NATIONAL ASSOCIAT ION OF WOMEN BUSINESS OWNERS � CAL IFORNIA � SUMMER 2008

CPUC (California Public Utilities Commission) certifi-cation and outreach to utility companies has broughtnew business to Attorney Lisa Greer Quateman and her

Century City (Los Angeles) law firm, Quateman LLP.Betsy Berkhemer-Credaire, past president of

NAWBO-CA, is a volunteer member of the CUDC(California Utilities Diversity Council), a consortium ofthe publicly owned energy companies which are regulat-ed by the CPUC and want to do more contracting withwomen and minority owned firms. Betsy encouragedmany NAWBO member law firms to attend a CUDC“meet and greet” where they could meet the generalcounsels of the Investor-Owned Utilities (IOUs).

Lisa attended many diversity outreach receptions and acquainted herself with decision-makers for Verizon, AT&T, Sempra Energy, Southern California Edison and Pacific Gas& Electric. Lisa’s persistence and continued correspondence eventually gained her firm itsfirst utility contract.

“Lisa paid her own way to Sacramento, and then followed up continuously with theutility contacts she made there,” said Betsy. “But it paid off. Winning her first contracttook months to accomplish, but was due to her persistence, and making continuousefforts to build relationships.”

Quateman LLP hopes to gain more business in the areas of transactional finance, cor-porate, real estate and municipal law. “We are proud of our expanding utilities expertise,and impressed that utility representatives are actively involved in procurement,” saidLisa. In particular, Lisa applauds the efforts of CPUC’s sincere commitment to promoteequal opportunity in contracting. “We hope that our IOU clients will continue toentrust us with increasing responsibilities and that additional utilities will give us a try.”

The CPUC also accepts WBENC certification. For more certification success stories,please go to page 2.

CPUC Certification Grows Business1431LaColinaTustin,CA92780714-832-5012

PrintingandmailinggenerouslydonatedbyUnionBankofCalifornia

NATIONALASSOCIATIONOFWOMENBUSINESSOWNERS

NAWBO-CALIFORNIANATIONAL ASSOCIATION OFWOMEN BUSINESS OWNERS714-832-5012www.nawbo-ca.org

2007-2008 Board of DirectorsEva S. Garcia, PresidentMary Griffin,

VP of Legislative ActionMay Pon, TreasurerFrances Nevarez,

VP of Corporate RelationsJerri Hemsworth,

Past President 2004-2006Betsy Berkhemer-Credaire,

Past President 2003/2004

NAWBO California is aconsortium of these seven chapters

Inland EmpireOrange Co.SacramentoSan Diego

San FranciscoSilicon ValleyVentura Co.

NAWBO California is pleased to be a sup-porter of the Women’s Leadership Exchange®(WLE) all-day conference for established womenbusiness owners. Being held on August 12 at theLong Beach Convention Center, The West CoastSummit Conference will connect up and comingwomen in business with over 650 female entre-preneurs, top business experts, corporate leadersand more.

NAWBO member registration is only$199, a $50 SAVINGS.

This year’s all-new program includes:� Keynote Speaker: Dr. Sarah Weddington,

Attorney, Legislator, Presidential Advisor,Professor, and Leadership Expert

� Compass/Vanguard Award Winners:� Sung-Joo Kim Chairperson & CEO of

Sungjoo Group/MCM Group� Paula Madison Executive Vice President,

Diversity, NBC Universal & CompanyOfficer, General Electric

� Expert advice and seminars on topics likeInternet Marketing, Growth Strategies,Management, Technology and Leadership,including a presentation by Mimi Donaldson,NAWBO-Los Angeles member and nationalkeynote speaker.

� The opportunity to connect with hundreds ofsuccessful CEO’s, Top Executives andPresidents with our “Quick Connections” pro-gram designed to help you meet like-mindedwomen for networking, collaboration, forgingpartnerships and alliance opportunities.

� Speed Coaching

NAWBO members must use the registrationform on the WLE web site:www.womensleadershipexchange.com or call888-937-5800 and tell them you want theNAWBO member discount!

WLE Women Business Owners Summit August 12!

Dear Friends:It has been my honor to

be the President of NAWBO-California for the past twoyears. In past issues we have

focused on health care, other public policyissues, networking, leadership and grow-ing your business. It is with great pride dur-ing my last newsletter issue as Presidentthat we focus on the importance of beingcertified as a woman-owned business.

Our lead story gives an example of howcertification with the state of California isimportant. On page 2, see information onan initiative being led by WIPP (WomenImpacting Public Policy) to better the num-bers of WBEs for federal procurement.

