Diversity Connection Newsletter Heading
August 2014

Message from the Director

 

Lo-Res Director Coleman

In the North Texas Tollway Authority Business Diversity Department, we continue to push ourselves to reach the next level. I have had the opportunity to establish good working relationships with many of our key industry and advocacy groups. Rest assured that the Business Diversity team is continually identifying strategic ways to overcome barriers and enhance existing NTTA programs to spur participation.

 

If you have not had an opportunity to attend one of our outreach events, we encourage you to do so. As we move through the third quarter, I would like to highlight one of our important networking events designed for anyone interesting in doing business with NTTA.

 

NTTA hosted its seventh Tarrant County Vendor Outreach Symposium July 23 at the North Central Texas Council of Governments building in Arlington. The event attracted nearly 115 small business representatives. VOSs are extremely important to NTTA outreach efforts, because we bring the NTTA to the communities we serve and build relationships for future business success.

 

Please visit our website NTTA.org and find upcoming opportunities for all categories, as well as the NTTA's construction letting schedule.  For questions regarding all NTTA procurements email the Procurement Department: [email protected].

 

Should you have any questions or comments, we would be delighted to hear from you. You may contact the NTTA Business Diversity Department at 214-461-2007 or email [email protected].

 

NTTA is open for business. 

 

Anthony Coleman

Director of Business Diversity 

TEAM RECEIVES PRESTIGIOUS AWARD AT 2014 PILLARS AWARDS 

   

NTTA's President George Bush Turnpike Western Extension won the 2014 Project of the Year award at the seventh annual Pillars Awards Breakfast hosted by the Regional Hispanic Contractors Association April 11. NTTA was also nominated as Public Entity of the Year.

 

The event honors outstanding work in the construction, government, and engineering professions.

The award criteria included:

  • Inclusion of disadvantaged, minority-owned, woman-owned business enterprises
  • D/M/WBE subcontractor opportunities.
  • Project innovation and final product.
  • Team effort including project owner, designer, management, administration and field personnel.

The Business Diversity Department helped to improve additional diversity participation, above and beyond the M/WBE goals specified for this contract. 

 

RHCA & NTTA staff including Business Diversity Advisory Council member John Martinez, Anthony Coleman, NTTA Board Director George "Tex" Quesada, Pat Parrish, and Wallace Heimer

NTTA SUPPORTS THE WOMEN'S BUSINESS COUNCIL 

 

NTTA Business Diversity Department staff participated in the Women's Business Council - Southwest businessWORKS in Irving April 10. businessWORKS is the Southwest's leading business development forum for connecting women business enterprises with corporations, businesses, government entities, institutions and other organizations. 

 

The forum provides WBEs the opportunity to get acquainted with possible new business partners and to identify new companies that can assist them in reaching their business goals. NTTA Business Diversity Outreach Coordinator Kimberly Suber spoke to WBEs about upcoming NTTA initiatives and opportunities, telling them woman-owned businesses represent one of the fastest-growing segments of the business environment, not just locally but nationally and internationally as well.

ROAD PROGRAM TEAM MIXERS

 

NTTA Relationships and Opportunities Advancing Diversity Program participants Atkins Corporation and their consultant partner Solaray Engineering hosted a ROAD Program networking event May 22 at their Dallas office. 


The event allowed participating teams to get together in an informal setting to exchange ideas and highlight accomplishments and successes achieved in the previous quarter. Director of Business Diversity Anthony Coleman discussed recent highlights of the ROAD Program, team expectations, upcoming key dates and meeting schedules. The ROAD Program teams also had an opportunity to ask questions, share progress and discuss positive developments among the teams.  

Joe Boyer, CEO of Atkins North American Region (L)

Greg Wilk, Atkins' Senior Group Manager (M)

Anthony Coleman, NTTA Business Diversity Director (R)

      SPONSORED BY:
 

NTTA HOLDS VENDOR OUTREACH SYMPOSIUM

Vendor addresses the crowd during VOS's Getting to Know You Session

 NTTA hosted its Denton County Vendor Outreach Symposium at the Martin Luther King Jr. Recreation Center in Denton April 23. Director of Business Diversity Anthony Coleman spoke about NTTA's accomplishments and reinforced NTTA's commitment to inclusion of small business enterprises in procurements.

 

VOSs provide information about upcoming projects, increase outreach efforts and to market contracting opportunities to the public. The symposium is a traveling road show and a one-stop outreach for prospective vendors.

 

Approximately 65 attendees met with NTTA staff including Project Delivery Manager Ijay Nkele and Assistant Director of Maintenance Victor Pavloff. A "How to Do Business with NTTA" program was presented by NTTA Senior Buyer Reginald Sanderfer.

 

The Denton County Purchasing Division also participated in the event and shared information regarding procurement opportunities. Attendees were invited to network following the program. 

COOPERATIVE INCLUSION PLAN

 

The North Texas Tollway Authority's Business Diversity Department participated in the Cooperative Inclusion Plan University's workshop to increase D/M/W/SBEs and HUBs in highway contracting. NTTA joined with the Texas Department of Transportation, the Black Contractors Association, the Regional Hispanic Contractors Association and the Association of General Contractors at the June 25 event. The CIP partnering organizations represent a network of entities that are committed to facilitating increased diversity participation in highway procurements and providing opportunities for training, mentoring, networking and business development for D/M/W/SBE and HUB firms.

