be needed to achieve zero trafficrelated deaths and reduce greenhouse gasses by 40% by 2030. All local communities must be heard and share in the benefits of Caltrans projects, and he encourages a Caltrans culture of innovation and taking intelligent risks. As a strong proponent of public transit, Omishakin believes that making significant investments in transit, like cities such as Austin, Texas and Charlotte, North Carolina, have done is the key to creating a successful multi-modal system. “If you really want to make transit work better for people that live in your city, you have to make investments like that; so that people are not stuck in traffic and they have a dedicated lane to travel on. It’s got to be convenient for people,” he said during an interview aired on YouTube with the Hytch rideshare company in Tennessee.
Adetokunbo “Toks” Omishakin, 33rd Director of the California Department of Transportation
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detokunbo “Toks” Omishakin was appointed the 33rd Director of the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) by Governor Gavin Newsom and was sworn in October 2019. As
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director, Omishakin manages a $15 billion annual budget and nearly 20,000 employees who oversee 50,000 lane miles of highways, maintain 13,000 bridges, provide permitting of more than 400 public-use
Omishakin will need to implement some of these strategies in California as a result of Governor Newsom’s Executive Order N-19-19, signed on September 20, 2019. The order requires increasing the state’s “efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and mitigate the impacts of climate change while building a sustainable, inclusive economy.”
spearheading creation of two bicycle sharing programs. Omishakin was born in Knoxville, Tennessee, to parents originally from Nigeria, (west) Africa. He spent part of his youth in Nigeria but completed high school in Tennessee. He is completing a Ph.D. in Engineering Management from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville; has a master’s degree in Urban and Regional Planning from Jackson State University; and a bachelor’s degree in Engineering Technology from Mississippi Valley State University.
Toks Omishakin prepares to board an Amtrak train in California managed by Caltrans.
One of the directives of the order is to leverage over $5 billion toward transportation construction, operations and maintenance to lower fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions from transportation. This includes strategies for lowering vehicle miles traveled; such as supporting housing development near available jobs and supporting active modes of transportation such as biking and walking that also benefit public health. The order specifically requires that the State works to mitigate increased transportation costs for low-income communities. Omishakin assumes leadership of Caltrans at a time of public safety concerns due to fires that have threatened the region. Caltrans released a video with the director urging citizens to recognize new reflectorized materials the department will place on traffic signals to illuminate the devices if power is out due to the fires. “We need everyone to drive, bike, walk safely, especially through intersections,” he said. “It is our responsibility, nevertheless, to treat every intersection like it is a four-way stop if the power is down.” Omishakin now becomes the fifth African American head of a state
transportation agency; the highest number of African Americans leading state transportation agencies in history. He joins Ohio Department of Transportation Director Jack Marchbanks; Michigan Department of Transportation Director Paul C. Ajegba; Louisiana Department of Transportation Director Shawn Wilson; and Illinois Department of Transportation Director Omer Osman as African Americans in executive leadership of a state highway system. Before joining Caltrans, Omishakin was deputy commissioner for environment and planning at the Tennessee Department of Transportation. There, he successfully established environmental, multimodal and planning policies to make TDOT arguably one of the best DOTs in the country. Omishakin was responsible for an administrative and project budget of more than $300 million annually. He also led the activities of the divisions of Environmental Services, Long-Range Planning, Multimodal Transportation Resources, and the Freight and Logistics Division. In that capacity, he led development of Metro Nashville’s Complete Streets Policy and helped establish a more balanced approach to transportation planning and design. This included
Omishakin said he never expected a career in the transportation industry but found success during his time at TDOT. “I knew I wanted to do something in design like architecture or engineering, but nowhere in my mind did I imagine working at a state DOT,” he said in a TDOT video. However, he now leads one of the largest and most complex transportation systems in the nation.
“We need everyone to drive, bike, walk safely, especially through intersections,” he said. “It is our responsibility, nevertheless, to treat every intersection like it is a fourway stop if the power is down.” - Adetokunbo “Toks” Omishakin
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BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT
Do you know your ROI on Training? By Carolyn Milliron
I
n a rapidly changing global economy in which innovation means the difference between business success and failure, the skills and abilities organizations need and require of their workforce evolves more rapidly than ever before. Perhaps a great solution for a company is to create programs and projects for based on specific business needs. Return on Investment (ROI) is a business consideration in every forward-thinking organization – ROI is the touchpoint and should be the heart of any business decisions!
Simple ROI Formula =
• If a company is a $2,000,000 a year enterprise, and implements a training program or starts a safety initiative that saves $230,000 the first year, costs $88,000 to implement, and is projected to save $150,000 per year for the next 10 years, how much savings does this mean for the company over the next 2 years? the next decade? Should these savings matter? • What if two things were changed? At first step toward reaping potential returns is to understand and define business needs. Companies should focus on potential big wins and consider the potential effect change will have on business operations. Companies should always consider the potential ROI when evaluating programs and projects, and should
also align the initiatives with goals and objectives. Then, companies can evaluate which tools are appropriate and support the efforts. Items such as safety, financial impact, quality, efficiency, productivity, profitability, capacity and others should always be a part of the decision-making process. A fully integrated and carefully thought out training program or project for a company can produce a massive positive change. This effort can begin with bringing together key leaders for a “referee led” brainstorming session to create an initial list of needs and challenges. This process should encourage a company to think big and identify a variety of ideas, thinking outside the box about opportunities to address. The outside referee can help the organization list changes, improvements and training needed over the next three years, and the groups of employees that would need the program.
Financial Value – Project Cost Project Cost Financial Value – Project Cost
For example, training program or safety-based Simple ROIaFormula = implementation showing financial Projectvalue Costof 700,000 – 500,000 $700,000 and a project cost of $500,000 would consider the ROI by the = following calculation:
500,000
=
700,000 – 500,000 500,000 (with a) ROI of = 40%
Carolyn Milliron is CEO of Keystone Environmental, Health and Safety Services Inc. For decades, Carolyn has been immersed in assisting (with a) ROI of = 40% commercial and industrial contractors to improve their capabilities, capacity and knowledge of what it takes to move a company from just making it through the project to becoming a legacy business. Keystone EHS Services works for companies to establish and maintain high standards of construction safety and compliance and is laser focused on helping construction companies “Stay Safe, Save Time, Cut Costs, and Gain More Work”. / FALL 2019
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G R E AT E R O R L A N D O A V I AT I O N A U T H O R I T Y
How To Do Business With
GOAA
15th Annual
Small Business Networking Event
December 12, 2019 7:30am
REGISTER TODAY RSVP by November 22, 2019 goaanetworkingevent.eventbrite.com
Hyatt Regency Orlando Hotel
9801 International Drive, Orlando, FL 32819
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For Additional Information: 407.825.7133 sbd-events@goaa.org