On page 2 and 3 we have more infor-mation on WBENC and NWBOC, twonon-profit certification organizations thatare essential to help you do business withcorporations. These certifications are pri-marily for companies that are trying togrow their business in the corporate arena.

We hope this issue inspires you to getcertified at all levels to assist with your busi-ness growth. And again, thank you for theopportunity to lead and learn from such adynamic group of women!

Sincerely,Eva GarciaNAWBO-California President2006-2008

WBE Certification stands for WomanBusiness Enterprise and denotes that awoman (or women) has majority ownershipand control of a business entity. WBECertification is not based on company size,number of employees, or profitability. Beingcertified as a WBE means that a businessconcern has gone through a rigorous andstringent certification process to confirm thebusiness is owned, managed, and controlledby a woman or women.

Any woman-owned business whose own-ers are U.S. citizens or Legal Resident Aliens

and whose business formation and principalplace of business are in the US or its territo-ries, can apply for WBE Certification if thecompany meets the criteria of majority own-ership and control of the business. By law,majority ownership means at least 51% ofthe business is owned by a woman orwomen. A woman has control of the businessif she is the final decision maker for allaspects of the business - financial, produc-tion, contracting, etc. WBE Certification isgender-based, not race-based, so a womanof any race can apply.

WHAT IS WBE CERTIFICATION?WLE Summit Coming SoonSee page 4 for details.

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N AW B O m e a n s b u s i n e s s . G e t i n v o l v e d . F o r m o r e i n f o r m a t i o n , g o t o N AW B O - C A . o r g

Certification got TV coverage forHelen Russell of Equator EstatesCoffee & Teas

Helen Russell and co-owner/founderBrooke McDonnell, embarked on the

beverage frontier by creating a forefront com-pany that commanded business efficiency withsocial responsibility and sustainable practices.Equator Estate Coffees & Teas, Incorporated isa small boutique artisan wholesale coffeeroasting company based in San Rafael.

It has seen a 10-20% annual growth ratesince its creation in 1995. They plan to opena roasting facility on the East Coast toachieve more growth.

Helen recently used the NWBOC certifica-tion to confirm Equator was a women ownedbusiness for an upcoming profile on CBS localtelevision, Her Company, Her Vision.

Helen also has led efforts to make Equatora socially and environmentally responsiblecompany by investing in an energy efficientroaster, a biodiesel delivery truck, and by

purchasing coffees and teas from growerswho practice responsible land stewardshipand bio-friendly farming techniques. “Webelieve that our efforts to support growersand the environment are a competitiveadvantage and we intend to remain in theforefront on issues of sustainability.”

For more information on Helen Russelland Equator Estates Coffee & Teas visitwww.equatorcoffess.com.

Success of a Gelatin Goddess

In 1982, Maria de Lourdes (Lulu) Sobrinobrought her gelatin treats to the California

market and has since achieved phenomenal suc-cess as founder and CEO of Lulu’s DessertCorporation—one of the largest Hispanic ownedbusiness in the United States.

Her certification with NWBOC hasstrengthened the reputation of Lulu’sDessert Corporation as a sincere, successfulwoman-owned business dedicated to cus-tomer satisfaction.

Lulu came up with the great idea of ready-to-eat gelatin when looking for the populardessert in the United States. A staple in hernative Mexico, the concept was new to the U.S.and a novelty when she introduced it toAmerican grocers in California. She recognizeda need, filled it and revolutionized the foodindustry by creating the first ready-to-eat gela-tin category, based on her own mother’s recipe.

With an impressive client roster of HEB,Wal-Mart, Kroger, Safeway, Vons, Albertson’s,Ralphs, Stater Brothers, and SuperiorWarehouse, Lulu uses her certification as away to track and look for new customers tohelp expand. “We hope to expand the marketwith the help of the government and moregrocery store chains around the country.”

More Certification Success Stories

Women Impacting Public Policy(WIPP) is leading the efforts forwomen business owners to register

on the CCR (Central Contractor Registration) forfederal contracting. (All NAWBO members areautomatically members of WIPP).

In order to participate in federal procure-ment contracting, a business must be regis-tered on the Federal Government’s database,the CCR (Central Contractor Registration).Although there are almost 500,000 smallbusinesses currently registered on the CCR,less than 60,000 are women-owned enterpris-es. To get our fair share of contracts, we needto register and be counted.

“Registration is easy and takes less than15 minutes. The government literally buys

every type of product and service, so WIPPasks each and every woman business ownerto register and be counted.

WHY IS THIS SO IMPORTANT?The good news:

� Women business owners account for48% of small businesses in America. We arerecognized as the engine of the Americaneconomy, generating $1.9 trillion in annualsales and employing almost 13 million people.

