Supplier Diversity Newsletter

Greetings Partners,

New OMWBE Certified Businesses

Every month we share a list of the most recent state certified businesses including the business name, contact information, business description, etc. This list is best utilized regularly in combination with OMWBE's Directory of Certified Businesses.

Please contact our Supplier Diversity team for assistance using our online directory, or to schedule a virtual training for your procurement team.

Email: supplierdiversity@omwbe.wa.gov

Toolkit Workshops:  Subcontractor Inclusion Plans

Please join us on  for a conversation about using Access Equity to track subcontractor spending, using Subcontractor Inclusion Plans, and developing an inclusive procurement effort.

Workshop Date: May 11th at 10:00 am

This will be our last session using the webinar platform. After this, we are shifting to a meeting format that will allow us to use breakout rooms and go back to making these workshops more interactive while ensuring that these are a secure and safe place to share ideas on how to use the Tools for Equity in Public Spending.

Become a piece of the PIE! – Procurement, Inclusion, and Equity Community of Practice

OMWBE is partnering with DES to provide a forum in which goods and services procurement professionals can connect and share how they are working on improving supplier diversity, using the Tools for Equity in Public Spending as required by Executive Order 22-01, and making the operational changes necessary for complying with the Supplier Diversity Policy. These monthly sessions will provide information regarding supplier diversity best practices as well as provide time to be interactive, using breakout rooms and focused conversations around supplier diversity, so please be ready to share and talk with your colleagues in state, city, county government, higher ed, and other entities about the challenges you are facing and how you can address them.

These sessions take place on the 3rd Thursday of every month from 1:00 to 2:30. These sessions will continue to grow and change to keep them inclusive, technologically secure, and meet your needs; this includes revising how we manage invitations and RSVPs. For now, you can contact the DES PIE Team at despieprogram@des.wa.gov to request an invitation.

Access Equity - November Open House Recording

As we move into Phase 2 of Access Equity implementation, we have received several questions from our state agency partners about program expectations and requests for general information about the tools the system provides.

OMWBE hosted an Access Equity Open House event on November 2022, that was recorded and made available for viewing in addition to the slide deck. The first 20 minutes of the video cover the presentation, followed by audience Q&A. Please refer to these materials that cover the "Why?" behind Access Equity.

If we have already contacted you to identify your role in your organization's adoption, please stay tuned for more detailed instructions coming your way soon. 

DES Supplier Diversity Policy Launch

The Department of Enterprise Services’ (DES) new, enterprise-wide supplier diversity procurement policy took effect April 1. It requires state agencies to include supplier diversity considerations in all aspects of their goods and services contracts. OMWBE and DES are working in close partnership to help agencies meet the new requirements, which are reinforced by the best practices outlined in the Tools for Equity in Public Spending.

If you would like to include others on our distribution list to receive these monthly supplier diversity emails, please let us know at supplierdiversity@omwbe.wa.gov.