AT&T, Walmart, GM, and Microsoft all have one thing in common; they can be found among 21 major corporations on the Billion Dollar Roundtable, a group that spends at least one billion dollars with tier 1 minority and women-owned business enterprises. In a world of minority purchasing, the Billion Dollar Roundtable stands out.
Billion Dollar Diversity Spend
The Billion Dollar Roundtable was created in 2001 to recognize and celebrate corporations that achieved $1 billion in spend with minority and woman-owned suppliers. In April 2005, the Roundtable consisted of 12 companies. Three more companies were inaugurated in 2008: Toyota, Hewlett-Packard, and Procter & Gamble. That brought the total of companies with one billion in diversity spend to 15. The BDR inducts new members bi-annually.
In addition to their procurement dollars, the BDR promotes and shares best practices in supply chain diversity excellence through the production of white papers. In discussions, the members review common issues, opportunities, and strategies. What’s more, the BDR encourages corporate entities to continue growing their supplier diversity programs by increasing commitment and spending levels each year.
According to its website, BDR members must meet the following criteria:
They must have an established supplier diversity program with significant resources to manage outreach efforts and influence both internal and external customers.
They must have audited and verified allocation of dollars sourced to MWBE suppliers.
They must have corporate membership with the National Minority Supplier Diversity Council as well as suppliers with NMSDC certification.
Top Companies for Supplier Diversity
Black Enterprise has reviewed the status of companies across all BE diversity and corporate leadership lists, including the Top 35 Companies for Supplier Diversity and the 40 Best Companies for Diversity. Several BE 100s Industrial/Services companies—such as Fair Oaks Farms, a supplier of custom meats, ranked number 12 with $258.4 million in revenue—are suppliers to BDR members.
Sharon Patterson, BDR President and CEO, maintains that the organization highlights companies that clearly demonstrate supplier diversity as a “strategic imperative.” Moreover, she shares common characteristics among BDR members, such as commitment via the C-suite, fully implemented inclusion throughout the supply chain, and willingness of corporations to take risks to advance competitiveness through development and joint ventures.
Patterson told BlackEnterprise.com, “We celebrate those companies because having a billion or more in spend says you have a world class program. We audit members and document their best practices, so we can share them with other companies.”
The 21 Billion Dollar Corporations
BDR members cut across a wide range of industries. Here are the 21 BDR members who drive and develop programs to help black businesses achieve that often elusive tier 1 status (direct suppliers to original equipment manufacturers).
AT&T
Avis
Boeing
Chrysler
Comcast
Dell
Ford Motor Company
General Motors
Honda
IBM
Johnson Controls
Johnson & Johnson
Kroger
Lockheed Martin
Microsoft
P&G
Toyota
Verizon
Walmart
Bank of America
Kaiser Permanente
Source: Black Enterprise Magazine
