Data from the Department of Commerce reveal that minority-owned firms are an engine of job growth and are more likely to export than non-minority-owned firms. These firms account for $1 trillion in gross receipts and employ almost six million Americans. To bolster the economic impact of minority entrepreneurs across the county, the National Advisory Council on Minority Business Enterprise (NACMBE) was established in April 2010.
Commerce Secretary John E. Bryson hosted the fifth meeting of the National Advisory Council on Minority Business Enterprise today at the Commerce Department. The Council, co-chaired by Mark Hoplamazian, CEO of Hyatt Hotel Corporation, and Janice Savin-Williams, Co-founder and principal, Williams Capital Group, includes CEOs, entrepreneurs, investors, and scholarly research experts.
“It’s clear that minority communities and minority-owned businesses were hit hard in the recession. However, in the last 22 months, 3.2 million jobs were created. Also, credit is flowing again to a certain degree,” Bryson said today. “But with your help, we can foster an environment where minority entrepreneurs, innovators, and business leaders can do what they do best – create jobs.”
Bryson called on the NACMBE members to help develop policies that are centered around the Department of Commerce’s key priorities which include manufacturing, the National Export Initiative (NEI), and more investment in the United States. Bryson also discussed the importance of the Administration’s new initiatives, BusinessUSA and SelectUSA, which will help entrepreneurs become global leaders and successfully compete for consumers outside U.S. borders.
Since its creation, NACMBE has focused on key issues such as developing a new definition of minority business enterprise, creating an ongoing forum to support the growth and expansion of minority business owners, and ways to foster strategic alliances between minority business enterprises and other businesses leading to accelerated growth and export expansion. The Council expects to release its report on policy issues affecting the growth of minority-owned firms and offer recommendations by mid summer.
