Pre-Conference Prep: Hear from the WBEC-West Team

Intro: Broadcasting live from the Business RadioX Studios, it’s time for Women in Motion. Brought to you by WBEC-West. Join forces. Succeed together. Now, here’s your host.

Lee Kantor: Lee Kantor here. Another episode of Women in Motion and this is going to be a good one. But before we get started, it’s important to recognize our sponsor, WBEC-West. Without them, we couldn’t be sharing these important stories. Today on Women in Motion, we’ll be talking with Jaymee Lomax and Vasanti Kumar. They are the regional vice presidents of WBEC-West, and we are going to be focusing in on the upcoming WBEC-West 21st Annual Procurement Conference. Welcome.

Jaymee Lomax : Thank you for having us.

Lee Kantor: Well, I am so excited about this conference. Is there one of you who wants to share a little bit about what the conference is about?

Jaymee Lomax : Sure. So it’s the 21st WBEC-West Procurement Conference, and it’s going to be held in Henderson, Nevada, from September 17th through the 19th. And I just wanted to share just a few tips about the conference. Attending a conference, you know, it’s really vital for networking with industry leaders and peers. You know, these events provide a unique opportunity for meeting and connecting with key individuals who can become valuable contacts. And by engaging in conversation and exchanging business cards and building relationships, we can expand on our professional network, which again is crucial for our business growth and personal career advancement as well.

Lee Kantor: And so, what’s going to happen at the conference? I know there’s going to be networking. There’s going to be a lot of people there. But what are – or is there education? I know there’s networking. Is there matchmaking? What are some of the things that are going to be occurring at the conference?

Jaymee Lomax : Sure. Again, I can speak on this. This is Jaymee. So, our conference is going to offer, like, workshops. We’ll have training sessions that are designed to enhance the skills and the competence of our WBEs. And, you know, these are hands-on experiences allowing us to learn from new technologies, tools, and strategies, directly from experts contributing to the professional development and making us more effective in our roles. You know, we’re going to have workshops on AI. We have workshops on growing your business. We have financial workshops. We’ve got a lot going on and it’s very exciting, and a lot of interactive workshops as well.

Lee Kantor: Vasanti, is there anything that you’re looking forward to at the conference?

Vasanti Kumar: I get to host a pitch contest. So if you have a pitch that you’re going to present, we have some selected that have already put their applications in. So, there’ll be a whole series of that for them. And then there’s actually a prize at the end of it for them. So, I’m excited to be able to host that and be a part of that.

Lee Kantor: So now, at the event, it’s a three-day event, right?

Jaymee Lomax : Yeah. Correct.

Lee Kantor: It’s September 17th, 18th, and 19th, in Henderson, Nevada at the Westin Lake Spa and Resort. So, like, day one, is there something happening on day one that you’re excited about?

Jaymee Lomax : I don’t have a calendar in front of me.

Vasanti Kumar: Yeah, I don’t have it. I’m trying to –

Lee Kantor: So when you open the event, there’s just all the thousands of people are going to be there. Is there a kickoff of some kind? Is there something that is going to, you know, people should be thinking about doing on that first day?

Vasanti Kumar: Actually, we were keeping it very small, maybe about 3 to 400, so that it’s not overwhelming and that you actually get to talk to the corporations and you get to mingle with people and get to know people and meet other WBEs where if you have an overwhelming amount of people, then you don’t get that same feeling and you’re not able – you’re able to connect with the corporations that you came into and that you’ve paid that amount of money to come in and meet with people.

Vasanti Kumar: We wanted to keep it small and intimate. About under 400 people are about the approximate people that will be attending so that you get the equal time that you need to meet with corporations and meet with other people and relax a little bit and enjoy Las Vegas.

Vasanti Kumar: Henderson is about 45 minutes out of Las Vegas, so if you’re tempted to go to the casinos or anything like that, it’s not there. You’re actually there to focus. And it’s a great resort that it’s at so that it’s away from all the whoop and holler of Vegas. But then afterward you can relax and go back into Vegas and spend some time there.

