The Supplier Diversity Program of Con Edison of New York and Orange and Rockland Utilities exceeded its goals of creating opportunities for minority- and women-owned businesses. The utilities purchased more than $315 million in goods and services from minority- and women-owned businesses in 2012, an increase of more than 13 percent from the year before at $277 million. Including fuel, expenditures with minority- and women-owned businesses totaled more than $323 million.

Some notable successes in 2012 were:

• $17.0-million contract to a woman-owned business for information-technology staffing
• $10.4-million contract to a woman-owned business for supply of switchgear
• $9.7-million contract to a minority-owned business for storm-water system drainage
• $4.6-million contract to a woman-owned business for renovations and substation civil work
• $2.1-million contract to a minority-owned business for specialty coating products
• $1.2-million contract to a minority-owned business for bridge and roadway repair

The contracts for switchgear, storm-water system drainage, and bridge and roadway repair were all won by vendors who are new or have significantly increased their volume of business with our company.

Pension Fund Managers
Con Edison continues to hire outside managers to invest its pension funds. At the close of 2012, two minority fund managers handled $354 million for the U.S. small-cap and $136 million for the U.S. large-cap equity funds for the pension fund.

Insurance Brokers
Con Edison used minority insurance brokers in 2012 for business travel/employee crime protection, liability and property insurance, lease obligations, and special liability insurance required by railroads when working on or in close proximity to railroad property. The company has used minority insurance brokers since 1985.

Hurricane Sandy Restoration Efforts
Minority- and women-owned businesses provided vital support in our restoration efforts following Hurricane Sandy: they provided fuel; utility poles; dry ice; class and stock inventory items; lodging; and electrician, site-safety, security, travel, and logistics services.

Developing Diverse Suppliers
A major focus of the Supplier Diversity Program is to recruit and develop opportunities for
minority- and women-owned businesses who can help the company reduce cost, enhance
safety, improve reliability, and increase sustainability.

We partnered with the National Minority Supplier Development Council’s Corporate Plus Program to identify minority firms with the experience and scale to compete on the basis of cost, quality, and innovation. The program has yielded positive results and we are building a pipeline of firms that have either won contracts or are now bidding on contracts.

Our overall recruitment efforts yielded 20 new minority- and women-owned vendors. Some of these new vendors provided dry-ice blasting, real-estate services, environmental remediation, gas pipe, and fuel. These lines of business are all considered nontraditional areas of opportunity.

We also co-hosted the New York and New Jersey Minority Supplier Development Council’s Sustainability Summit to recruit minority- and women-owned businesses who provide energy-efficient, environmentally friendly, and innovative goods and services that can meet our company’s needs.

We supported two high-profile programs to help minority- and women-owned businesses develop and expand their operations:

• The New York City Department of Small Business Services' Corporate Alliance Program Columbia University Construction Mentorship Program
• Strategic Steps for Growth initiative, a nine-month executive education program for minority- and women-owned businesses offered by the New York City Department of Small Business Services and the New York University Stern School of Business, Berkley Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation

Supplier Diversity staff also co-hosted and participated in several other events to network with minority- and women-owned businesses, including: the Women Presidents' Educational Organization's Done Deals Challenge and Matchmaker Conference; Regional Alliance Clearinghouse Matchmaker Conference; Institute for Supply Management Matchmaker Conference; Department of Defense Northeast Regional Council Small Business Matchmaker Conference; New York and New Jersey Minority Supplier Development Council Business Expo; Edison Electric Institute National Supplier Diversity Conference; Supplier Diversity Development Council Utility Industry Best Practices Workshop; and the Association of Minority Enterprises of New York's Annual Business Legislative Conference in Albany.

Our Supplier Diversity Program received recognition from several organizations in 2012:

• Professional Women in Construction Business Achievement Award
• U.S. Department of Commerce's Minority Business Development Agency's Corporate Supplier Diversity Award
• New York and New Jersey Minority Supplier Development Council Essential Piece Award
• Women President's Educational Organization Corporate Partners Award
• Minority Business News USA Magazine Ambassador for Supplier Diversity Award