The New York & New Jersey Minority Supplier Development Council Honors Top Corporations and Minority Businesses with 2012 Partnership Awards

NEW YORK, NY, January 11, 2013 (Press-News.org) The New York & New Jersey Minority Supplier Development Council (The Council) Partnership Awards Gala honored top minority entrepreneurs, Fortune 500 companies and public agencies for their successes in creating outstanding business collaborations on December 12 at the New York Marriott Marquis.

The "National Corporation of the Year Award" was presented to PepsiCo. Public Service Enterprise Group (PSEG) received the "Regional Corporation of the Year Award." Sheri Shafir, associate director of Supplier Diversity, Novartis Pharmaceutical Corporation, received the "Advocate of the Year Award.

Minority-owned businesses certified by The Council that received "Supplier of the Year Awards" were: "Class 2" Michael E. Smith, president & CEO, The Griffin Security Agency and "Class 4" winner David W. Barfield, CEO, The Bartech Group.

"These corporate members and minority entrepreneurs showcase the opportunities for business growth. They are front line supplier diversity advocates," said Lynda Ireland, president & CEO, The Council. "The Council's jurisdiction has expanded to include the entire state of New York. Also, Governor Andrew Cuomo has committed a 20-percent New York State government spend with women and minority businesses. It's an exciting time for New York's minority businesses."

The glamorous evening was hosted by Doug Melville, chief diversity officer at TBWA Worldwide, and featured a powerful singing performance by Neve Polius, a 17year-old member of SCO Family of Services. There were presentations by Ireland, Pauline Gebon, vice president of supplier diversity, Adecco USA and chairperson of The Council; Joset Wright, president & CEO, National Minority Supplier Development Council; Leecia Eve, deputy secretary for Economic Development, State of New York; and Rev. Jacques Andre De Graff. Other business leaders included: Javier Palomarez, president & CEO, U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and John Lau, president, New Jersey Chinese-American Chamber of Commerce. The corporate co-chair was Carol Britton, managing director and chief procurement officer, BNY Mellon and the MBE co-chair was Leo Russell, founder and CEO, Pride Technologies.

For more information, contact the New York & New Jersey Minority Supplier Development Council at (212) 502-5663 or http://www.nynjmsdc.org

About The Council
The New York & New Jersey Minority Supplier Development Council (The Council), an award-winning affiliate of the National Minority Supplier Development Council, certifies Asian-American, African American, Hispanic-American and Native-American-owned businesses to be eligible to compete for major corporate contracts. The Council has over 200 corporations that are corporate members-- these include Fortune 500 corporations, educational institutions and government agencies such as New York State, New York City and the State of New Jersey. The Council's jurisdiction spans from New York State to Trenton, New Jersey. Currently, there are approximately 1,300 New York and New Jersey minority-owned businesses with annual revenues from $100,000 to $2 billion that are certified by The Council.