 

The forum was an interactive workshop about strategies for doing business in highway construction contracting. Director of Business Diversity Anthony Coleman and Project Delivery Manager Ijay Nkele represented NTTA. 


 

 

 

ATTEND A SECOND WEDNESDAY BUSINESS CHAT

 

D/M/W/SBE proprietors who are interested in doing business with NTTA or who wish to promote their businesses are encouraged to attend monthly Business Chat Sessions.

 

Business Chat Sessions:

  • Inform vendors of NTTA procurement opportunities
  • Show business operators how to register as a vendor
  • Introduce vendors to NTTA stakeholders
  • Enable vendors to get to know the NTTA

Business Chat Sessions are designed to provide an informal setting for vendors to meet with key decision-makers at NTTA and to share information about their respective companies. NTTA staff will explain the bidding process and talk about upcoming procurement opportunities within various NTTA departments. Sessions also allow NTTA staff to present information to vendors in a manner that is tailored to their specific industries.

BUSINESS DIVERSITY RECOGNIZES CONSTRUCTION WORKERS



 


 

NTTA Business Diversity staff continued their small business outreach efforts at the Regional Hispanic Contractors Association event honoring construction workers June 7 at Dallas Fair Park. Approximately 300 attendees celebrated "The Day of the Construction Worker." RHCA President and NTTA Business Diversity Advisory Council Chairman John H. Martinez and NTTA Director of Business Diversity Anthony Coleman participated in the celebration. The RHCA recognized Dallas-Fort Worth area construction workers and their families. The RHCA promotes and supports the advancement and economic growth of Hispanic contractors in Texas and is committed to developing programs needed to help Hispanic contractors reach their potential.

STAFF PARTICIPATES IN BUSINESS EXPO


Business Diversity staff met with its regional partners and advocacy groups last month during the Dallas/Fort Worth Minority Supplier Development Council's ACCESS Business Expo May 13-14 at the Irving Convention Center. ACCESS is the largest business expo in the Southwest, linking minority-owned businesses with corporations, public sector agencies and prime federal suppliers. During the expo there was an opportunity for attendees to network, build relationships and learn more about North Texas business opportunities.

 

The expo also connects minority business enterprises with corporations, businesses, government entities, institutions and other organizations. The MBE Showcase featured certified MBEs and their products and services. BDD staff informed MBEs about upcoming NTTA initiatives and opportunities.

VENDOR CONTRACT COMPLIANCE TRAINING WORKSHOPS 


 

Effective September 1, 2014, all prime contractors with a PRISM requirement in their contracts with NTTA must report all payments to subcontractors/suppliers (minority and non-minority) via PRISM, a secure, web-based contract compliance reporting system to capture prime and sub-contractor spending for NTTA contracts.

 

The objective of the contract compliance system is to simplify vendor monthly reporting, increase efficiency, and save contractors time. All prime contractors are required to complete a vendor training workshop prior to using the new contract compliance tracking system.

 

Business Diversity department staff conducts the free training workshops each month and leads vendors through an overview of the new system, and NTTA contract compliance reporting requirements.


 

https://NTTA.prismcompliance.com


 

CONTACT US FOR MORE INFORMATION

 

Please visit our website NTTA.org and find upcoming opportunities for all categories, as well as NTTA's construction letting schedule.  For questions regarding all NTTA procurements, email the Procurement Department: [email protected] .

 

Should you have any questions or comments, we would be delighted to hear from you. You may contact the NTTA Business Diversity Department at (214) 461-2007 or email [email protected].

BUSINESS DIVERSITY ADVISORY COUNCIL 

 

Consisting of business and community leaders, the NTTA Business Diversity Advisory Council helps guide NTTA in its efforts to encourage the participation of D/M/W/SBEs in NTTA contract opportunities. The group assists NTTA's Business Diversity Department with outreach activity, serves as a primary resource in identifying specific industry groups to target for procurements and helps identify barriers experienced in contracting by D/M/W/SBE programs. 

 

John Martinez-D

Chairman of BDAC

(Dallas County)

 

John Proctor

(Dallas County) 


Shannon Bettis

 (At-Large)

 

Phyllis Cole

(Collin County)

 

Cindy Dao

 (Collin County)

 

Kerry Goree

(Denton County)

 

Eddie Reyes

 (Denton County)

 

Trelaine Mapp

 (Tarrant County)

 

Luis Galindo

 (Tarrant County)

VENDOR REGISTRATION

 

Stay apprised of NTTA opportunities by registering online at NTTA.org.  Registering allows your firm to automatically receive emails for NTTA bid opportunities that match your company's registered skill sets by specific commodity codes.

 

UPCOMING OPPORTUNITIES

 

Visit NTTA.org  to find upcoming opportunities for  four industry-specific categories, as well as the construction letting schedule. 


CONTACT US

   

For questions regarding 

 vendor outreach, email [email protected] or call 972-447-3333.

 

For questions regarding business diversity, email [email protected] or call 214-461-2007.

 

For questions regarding all procurements, email [email protected].

 

Visit the Business Diversity Department online at NTTA.org for direct access to the NTTA's Diversity Policy, Contractors Compliance Handbook, compliance report forms and other helpful links. 

 

OUTREACH PROGRAMS

 

ROAD Logo  

Vendor Outreach Sympsoium

 

2nd Wednesday Business Chats

 

Cooperative Inclusion Plan

 

 

"Connecting the Dallas-Fort Worth highway transportation providers and contractor associations"

NTTA's Business Diversity Team
North Texas Tollway Authority