Jaymee Lomax : Yeah. And, Lee, on day one I did – I do want to just note, like, we’re going to have a photo booth there, I believe. There’ll be a WBE to WBE corner so you’ll be able to meet with some of the other women-owned businesses as well. And then as she was talking about, we will have some pitch competition going on, and we will have an expo floor with all of our WBEs that decided to host an exhibit booth so they can share their product and services with our corporations and fellow WBEs.

Lee Kantor: So the event is a great way for WBEs to connect with corporates, but it’s also a great opportunity to connect and collaborate with other WBEs because they’re all, everybody be there in one place.

Vasanti Kumar: We’re also doing an interactive participation question and answers. We’re also having some survey questions that we can do quickly and have the results right away. So it’s very active. And that way you can pose your questions and then they’ll be answered and some interactive activities that we’ll have there, too.

Lee Kantor: Now –

Jaymee Lomax : Yeah. We’ve got – oh, I’m sorry. We have some great interactive things with the corporations and WBEs and I can’t share what those exactly are going to be, but they’re going to be fun and exciting.

Lee Kantor: Now, to prepare for a conference of this magnitude, is there any type of pre-conference, education that you’re providing so that people get the most out of it?

Jaymee Lomax : Yeah, absolutely. Really, to maximize the benefits of attending a conference, it’s crucial to plan your schedule in advance, you know, by reviewing the agenda, helping identify key sessions, workshops, networking opportunities that align with your goals. And we will start having a pre-conference event, which is the first one is August 9th. It’s a two-day series. It’s August 9th. You can go to the WBEC-West website and that’s wbec-west.com and it’s a pre-event that we put on. So we really teach you how to put a playbook together. And we actually will give you a template after you finish the workshop with us. But it really helps you to engage how to do some workshops and how to really prepare for the event to get the return on your investment. We help you research some of the corporations that are going to be there in attendance as well. We give you all kinds of great information.

Lee Kantor: Now –

Vasanti Kumar: Another thing, Lee, that I would say is to engage in your question and opportunity and, you know, when you’re going to get that opportunity, have your 90-second speech. Don’t go in with, you know, a five-minute, ten-minute presentation because the corporations don’t have that time and people only listen for about 90 seconds. So whatever it is that you need to present, practice that, practice it with your kids, or practice it with your husband or, you know, to get it down pact so that you have it and you’re confident and you’re strong in what you’re going to say. And that comes across when you’re talking to corporations or other WBEs.

Lee Kantor: So, now if I’m getting ready for this event and I’m preparing, so I want to kind of make a list of the corporates that I think are good fits for me, right, so I make sure I connect with them. I also want to make sure I get, I find the right education pieces that are appropriate for me, and I want to network with existing other WBEs out there that could also be good partners for me.

Lee Kantor: Doing this kind of pre-work, is that part of your webinar? Is that where you’re going to really help an attendee really get the most value out of the conference by putting together kind of a roadmap of what to do beforehand because you don’t want to just show up at this event and just think you’re going to wing it? You’re not – you’ll miss opportunities if you do that.

Jaymee Lomax : Yeah, absolutely. The playbook that we will be doing and, again, this is the two-part series is August 8th, I’m sorry, August 9th and August 22nd. We will help you get familiar with. And so let’s just say I’m making up a company but let’s just say you’re going to go after Sony Entertainment. We teach you how to go to the Sony Entertainment, go do some research, find out what they’re going to be procuring in the next 30 to 90 days, and then you come up with your value and proposition. You know, I know you all are doing such and such. This is how we can help benefit you and help you reach your goal by saving you time or bringing a value add.

Lee Kantor: Vasanti, do you have any other advice?

Vasanti Kumar: No, I think Jaymee’s hit it on the head. It’s just be direct. Be confident in what you’re saying because that portrays into what they are and have your questions and know about their business. What does Sony do? What is Sony looking for in the next 60 to 90 days?

Vasanti Kumar: Like Jaymee said, it’s very important that you give back information to them. Like, I saw this on your website and I saw this coming up. How can I participate in that? Or I have – this RFP is coming. How do I participate in that? That makes them, the corporation, understand that hey, she did her research. She did her homework. She didn’t just come up and say, where’s the where’s the RFP? I like it. I like to participate. You already know what you’re looking for and where your goals are. So it’s very aligned with what Jaymee just said.

