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Supplier Diversity in State Contracts
State agencies are required to take specific steps to ensure they give Washington state small, diverse, and veteran-owned businesses equitable access to goods and services contracts. We're working on improving equity in public spending to create more opportunities for Washington businesses, which strengthens our communities.
Our supplier diversity work includes:
- Procurement Inclusion and Equity (PIE) program: We help small, diverse and veteran-owned businesses sell goods and services to Washington state governments. We are also working on changing procurement culture in government purchasing and building pipeline of small, diverse and veteran-owned businesses on statewide goods and services contracts.
- State Contracts Assistance Network (SCAN): We connect small and diverse businesses with organizations and tools to help you be more successful at selling goods and services to the state.
- Business Diversity Advisory Group (BDAG): Comprised of vendors, BDAG advises our Contracts and Procurement Division on ways to reduce barriers for small, diverse and veteran-owned businesses to participate in state contracts for goods and services. BDAG helped us develop the enterprise Supplier Diversity policy.
- Supplier Diversity Community of Practice (SDCP): A forum for procurement professionals to connect and share how they are implementing the enterprise supplier diversity policy and best practices.
- Public Works Business Diversity Program: Working to remove barriers for small and diverse businesses to participate in engineering, architectural, and public works projects. Includes information about inclusion plans and contact information for public works programs.
- Washington Encouraging Diversity, Growth, and Equity (EDGE): This pilot program is designed to give construction firms with a gross revenue averaging no more than $5 million over the last three years a more equitable space in the public works bidding and procurement process.
Want to see how these efforts correlate to improving opportunities in Washington state contracting for small and diverse businesses? View DES statewide contracting and WEBS goals and measures.
Events
Washington Procurement Connect: Strengthening Your Business
Annual conference connecting small, diverse, and veteran-owned businesses in Washington with the procurement professionals from state and local governments, including counties, cities, schools, ports, commissions, and more.
Subscribe to updates
Purchasers
Procurement professionals can get updates about supplier diversity trainings and resources.
Vendors
Are you part of a small, minority, women or veteran-owned business? Sign up for information about free training and networking events, contracting opportunities, and resources for doing business with the state.
Learn how to get started with state contracts: Tips for small, diverse and veteran-owned businesses.
Partners
We work with the Office of Minority and Women’s Business Enterprises (OMWBE) in their efforts to help businesses get certified, conducted a disparity study, partnered on the Washington State Roadmap to Contracting Equity, and support the Subcabinet on Business Diversity.
Related policies
Supplier Diversity - DES-090-06
Executive Order 22-01 Equity in Public Contracting