GBCC101 Webinar: What is Pacesetters?

The Pacesetters Initiative is a partnership of large and midsized Greater Boston Chamber member organizations who use their collective purchasing power to create opportunities at scale for local enterprises of color.

Pacesetters is aligned with the work of the Chamber’s Committee on Economic Opportunity, which is charged with developing the united response of the business community to economic inequality. Pacesetters is modeled after the Minority Business Accelerator out of the Cincinnati Regional Chamber.

Goals

Contracts: We aim to increase the number of contracts and dollars spent between Greater Boston Chamber members and local minority-owned businesses through a purposeful matchmaking process and bold spending goals.

Commitment: We encourage commitment from the business community to measure, report, and increase spending with local minority-owned businesses.

Partnership: We foster partnership between companies who work together to share best practices that enhance their own supplier diversity efforts, and build momentum around the Pacesetters initiative.

Awareness: We aim to raise awareness of the economic benefits of expanding opportunities to minority-owned businesses and serve as a model for the entire Greater Boston business community.

Pacesetters

Pacesetter companies are Chamber members committed to increasing their supplier diversity spend in number of contracts and dollars. Pacesetters understand the business case of economic inclusion and have worked together to set aspirational goals as a group to enhance their existing individual supplier diversity programs.

Pacesetters are expected to measure, report and increase spending with local minority-owned businesses; exchange best practices with other Pacesetters; identify opportunities within their companies to contract with local minority-owned businesses; and participate in the Chamber’s educational, networking and matchmaking events and programs.

Our Pacesetters

• Comcast
• Eastern Bank
• Fidelity Investments
• Gilbane Building Company
• Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce
• John Hancock
• Northeastern University
• P&G/Gillette
• Partners HealthCare
• Boston Red Sox
• Tufts Health Plan

Are you a Chamber member who wants to learn more about participating as a Pacesetter? Email Sheena Collier, Director of Economic Opportunity.

Minority-Owned Suppliers

Suppliers are local, minority-owned businesses that have an interest and are capable of supplying to large corporate and institutional customers.

They are committed to:

• Growing a healthy and sustainable business revenue stream with corporate relationships
• Sharing information about their business to determine capability and potential matching
• Supporting the ideals of the Chamber’s Committee on Economic Opportunity
• Participating in the Chamber’s educational, network and matchmaking events and programs

Sound like your business? Email Marcela Merino, Senior Program Analyst.

As we grow the Pacesetters Initiative, we will continue to build partnerships & supplier pipelines with existing business support organizations throughout Greater Boston.