Jaymee Lomax : And, Lee, I’d like to add something, too. So if you’re preparing for that 30, 60, or 90-second pitch or if you have your capability statement, which is very important, when you go up to a corporation or when you’re preparing to go to your corporation, what I tell folks to do is take that capability statement and ask your friend that is not in your industry at all, if they were to view your capability statement, if they understand what you do. A lot of people put a lot of verbiage together that is for those that are in that field only.

Jaymee Lomax : Most of the time when you’re going to conferences, you’re normally not meeting the expert specifically in your industry. For instance, supplier diversity professionals, their job is to find out what opportunities are up and coming in their corporation, and it’s their job to go out and to find companies that fit that need. But that supplier diversity expert might not be an expert in that specific industry.

Jaymee Lomax : For instance, my expertise is in construction, but let’s just say the company is looking for IT. So that person that I’m meeting with that is in IT, they need to be able to speak to me. I call it Hasbro language. They all need to be able to explain to me exactly what their business does, so I truly understand it so then I can take that information and go back in-house and share it with my colleagues and make that connection and that introduction.

Jaymee Lomax : So it’s really important for people to know. Ninety percent of the time when you’re going to a conference, the person that you’re meeting with at that corporation is not the expert in your specific industry. Your job is to make sure they understand clearly what you do, so they can share that information internally with their internal clients, with the corporation that they work for.

Lee Kantor: Now, do you do either of you or both of you have any stories you can share about maybe folks who have gone through a conference in the past and gotten a good result?

Jaymee Lomax : Oh, we’ve had lots of – so my background, actually, I’m a supplier diversity expert by trade. I’ve been doing that for over 20 years. So I’ve got some great successes that have come out of corporations when a woman-owned business can come up to you and very clearly explain what their business is and what the benefits are for your corporation and they separate themselves from everyone else.

Jaymee Lomax : For instance, we know there are a lot of IT companies that are out there as part of professional cannot introduce all of those corporations to you all of those IT folks to their internal clients. So you have to be able to clearly state what you’re able to do. So I’ve had IT companies that have come up to me and just said, you know, normally when there’s a cybersecurity issue at risk, you know, normally it takes, you know, maybe it’s 24 hours to fix this certain item. My company can do it in ten hours. Now, that’s already separated you from all the other IT cybersecurity folks that I’ve met. So I would take your information in-house and turn it into my internal client at my corporation. So you have to really be able to explain what your value add is. It’s very, very, very important. Or you’ll need to be – it’s important for you to share your success stories.

Jaymee Lomax : But, you know, we’ve had a woman-owned business that had a phenomenal product and they came across one of the companies. She was actually asked to be on Shark Tank. We’ve had some folks that had some ad hoc corporation that wasn’t really going out to bid on this but it was something that they found out that they needed. And so a lot of corporations have what are called keycards so they can just purchase from you. If the keycard is $50,000 or less, they might be able just to purchase from you right then and there, and it doesn’t have to go out through an RFP. That happens a lot in a conference. And at a conference as well, one of the supplier diversity professionals might have met someone that they potentially can’t do any business with because they don’t have a need right now in their company, but they know a fellow supplier diversity professional that does have this need. And so they will do that soft introduction. And we’ve had a lot of successes with that as well.

Vasanti Kumar: I just want to add, to piggyback on what Jaymee said, Lee, this conference is planting the seed and you may not have success right away, but it’s about building trust and integrity and respect. And trust is key to corporations and businesses doing business with you. Just like I said to some people last week, if you were getting your hair done, you would go by somebody else’s recommendation and you wouldn’t just go in a hairdresser and get your hair dyed by somebody that you didn’t know. So that’s the same thing with corporations and doing business.

Vasanti Kumar: You have to build that trust. And sometimes it’s coming in front of them three or four times and they don’t give up. Like, don’t get that I didn’t have any success. It’s planting that seed. And as Jaymee said previously, they may not have a need for what you’re offering at this point, but maybe six months down the road, they remembered you because they had a conversation with you. Something was unique about you. You did something, like Jaymee said earlier, that you did something in ten hours versus everybody else doing it in 15 hours. You said something to them that they will remember you and say, you know what, and check in with them and check in and say, hey, I’m just checking in once a month just to check on. And it’s building that relationship. And then that’s what this conference is about, it’s putting you in front of corporations, putting you in front of other WBEs that can help you and guide you and move you to the next level. But it’s again building trust about it.

