Ford Networking Seminar in Georgia Generates Business for Minority Suppliers

16 November 2000
Ford Networking Seminar in Georgia Generates Business for Minority Suppliers
    COLLEGE PARK, Ga., Nov. 16 Ford Motor Company
and the Georgia Minority Supplier Development Council are hosting a networking
seminar here today that will link together 150 Atlanta area majority and
minority suppliers.
    The daylong seminar -- held at the Georgia International Convention Center
-- is a way to generate business for minority suppliers.
    "Ford held similar seminars in Chicago in 1999 and in St. Louis,
Cleveland, Toledo and Detroit this year that were very successful," said Rich
Honecker, Ford's executive director of Global Facilities, Materials and
Services Purchasing.  "The minority suppliers who participated in these events
have told us they generated more than $60 million in new business from the
contacts made at the seminars."
    Ray Jensen, director of Ford's Minority Supplier Development Office, said
this year's seminars have been a great success and more are planned for 2001.
    "Ford purchases more than $3 billion a year of goods and services from
minority-owned businesses making our program the largest in the country,"
Jensen said.  "The networking seminars take us beyond just being a large
customer to more than 300 minority suppliers.  These events help us become
better corporate citizens by creating opportunities for minority owned
companies to sell their goods and services to our large suppliers and to do
more business with each other."
    Ford suppliers from the Atlanta area participating in the seminar include
Delta, Herman Miller, UPS, Lucent Technologies, IBM and Barton Malow.
    Ford buys more than $80 billion of car and truck components, office
supplies and factory equipment from nearly 12,000 suppliers.  The automaker's
nationally recognized minority supplier development program led the nation in
buying directly from minority suppliers in 1999 and is expected to do so in
2000.  Ford also offers unique programs designed to improve the efficiency and
effectiveness of its minority suppliers, such as technical and financial
assistance, mentoring and executive training programs.
    Ford also encourages its suppliers to have similar minority supplier
development programs.  Last year Ford launched an internet based 2nd Tier
reporting system (http://www.ford2tier.com ), which suppliers use to report their
purchases from certified minority suppliers.  In 1999 Ford's suppliers
reported purchases of over $1 billion from minority businesses.
    Ford Motor Company's Minority Supplier Development Program can be viewed
at http://www.fordmsd.com .  This Web site also has a special section called
Classified Ads, where Ford suppliers are encouraged to post opportunities for
minority-owned businesses.