Web-based tracking system will provide contractors and state agencies on-demand data and analysis of contracts with diverse businesses
Tracking data will help the State of Minnesota meet its aggressive new goals for increasing business with diverse contractors
Saint Paul — To provide more opportunities for minority-, woman-, veteran-, economically disadvantaged, and disabled-owned small businesses, the State of Minnesota is building a Supplier Diversity Dashboard – a new online tool that will help contractors and state agencies track State spending with diverse businesses in real time. A web-based reporting system,which is frequently used in the private sector to increase and sustain supplier diversity, will help the State meet
its aggressive new goals for increasing business with diverse contractors.
“The State of Minnesota must use every available tool to increase opportunities for diverse businesses and individuals in our state. And we have to hold ourselves accountable to keep doing better,” said Governor Mark Dayton. “Applying this private sector innovation to the way our State does business will be essential in achieving our higher contracting goals with diverse businesses.”
The proposed tracking system would provide a comprehensive view of public dollars’ reach into the diverse business community. Currently, State spending data with diverse businesses is limited to direct contracts with those businesses. Many vendors, regardless of ownership, often partner or subcontract with other businesses including diverse businesses to deliver on public contracts. The new reporting system will capture that spending data and inform subcontracting goals for all contracts.
“Data is essential to holding ourselves accountable in our commitment to provide more opportunities for diverse businesses to compete for state contracts,” said Department of Administration Commissioner Matt Massman. “Our private sector colleagues are already successfully using Tier II reporting systems to make their purchasing practices more inclusive.”
The new Supplier Diversity Dashboard will enable businesses that contract with the State of Minnesota to report the percentage of their overall revenue associated with the State’s contracts, and track the percentage of their spending with certified small businesses. State agencies will also be able to easily receive on-demand data for reporting and analysis purposes.
To build this new “Tier II” reporting system, the Minnesota Department of Administration (Admin) has issued a new Request for Proposals (RFP), soliciting bids from IT vendors. Proposals are due to Admin by October 4. More information about the RFP is available on Admin’s website:
http://www.mmd.admin.state.mn.us/process/admin/ptList.asp.
About Minnesota’s New Diversity Goals for Contracts with Diverse Businesses
Last month, Admin announced that at least eight percent of all state purchasing will be with certified minority-, woman-, economically disadvantaged-, disabled-, and veteran-owned small businesses. In addition, the state has set a twelve percent goal of overall state purchasing to be with minority, woman, economically disadvantaged, disabled- and veteran-owned businesses regardless of business size. The state already has a statutory commitment of 25 percent of state purchasing to be done with small businesses, regardless of ownership make-up.
