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SCMBDC Honors "the Best of the Best" at 25th Annual Supplier of the Year Awards Luncheon July 9

LOS ANGELES, June 26, 2009 – Southern California Minority Business Development Council, the region’s leading minority business advocacy organization, will be honoring outstanding minority entrepreneurs at its 25th Annual Supplier of the Year Awards luncheon on July 9 at the Omni Los Angeles Hotel, located at 251 S. Olive St.

Working harder and smarter to grow PGI

 LOS ANGELES, June 17, 2009 – Twenty years ago, when Yvonne Castillo Wasson started her printing business, PGI, few women worked in the male-dominated printing industry and even fewer ran a company.  Wasson, who previously worked as a controller at a printing company, knew early on she had to work harder and smarter than her male counterparts to grow her business in a competitive market.

Human Potential Consultants Help Those with Potential

            LOS ANGELES, May 21, 2009 – In the early days of running Human Potential Consultants, CEO Garnett Newcombe admits she ran her job-training and placement business with her heart and didn't worry about the money. 
 
            That is, until her husband, Eric, who loaned HPC money to stay afloat, said he would no longer help to keep the business alive; she would have to make it on her own.   
 
            Soon after she lost her lifeline, Newcombe won a contest for women entrepreneurs. The prize included financial counseling as well as the services of a career coach. That's when everything started to change for HPC, which partners with government agencies to help hard-to-place people get back to work, including parolees, military veterans, the disabled, and displaced older workers. 
 
            Her career coach helped Newcombe realize that her do-it-all-herself attitude was hampering the company's growth. "I hired people but didn't allow them to do their jobs. They had the skills and abilities to perform their jobs, but I wouldn't allow them to because I didn't trust them," Newcombe says, adding she was passionate about the company's mission -- helping those who had fallen through the cracks.
 
            Newcombe's coach taught her to focus on putting systems in place, tailoring bids to each customer to increase the chances of success, selling her firm to banks to get lines of credit and getting out of the office to network, which meant handing over day-to-day tasks to her employees. Meanwhile, the financial counselor encouraged her to frequently review HPC's business plan, evaluate finances and cash flow every week and restructure the organization. 
 
            Six months later, HPC landed an $800,000 contract with the Department of Corrections and soon became profitable enough for Newcombe to take a salary and pay off debt to her husband.  Other contracts followed, including Twenty-nine Palms Marine Corps Base and Social Security Administration. 
 
            Today, the Carson-based business Newcombe started in 1997 with her sister, Joyce Keener, executive director, has grown from $400,000 in revenue in 2006 to $7 million in 2008, with contract commitments over the next five years worth close to $14 million. The company has 125 employees working out of offices in Carson, Los Angeles, Lynwood, Moreno Valley, and Detroit.
 
            Newcombe, a former sociology professor at Cal State Dominguez Hills, and Keener, who worked for the Department of Rehabilitation in Michigan, formed HPC to provide additional resources to individuals who are unemployed or underemployed, facing extraordinary challenges in obtaining employment and in need of assistance in staying employed. 
 
            Through referrals, about 300 job seekers walk through HPC's doors each month.  The company has a placement rate of 68-70% and has put more than 1,500 individuals in a wide range of full-time jobs, including administrative, warehousing, information technology and construction.
 
            The company offers training programs designed to help individuals reenter the workforce and cover such topics as pre-employment preparation, life skills, substance abuse education, anger management, and budgeting and money management.
 
            Of HPC's success, Newcombe says, "We're not a typical staffing company. We're unique because we combine social skills with emphasis on barriers people are dealing with, help build their character and emotionally strengthen them and help identify their skills and abilities. Our model is a social development model."
 
            The company recently opened a women's residential facility in Lynwood after Newcombe realized that single, unemployed women with no children have a difficult time finding a place to live.  The 30,000-square-foot, dormitory-style facility currently houses about 30 women and will eventually have 90 women who can stay at the facility for up to a year.
 
            The building, a former hospital, was an eyesore and Newcombe, working with the city of Lynwood, says, "I wanted this to be a bright environment. We completely brought it up to living standards. And I had fun doing it, too."
 
