Manasota Black Chamber, USF partner to highlight opportunities for small businesses
The Manasota Black Chamber of Commerce and the University of South Florida are partnering on an online seminar for small business owners to learn how to register as a vendor to do business with USF.
Participants can also take part in a question-and-answer session with Terrie Daniel, assistant vice president of the USF Office of Supplier Diversity.
“We know that access to resources can mean the difference between success and failure to a small business,” said Tarnisha Cliatt, president/founder and CEO of the Manasota Black Chamber of Commerce.
In 2015, Cliatt founded the Manatee Black Chamber of Commerce, which grew into the Manasota Black Chamber of Commerce when the organization expanded into Sarasota County. The organization, which finished its first year with 60 members, now has more than 200, Cliatt said.
“I didn’t have the platform to connect with people who look like me. I needed to create something to advance and grow my network,” Cliatt said of the genesis of the Manasota Black Chamber of Commerce. She set out to advocate for Black-owned businesses, to provide resources, help erase disparities in opportunities, and ensure inclusiveness.
“If you know anything about me, you know that if you show me a window of opportunity, I am going to seize it,” she said.
Cliatt wants to open the window of opportunity for her members to do business with USF.
And that’s what the USF Office of Supplier Diversity is all about.
“We are here to connect small, minority, women, and veteran-owned businesses to opportunities within USF and provide educational tools and resources to promote the economic development and sustainability of diverse businesses in the Tampa Bay Region,” Daniel said on the USF web site.
“As an organization, we empower those who have purchasing authority on behalf of USF and encourage them to utilize diverse businesses when making purchases on behalf of the University of South Florida,” Daniel said.
Supplier diversity is not a social program targeting specific groups and it is not intended to create an unfair advantage for women or other historically underutilized groups. It’s about leveling the playing field so that all potential suppliers can participate in and benefit from the opportunities available within USF, according to the USF web site.
The seminar, planned for 1 p.m. Jan. 21, will be held via Microsoft Teams. Register at https://usf.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_07BTK6CONduR18F.
“Join us as we change our community, one business at a time,” Cliatt said.
This story was originally published January 13, 2021 at 1:33 PM.
