Follow the Leader

"People do business with people they know."
It's the 25th anniversary of the Women's Business Council Southwest! To talk about the importance of the organization as well as why women really need to network, Chanel is joined by Debbie Hurst, president and CEO of WBCS, and Sharon Evans, owner and CEO of CFJ Manufacturing.
What does the Women's Business Council Southwest do? Why is diversity so important, not just in employees but also suppliers? How can a strong network benefit you more than some certifications or training programs?
To learn more:
Women's Business Council - Southwest (WBCS): https://www.wbcsouthwest.org
Serving North Central Texas, Arkansas, Oklahoma, and New Mexico, the Women's Business Council - Southwest (WBCS) is headquartered in the heart of the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex, with a satellite office in Austin, Texas. If a women-owned business is headquartered within this four-state region, WBCS is responsible for facilitating their certification.
Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC): https://www.wbenc.org
The Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC) is the largest certifier of women-owned businesses in the U.S. and a leading advocate for women business owners and entrepreneurs.
Sharon Evans of Collections Fine Jewelry & CFJ Manufacturing:
cfjmfg.com

“Fear is what holds all small businesses back.”
There's a lot of fear in the world today, and small business owners are likely feeling their fair share of it. How are they going to survive an extended lockdown? Will business come back when it's over? Are things ever going to be the same?
Andrea Tsakanikas, founder and president of CrewFacilities.com, took the opportunity to adapt her business model to the situation. How did a company focused on managing employee travel change course when there's pretty much no employee travel? She's here to answer that and much more about not letting fear get in the way of what you need to do.
Andrea has represented investors across the US, managing hundreds of thousands of room nights of workforce lodging, rental, and travel products over the span of her career. Since 2007 she served as a management consultant with a specialization in optimizing operations of hotels, workforce and corporate housing, as well as, Class A, B & C multi-family projects, ensuring the highest returns in revenue and profitability. Learn more about her and her company at crewfacilities.com.
Learn more about Chanel Christoff Davis at www.ddhtax.com or on social media @SalesTaxHelp

"The business has...allowed me and taught me to take care of myself."
There's no better time than now to think about what makes your business recession-proof...or what doesn't. Renee Gilmore, president of Firemans Paving Contractors says it was a long road to get from trying to please everyone to doing a few things really well. There are benefits to being in a niche service.
Beyond that, Renee says look for every advantage that's out there. Firemans Paving Contractors has been recognized as a woman-owned business and historically underutilized business, and she says those certifications have opened many doors for them. Companies are often looking to diversify their supply chain.
Learn more about Renee Gilmore and Firemans Paving Contractors at www.firemanspaving.com

"When one of us is stronger, all of us become stronger. So let's share..."
How do you stand out at a time when no one is out doing anything? Jennefer Witter has spent a career getting other people the attention they deserve. Social media is stronger than ever. However, with so much of it being "noise," what do you need to do to rise above it all?
Jennefer never took a business class and never had a desire to be an entrepreneur. Her entrepreneurial journey began in 2003 when she founded The Boreland Group. What she learned was that she has a natural ability for business, which was greatly honed in her former position as a vice president at Ketchum, a global public relations firm where she launched the Corporate Technology division. It generated one million dollars of revenue in its first year.
Learn more about Jennefer and The Boreland Group at theborelandgroup.com
You can also purchase her book "The Little Book of Big PR: 100+ Quick Tips to Get Your Small Business Noticed" at Amazon and Barnes & Noble.
Learn more about Chanel Christoff Davis at www.ddhtax.com or on social media @SalesTaxHelp @FollowTheLeaderPod
Outro music: "Everyday Sunshine" by aneleh

Covid-19 has changed the game for a lot of industries, and what do you do if your business is to supply larger businesses that aren't back to full strength? It's not enough to be unique or check a box - solutions are needed now more than ever.
How do you find the right person to talk to? What are they looking for? How will business be different even when things return to something that looks like normal? Margo Posey is doing her best to answer those questions for minority-owned suppliers. She is the President and CEO of the Dallas/Fort Worth Minority Supplier Development Council.
Posey represents the Dallas/Fort Worth affiliate relationship with the National Minority Supplier Development Council. The D/FW MSDC, based on performance, was ranked Council of the year in 2011 and 2015 and ranked in the top percentile of all Councils in all other years. She also bid and was awarded the grant to operate the Department of Commerce’s Minority Business Development Agency Business Center-Dallas in 2011. The Center specializes in procurement assistance, access to capital and import and export opportunities for its clients locally and nationally, resulting in new job creation, retention, and true economic impact
To learn more about the D/FW Minority Supplier Development Council, go to https://dfwmsdc.com/
To learn more about the National Minority Supplier Council, go to https://nmsdc.org/
Learn more about Chanel Christoff Davis at www.ddhtax.com or on social media @SalesTaxHelp @FollowTheLeaderPod
Outro music: "Everyday Sunshine" by aneleh