What is a Diversity or Supplier Diversity Plan, and does it impact my General Program application? How will our diversity information be used in evaluating the application?

Modified on Fri, Jul 18 at 1:24 PM

For our purposes, there is no formal definition of a diversity plan / supplier diversity plan. If your company is actively engaged in a pre-existing and organized plan to address workforce diversity / supplier diversity, you may inform us in the General Program application.

As the Workforce Training Fund Program, Diversity plan / Supplier Diversity Plan are requested to gain a better understanding of program participation and impact at-large. Such information will not be a factor in deciding whether an application will be approved for funding.

Please Note: Commonwealth Corporation / State of MA will publish only aggregated data, and only in a manner that does not reveal any particular organizations or any individual employees’ personal information.

For your General Program application, business diversity refers to the inclusion of businesses owned by individuals from underrepresented or historically disadvantaged groups. While certification with the Massachusetts Supplier Diversity Office (SDO) is not required to be considered a diverse business. Businesses that are diverse—regardless of your certification status—are encouraged to apply.

Diversity categories:

Minority Business Enterprise (MBE)
Women Business Enterprise (WBE)
Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE)
Airport Concession-DBE (ACDBE)
Portuguese Business Enterprise (PBE)
Veteran Business Enterprise (VBE)
Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Enterprise (LGBTBE)
Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Business Enterprise (SDVOBE)
Disability-Owned Business Enterprises (DOBE)

If you are not certified but are interested in certification, The Massachusetts Supplier Diversity Office, Directory of Certified Businesses includes information about certification by the Supplier Diversity Office as well as other agencies, including:

Supplier Diversity Office (SDO) – State
MassDOT Office – UCP
City of Boston (COB)
Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC)
National Minority Supplier Development Council (NMSDC)
National Gay and Lesbians Chamber of Commerce (NGLCC)
S. Business Leadership Network (USBLN)
Department of Veteran’s Affairs (VetBiz)