Feature
DEMOGRAPHICS of SUCCESSFUL DBEs Results of a National Study By Keen Independent Research
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hat makes a firm successful in the highway construction and engineering industry? How many “successful” minority- and women-owned firms are there across the country? Do firms graduate from the Federal DBE Program – and what happens to them when they do? Keen Independent Research sought to answer those questions by identifying the most successful minority- and women-owned firms working with state departments of transportation and then learning as much as possible about them. The Transportation Research Board of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine (TRB) commissioned the study. The full report will be published by TRB in the coming months (look for Compendium of Successful Practices, Strategies and Resources in the FHWA Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) Program). This research provides the first national examination of DBEs that have been successful working with state DOTs, including program graduates. Following identification of successful DBEs in nearly every state, Keen Independent Research compared the companies’ characteristics to a random
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sample of all DBEs. The study team then conducted an online survey and indepth interviews with state DOTs and successful firms. Research results from this study will appear in two American DBE Magazine articles. The first provides a profile of successful DBEs working for state DOTs. The second will describe how they became successful and any assistance that was important along the way, including through the Federal DBE Program. Although the research focused on firms related to highway construction and engineering, including different types of subcontractors and suppliers, it has applicability to other industries as well.
was on a path toward graduating from the Federal DBE Program, among other criteria. Key facts regarding these DBEs included:
The 749 DBEs identified by state DOTs as successful represent a small share of the approximately 41,000 certified DBEs in the nation. Being certified as a DBE does not guarantee a company’s success (even when just comparing firms that specialize in highway work).
DBEs working with state DOTs do, if rarely, graduate from the Federal DBE Program. State DOTs identified about 100 companies that had graduated, but as many as one-third of those firms re-entered the program as owner net worth or business revenue changed to the point that they were eligible again.
Number of “successful” DBEs Keen Independent Research worked with state DOT staff and other groups to identify the DBEs that were most successful in working with their state DOTs. They identified 749 successful DBEs, including graduated firms, based on different criteria for “success.” For example, a firm met the criteria for “successful” if it received considerable work on state DOT contracts, competed for prime contracts, had graduated or
About one-half of the 749 successful DBEs are white women-owned firms, which is more than what one would expect given the relative number of all DBEs owned by white women. About 17 percent are Hispanic American-owned firms and 16 percent are African American-owned businesses. Table 1 shows detailed results by group.
