As the leading Internet, phone and TV provider to businesses in North Florida, Comcast Business is committed to diversity and championing equality, including supplier diversity.
Comcast Business recently participated in the annual African American Small Business Forum hosted by the Jacksonville Business Journal. The virtual discussion featured a panel of business experts striving to attract a more diverse network of suppliers, vendors and partners, and advising the virtual attendees on how they should position their businesses to build such relationships.
Led by moderator Carlton Robinson, Chief Innovation Officer, JAX Chamber’s Venture Services Division, the group discussed their diverse backgrounds, their company’s qualifications for working with small vendors and the best ways to search and develop new connections.
The panel featured:
- Regan Yeldell, Executive Director of Program Management, Comcast Business
- Dana Hill, Senior Manager of Procurement Programs, Florida Blue
- Kerri Stewart, VP of Business Analytics & Strategic Initiatives, Miller Electric
- Jennifer Frasier, Global Director of Inclusion & Diversity, FIS
- Derek Cantey, Supplier Diversity Senior Manager, Wells Fargo
During the panel discussion, Yeldell highlighted Comcast’s mission to advance the economic inclusion of underrepresented businesses through its supplier diversity program, which offers every business, regardless of ownership or size, an opportunity to compete for business within Comcast. She also went in to detail about how the company identifies and qualifies new talent and creates economic opportunities broadly across the supplier ecosystem via subcontracting, which Regan went into detail as to how the company identifies and qualifies new talent. To learn more, visit corporate.comcast.com/values/diversity-equity-inclusion/supplier-diversity#overview.
Yeldell emphasized the importance of working with local chambers of commerce and organizations on a regular basis to become visible and a sought out leader in the industry.
She proudly stated, “Comcast Business is always proactively searching for vendors that we can partner with in different areas. I would also encourage everyone to be a leader in your spaces.”
Comcast is deeply invested in the communities it serves and the small businesses that shape them. This year, the company launched Comcast RISE, a multi-year, multi-faceted initiative designed to help strengthen Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC)-owned, small businesses hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic, by providing marketing and technology upgrades.