Disabled Veteran & Veteran Business Summit on May 10th, Hosted by the NJ State Veterans Chamber of Commerce (NJSVCC)
[Edison, New Jersey – April 25, 2022] On May 10th, from 8AM to 4PM, at Middlesex College in Edison, NJ, the NJSVCC will host the Disabled Veteran and Veteran Business Summit which will bring together, in a single location, over 100 veteran owned businesses with government agencies and private companies that seek to procure with them. The summit will give employers and state agencies the opportunity to personally meet with veteran business owners (VOBs) and disabled veteran business owners (DVOBs) to learn of their capabilities and to discuss partnering on upcoming projects.
VOBs and DVOBs possess a wide range of skills, resources and capabilities, from skilled trades and construction crafts, to technical, technological and consultation specialties. In a tight labor and hiring market, participating companies and agencies will be delighted to learn about the diverse range of VOB and DVOB enterprises, and how they can fill their needs and help with their own projects and business development.
The summit promises to be a brisk and busy day, with DVOBs and VOBs booths set up, prepared to meet up with a wide range of private companies, government agency leads and business associations to discuss prospects and opportunities. The day’s packed schedule will include panels, an awards presentation and various speakers, including a Middlesex County Commissioner, who will discuss the county’s support of veteran businesses.
At 9:15AM, New Jersey state senator, Joe Cryan, will also be on hand to discuss the state’s efforts to support veteran businesses. Larry Stubblefield, Associate Administrator for the Office of Veterans Business Development (OVBD) at the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), will be on hand to summarize the SBA resources available to VOBs and DVOBs.
An important priority of the summit will be to facilitate state enforcement of its own 3% set-aside law for disabled veteran businesses by contracting state agencies. To date, this set aside has not been rigorously enforced. This has left the noble goal of leveling the playing field for DVOBs an unfulfilled intention for the state.
For state agencies, vendors, companies with procurement diversity goals and anyone else interested in hiring, working with or meeting the VOBs and DVOBs on hand, click here to register and for additional information, including a full event schedule with a list of speakers and presenters: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/
If you are a VOB or DVOB looking for expanded opportunities, it is not too late to register for the summit: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/
This event is crucial for the state’s veteran businesses. Compared to their non-veteran owned counterparts, veteran owned businesses suffer from poorly developed networks of partners, and affiliates, as well as lack of access to sufficient capital for their business endeavors. This makes the challenges faced by VOBs and DVOBs comparable to those faced by Disadvantaged Business Enterprises (DBEs), and makes it difficult for them to fully participate in the free market system. On top of these disadvantages, VOBs have also been excluded from numerous past diversity goals worked into state and federal funding opportunities, including the aforementioned 3% set aside, which exists, for the moment, on paper only.
Several awards will be handed out at the event to several outstanding veteran owned businesses, as well as state agencies and organizations that have gone above and beyond in their support of veteran businesses:
Veteran Run Business over $3 Million – The Millenium GroupVeteran Business under $3 Million – Minuteman Press of NewarkDisabled Veteran Business over $3 Million – Lima Charlie ConstructionDisabled Veteran Business under $3 Million – The Setroc GroupNJ State Agency who best support veteran businesses – The NJ Turnpike Authority (NJTA)Veteran Advocate of the Year Award – Kelly Brozyna from the NJ SBDCPrime Vendors who have best supported disabled veteran businesses – Vollers Construction, & Skanska Koch Construction
Please join us at Middlesex College on May 10th:
What: Disabled Veteran and Veteran Business SummitWhere: Middlesex College, Edison, New Jersey @ 2600 Woodbridge Avenue, College Center Building, Parking Lot 3, Edison, NJ 08818When: 8:00AM-4:00 PM
The event is hosted by the New Jersey State Veteran’s Chamber of Commerce (NJSVCC), a 501 C (6) nonprofit organization focused on veteran business advocacy, education, networking, procurement and supplier diversity events, with the end goal of making New Jersey’s economy fairer to veteran owned businesses.
Event sponsors include the Utility and Transportation Contractors Association (UTCA) and America’s Small Business Development Center (SBDC) of New Jersey, TD Bank, and Johnson & Johnson.
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