NEW YORK, June 12, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The National Minority Supplier Development Council (NMSDC) is partnering with Rutgers University's Center for Urban Entrepreneurship and Economic Development (CUEED), Covenant Business Concepts, and Ideation to Valuation to offer the ScaleUP Capacity Building Cohort as part of NMSDC’s MBE Center for Accelerated Growth, Innovation, and Resiliency's programming.

The ScaleUP Capacity Building Cohort is an intensive learning program that bridges the gap between capacity-building tools and resources for minority business enterprises (MBEs) and socially and economically disadvantaged individuals (SEDIs). Participants will engage in a structured curriculum that combines higher education and expert-led webinars, workshops, personalized coaching, peer learning, and access to other vital resources. The program is meticulously crafted to address the specific needs of underserved businesses, fostering an environment where they can thrive and grow and in return increase their market share position while accelerating their potential to become a high-growth, scalable MBE/SEDI entrepreneur.

The curriculum for ScaleUP will focus on 15 subject areas comprising:

• Strategic Growth Planning.
• Pitching for Success and Growth.
• Succession Planning.
• Negotiating Corporate Contracting.
• Understanding Your Brand.
• Selling and Driving Your Revenue Line.
• Exploring High Growth Emerging Markets.
• Risk Management and Cyber Security Management.
• Exploring Joint Ventures, Acquisitions, and Mergers.
• Effective Capacity Building.
• Ideation or Opportunity
• Export and Globalization Planning.
• Customer Service Excellence.
• Defining Your Competitive Advantage.
• Recruiting, Hiring, and Training Employees.

The cohort is made possible thanks to a Capital Readiness Program grant from the Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA). The grant aids underserved entrepreneurs in launching or scaling existing businesses, accessing State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI) capital, participating in other governmental programs that support small businesses, and securing other forms of capital.

“The ScaleUP Capacity Building Cohort is an important addition to the MBE Center for Accelerated Growth, Innovation, and Resiliency,” said NMSDC senior director of strategic partnerships and MBE services, Jetheda Hernandez. “The partnership of organizations like CUEED, Covenant Business Concepts, and Ideation to Valuation is critical to providing the tools and resources MBEs need to grow. This will help achieve our goal of achieving $1 trillion in annual revenue for certified MBEs by the end of 2030.”

“Rutgers University’s Center for Urban Entrepreneurship & Economic Development is excited and honored to partner with NMSDC on their Capital Readiness Program. This collaboration signifies our commitment to empowering small businesses and fostering economic growth,” said Jasmine Cordero-West, CUEED associate director.

"Our new program is designed to transform diverse and minority-owned businesses and equip them with the tools and networks they need to thrive in today's competitive market. I believe that success comes from businesses going through four stages: training to take action, understanding the 'why' behind the action, personal transformation as a result of new knowledge, and transitioning into innovative and successful companies. The time is now for real change, and we have the right partners, content, and approach to make it happen," said Daryle Johnson of Ideation to Valuation.

“It is an absolute privilege to lend our expertise in support of this important Capital Readiness Program on behalf of NMSDC! As a certified MBE since 2010, we share NMSDC’s unwavering commitment to support small businesses and advance inclusion for socially and economically disadvantaged individuals. Collaborating with Rutgers University, NMSDC, and Ideation to Valuation is a fantastic way to demonstrate what makes NMSDC the gold standard for vendor development initiatives,” said Willie Mae Veasy, Covenant Business Concepts president.

For more information, visit https://nmsdc.org/programs/mbe-center-for-accelerated-growth-innovation-and-resiliency/ or contact NMSDC’s MBDA program director, Maleeka Catron at mbdacrp@nmsdc.org.

About National Minority Supplier Diversity Council
Founded in 1972, the National Minority Supplier Development Council (NMSDC) is the longest-operating business growth engine for the broadest group of systematically excluded communities of color (Asian-Indian, Asian-Pacific, Black, Hispanic, and Native American), and our impact goes far beyond the supply chain. It’s about upward mobility for the emerging majority of Americans, an equal shot at participating in the American experiment of free-market capitalism and entrepreneurship. Its work is about correcting the unequal access to wealth-building opportunities.

About Rutgers CUEED
The Center for Urban Entrepreneurship & Economic Development (CUEED) is the first center of its kind in the nation to integrate scholarly works with private capital, government, and non-profit sectors to develop citywide resources and bring renewed economic growth and vitality through urban entrepreneurship. It promotes and fosters a new generation of urban entrepreneurs who actively seek socially conscious urban renaissance. It hopes to build a world-class research-driven, teaching and practitioner-oriented urban entrepreneurship and economic development program that will transform the economy of the City of Newark, New Jersey, and other urban centers; create wealth in urban communities; and be a model for all urban universities. Learn more at: https://www.business.rutgers.edu/cueed.

About Covenant Business Concepts
Covenant Business Concepts believes that businesses much like people exist to make a profound contribution to the communities in which they live. Those of us who have chosen to answer the call to excellence, share an insatiable quest for meaningful business relationships that drive us to make the very best we have to offer available to ‘like-minded’ business leaders to empower, inspire, and succeed, where others have failed to see opportunities. Learn more at https://www.cbc-nj.com/.

About Ideation to Valuation
Ideation to Valuation is a set of online courses that specifically address the needs of small business owners looking to grow faster. Whether you are just starting out or looking to level up, Ideation to Valuation has what you need to succeed…for the long term. Just like those who go to the gym to get fit, these courses are designed to get your business model fit! Learn more at https://ideationtovaluation.com/.

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Jered Weber
National Minority Supplier Development Council
701.388.7283
jered.weber@nmsdc.org