DIVERSITY NEWS UPDATE - APRIL 2022

2022 Supplier Diversity Award logo

The University has received the Jesse L. Moore Supplier 2022 Diversity Award from INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine, the oldest diversity and inclusion publication in higher education. The Award is named in honor of longtime advocate and economic development pioneer Jesse L. Moore for his leadership in promoting supplier diversity and the success of minority-owned businesses.

The award is a national recognition honoring colleges and universities that take proactive steps to support and engage with minority-owned businesses through supplier diversity offices, unique programs, and leading initiatives. The recipients were selected by INSIGHT Into Diversity based on their efforts to engage and retain suppliers from underrepresented groups.

The University’s Business Diversity Program is committed to expanding and ensuring our educational and procurement practices reflect the values of “diversity, equity and inclusion." The Business Diversity Program is comprised of a multi-disciplinary team, that includes Procurement Services, UW Facilities and the Foster Business School, Consulting and Business Development Center (CBDC) and is focused on raising awareness campus wide to the value of engaging with and providing opportunities for new and existing diverse businesses to grow and thrive; actions essential to building a sustainable and just economy. 

OUR COMMITMENT

The University is committed to Supplier Diversity by maintaining purchasing practices that promote and expand contracting opportunities for diverse suppliers.

The values of inclusion, equity and justice are central to the UW’s mission as a public university, and the fulfillment of those values is what the University’s Race & Equity Initiative seeks to achieve.

The passage of the Statement of Business Equity by the Board of Regents codifies these values in university policy, making it clear that business practices will be guided by a belief in inclusiveness and equity. The UW will actively engage with small businesses, women-owned businesses, and minority-owned businesses to create opportunity and transparency, while supporting the broader economy of Washington.

Purchasing Services is the professional contracting and strategic sourcing arm of Procurement Services, a “procure-to-pay” (wing-to-wing) business service unit within Enterprise Services at the University of Washington. 

The Procurement Contracting Team is available to meet and discuss your planned purchases, and provide guidance related to state, federal and institutional diversity spend goals and opportunities.

Purchasing Services is committed to ensuring that minority-owned, women-owned, small, disadvantaged, HUB Zone, veteran-owned and service-disabled-veteran owned businesses have the maximum practicable opportunity to participate in purchasing and contracting at the University of Washington. We strive to increase the depth and diversity of our supplier pool by promoting fair and open access to the business community.

Purchasing Services is committed to supplier diversity because it provides the UW campus with a broad array of choice and diversity contributes to the expansion of the local marketplace and strengthens our supply base. In addition, when we diversify the university’s supplier portfolio, it increases our ability to secure better pricing, higher quality products and services through increased competitive bid participation.

Purchasing Services' buying staff functions with raised awareness of the purchasing considerations necessary to increase supplier diversity and to maximize contracting opportunities for diverse suppliers.