Finishing out our two-part series on veteran small business owners (VOSB), we had Dorna Werdelin, supplier relations, communications and outreach manager at the Georgia Department of Administrative Services, and co-host Cassius Butts, SBA regional administrator in the studio. Listen in to hear about the opportunities, challenges and trends veterans encounter as they turn to entrepreneurship as a viable career path. You’ll also want to tune in for lesser known tips for successfully doing business with the State of Georgia. So listen in – you’ll be glad you did.
Dorna Werdelin / Georgia Department of Administrative Services
Dorna Werdelin is the communications outreach manager with the Georgia Department of Administrative Services State Purchasing Division. She is responsible for official communications, marketing of statewide contracts and supplier relations. Mrs. Werdelin is also the Georgia Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) Certification official, and conducts several monthly training sessions for companies wishing to do business with the State of Georgia government, acting as a dedicated resource to those businesses.
Mrs. Werdelin has worked with the State of Georgia government for almost 10 years, formerly as the assistant director of the Georgia Leadership Institute and Enterprise Learning Division at the State Personnel Administration, managing training contract and the training function in the state.
Prior to her work with the state, she was employed at what was the largest oil refinery in the Western Hemisphere, in St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands. As the deputy information officer and HR specialist, she was a government liaison, and was responsible for organizational training, ERP training, employee relocation and orientation, and community outreach programs. She serves as a mentor to teenaged and college-bound girls in her community, and is an advocate for disabled military veterans and fathers’ rights. She is a certified Caregiver, married to a Wounded Warrior and has three sons.