            Thanks to the counseling she received, "fate has taken a whole different turn," Newcombe says.  She also credits Southern California Minority Business Development Council for her success, particularly in helping her develop self-confidence.
 
            "Through the council, I was introduced to other business owners, attended networking functions and leadership programs and became a part of the Minority Business Enterprise Input Committee," she says. "Being an MBEIC member has really given me insight into how other business owners do certain things. It helps me better understand what's going on in my business and seek advice," she adds.
 
            The MBEIC is a liaison between member corporations and the minority business community at large and was created to provide feedback from minority businesses to board members on the effectiveness of SCMBDC programs and activities.
 
            Newcombe recalls a time when she and MBEIC Chair Linda Stone worked on a council project together. "I learned so much from her that I came back to the office and changed things in my company.  The whole SCMBDC community has really helped me stay grounded and helped me learn as I moved the company forward."
 
            With HPC performing strongly despite an economic downturn, Newcombe is focused on sustaining and growing the company while continuing to help the unemployed find work. She's still running the business with her heart, but is now confident, financially savvy and no longer needs help from her husband or anyone else.  Like the job seekers HPC assists, Newcombe has reached her full potential.
 
Southern California Minority Business Development Council, the region’s largest nonprofit minority business advocacy organization, serves more than 1,100 minority business enterprises and 200 corporate members throughout 13 counties. Founded in 1975 and headquartered in Los Angeles, it is one of 37 regional councils in the National Minority Supplier Development Council network. For information about SCMBDC, visit www.scmbdc.org, or call (213) 689-6960.
 
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Contact:
Vicki Cho Estrada
(661) 255-8024

SCMBDC's Minority Business Opportunity Day Attracts Large Crowd

LOS ANGELES, Feb. 25, 2009 – Despite the sluggish economy, or maybe because of it, minority entrepreneurs attended Southern California Minority Business Development Council's (SCMBDC) 40th annual Minority Business Opportunity Day (MBOD) in large numbers.

SCMBDC's 40th Annual Minority Business Opportunity Day To Be Held Feb. 17 in Industry Hills

LOS ANGELES, Jan. 28, 2009 – Southern California Minority Business Development Council (SCMBDC) is holding its 40th annual Minority Business Opportunity Day (MBOD) on February 17 at the Pacific Palms Conference Resort, One Industry Hills Parkway in Industry Hills. 

SCMBDC Announces 2009 Seminars for Minority Entrepreneurs

LOS ANGELES, January 28, 2009 -- Southern California Minority Business Development Council (SCMBDC), the region’s leading minority business advocacy organization, will be holding several workshops and seminars aimed at helping minority entrepreneurs manage and grow their businesses.
 

Murray appointed MWD board vice chair

SCMBDC President John W. Murray Jr. was named to his first term as board vice chair of Metropolitan Water District of Southern California.

SCMBDC-Certified Firm Wins National Supplier of the Year Award

Anahau Energy, a natural gas supply services firm in El Segundo, Calif., received the NMSDC award in the category for businesses with sales less than $1 million on October 29 at NMSDC’s annual conference in Las Vegas.  The company, one of four minority firms honored, received the local Supplier of the Year Award from SCMBDC in July, making it eligible for NMSDC’s national award after winning the West regional councils competition.

NMSDC Presents Corporation of the Year Award To Johnson Controls

  • On: 11/07/2008 09:47:49
  • In: MBEs
  • Comments: 0
The National Minority Supplier Development Council (NMSDC) recognized Johnson Controls Inc. with its prestigious “Corporation of the Year” Award on October 29, at an Awards Banquet capping its annual conference. The award recognizes the company’s exemplary achievements in the area of minority business development.

Earvin Magic Johnson is first minority entrepreneur to receive SCMBDCs 2008 Leadership Award

  • On: 11/03/2008 09:33:21
  • In: Events
  • Comments: 0
Successful businessman and NBA legend Earvin “Magic” Johnson became the first minority entrepreneur in Southern California Minority Business Development Council’s (SCMBDC) history to receive its Leadership Award.  The award was presented at the council’s 24th Annual Leadership Award dinner on October 17 at The Beverly Hills Hotel. 
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An affiliate of the National Minority Supplier Development Council
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