The not-so-good news:� In 2000, Congress set a goal that 5%

of contracts issued should be set aside forwomen, but so far, almost eight years later,we have not exceeded 3.3%.

� The government awards more than $400BILLION in contracts each year and womenbusiness owners get only $11 billion of thatmoney. These sad statistics will not changeunless we are counted—and to be counted,each of us must register on the CCR.

The 10.6 million women business ownersin the USA need to be counted. Register onthe CCR TODAY!

For more information, please contact WIPP at1-888-488-WIPP, or email at ccr@WIPP.org.

Women Impacting Public Policy is a nationalbi-partisan group comprising over half a millionmembers. The non-profit organization is theVoice for Women in Business in Our Nation’sCapital for its individual members and themembers of 45 national small business groups.

Every Business Woman Counts!Register And Be Counted!! About NWBOC

The National Women Business OwnersCorporation (NWBOC) has led the way forwomen business owners to obtain WBECertification. Created in 1995, NWBOC wasestablished to increase competition for corporateand government contracts through implementa-tion of a national certification program forwomen business owners. NWBOC was createdin response to needs identified by theProcurement Special Interest Group of theNational Association of Women BusinessOwners (NAWBO).

Certification kits are available online atwww.NWBOC.org. You can always print theapplication from the website, but now you canpurchase a kit for $39.95 plus shipping. Thekit, customized to the business entity (i.e. LLC,corporation, partnership, sole proprietorship)contains a notebook, dividers, the application,helpful hints for what materials to include, andother information.

About WBENCFounded in 1997, the Women’s Business

Enterprise National Council (WBENC) is thenation’s leading third-party certifier of businessesowned and operated by women, and a leadingadvocate of women’s business enterprises (WBEs)as suppliers to corporate America. The averageWBENC certified company has revenues of$7.5M, 49 employees and 14 years of experience.More than 60 WBE firms have revenues in excessof $100M, and six certified WBE companies haverevenues in excess of $1 billion. 248 US corpora-tions are active members of WBENC and repre-sentatives of 36 corporations sit on the WBENCBoard of Directors, along with nine representa-tives of its partner organizations and nine WBEs.WBENC certification is accepted by more than

700 corporations, representing America’s mostprestigious brands, as well as government entitiesat the state, local and Federal levels.

WEBuy@wbenc.org is an online marketplacewhere corporations and government agencies, aswell as WBEs, post RFPs, sources sought, andRFIs. WBENCLink is an Internet database,accessed by WBENC corporate members andcertified women’s business enterprises (WBEs),which contains information on certified women’sbusinesses for purchasing managers nationwide.

WBENC StudyWomen business owners are global, green

and giving back, according to over 1,200respondents of a member survey conducted bythe Women’s Business Enterprise NationalCouncil (WBENC).

The survey found that 25 percent of respon-dents have gone global or are in the process ofgoing global, an overwhelming 71 percent aretrying to make their businesses greener and 53percent are giving 1-5 percent of their profitsto philanthropy. In light of the fact that morewomen businesses are going global, only 16percent said outsourcing is hampering their

business and 34 percent of those surveyed saidoutsourcing is helping. When asked if the con-solidation of the supply chain is jeopardizingtheir business, 67 percent said no.

“Three years ago the threat of globalizationand the consolidation of the supply chain weretop concerns for WBEs, but women businesseshave swiftly adapted to this marketplace” saidLinda Denny, President and CEO of WBENC,the nation’s largest third party certifier ofwomen-owned businesses. “A mere 1.6 percentof the respondents said going global isn’t possi-ble, which illustrates how women businessesbelieve they can do anything and they do everyday. By saluting the Stars of 2008, we hope toinspire other women business owners to achievetheir dreams and enrich their communities.”

Respondents selected expanding globally astheir top priority for 2008 and giving more tophilanthropy was number three on the list.

A Powerful New Tool for WBOsWelcome to NWBOC’s eProcurement

Marketplace, www.nwboc.economicengine.com.You can have complete access to over 2,000women owned businesses including all of theNWBOC Certifieds and many others.

Imagine not only being able to locatewomen business owners throughout the U.S. invaried service and product industries, but beingable to send bids, RFPs, RFQs, etc. and awardthem—all within one interactive system!

WBOs who sign up as buyers can also usethe electronic tools to send marketing messagesto all the WBOs on the eProcurementMarketplace.

All of the tools are easy to use with no spe-cial equipment or training required. To signup for the MarketPlace, please go towww.nwboc.economicengine.com.

News From WBENC and NWBOC

Thank you to theNAWBO-CaliforniaCorporate Partners

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