Lee Kantor: Now, is there an opportunity for folks to build relationships and meet new people and find other partners, collaborators in, like, kind of a less businessy way? Or is everything kind of, like you said, a pitch contest, or is there like more informal kind of opportunities to get to know folks?

Vasanti Kumar: I think there’s some happy hours and – sorry. Go ahead, Jaymee.

Jaymee Lomax : No, please go ahead. I’m sorry.

Vasanti Kumar: There’s some happy hours and some other events that are, at the end of the day, just to make it fun, there is different – there’s some different ideas that we have going on, and we want to surprise you with them. But there are some events. This is Vegas, of course, Lee. So we want to make it fun and we want to make it exciting not just to come to some boring conference, but we want to make it exciting and fun, but also beneficial for you and your time that you’re spending there.

Lee Kantor: Now is there –

Jaymee Lomax : And I’d like to add –

Lee Kantor: Go ahead.

Jaymee Lomax : I’d like to add to that. I’m sorry.

Lee Kantor: Go, please.

Jaymee Lomax : So, during these pre-conferences as well that we do and we’re talking to our WBEs about really how to get the ROI on their business, we talk about making sure that you’re active and engaged. You know, sometimes people get a little uncomfortable if they’re at a conference by themselves and they want to go back to their room because they’re uncomfortable. What we try and do at these pre-conference events is we try to connect all of the ways that dial in, that are really interested in really understanding the best way of getting the return on their investment, and we try to connect them together so you never feel alone.

Jaymee Lomax : We also do a great job of making sure you’re aware of the forum leaders in your different states, and all of our forum leaders can be identified. They’ll be wearing purple scarves. And so if you see someone walking around wearing a purple scarf as a WBE, you know, you can go to them and ask them some questions, talk to them, find out what state they are. Our goal with our forum leaders and with ourselves are to make sure that everyone feels included and engaged and never feels alone.

Vasanti Kumar: Yes.

Lee Kantor: Now, is that a good strategy to kind of attack a conference like this is to kind of go with a buddy or a few folks that, you know, that you can hang out that way you’re never alone like you were saying, and then you can kind of tag team some things?

Jaymee Lomax : Yeah. Actually, it works fantastic. So we have some really phenomenal women-owned businesses and what they will do is while we’re doing it like a virtual meeting, they will put their contact information in chat. And then what normally will happen, it’s so phenomenal, is they will get together and start a Groupme chat. And again, they’ve only met virtually. Some might know each other, but the vast majority have only met virtually, but they now have each other’s contact information.

Jaymee Lomax : So for instance, if there’s a break and someone’s running to Starbucks or someone is going off-site to dinner because there’s not a dinner or something, they’ll put in the group chat like, hey, there’s a couple of us that are going to go to Denver – dinner at such and such place. Would anyone like to join us? And so now those like, hey, I would love to join you. So it really allows a great way of them staying engaged with one another.

Jaymee Lomax : So, the pre-conference event is really – it’s phenomenal. And it really puts some of our WBEs together. But we do welcome receptions and everything else. And Dr. Pamela has done a great job to make sure that we make sure everyone is included. So you will see her staff and her employees running around and mingling and meeting WBEs and doing a lot of introductions as well.

Lee Kantor: And then, there’s still time to register. Is there still time to, like if you wanted to be a sponsor or have a table, is there still time for those activities as well?

Jaymee Lomax : I believe there is. Those opportunities for sponsorship and registration are still open. There will not be any on-site registration, however, so you need to make sure you register in advance. So the information will be out there on our website. And again, that’s wbec-west.com.

Lee Kantor: And the event is from September 17th through 19th in Henderson, Nevada. Thank you both for sharing your insight into this important event. And it’s really important. For folks who want to attend, you better sign up because like you said, there’s no on-site sign-up. So, the time is now.

Vasanti Kumar: Thank you, Lee.

Jaymee Lomax : Absolutely.

Lee Kantor: All right. Well, thank you both again. And we look forward to seeing you all at the event on September 17th through 19th, the 21st Annual Procurement Conference for WBEC-West. This is Lee Kantor. We’ll see you all next time on Women in Motion.