About Us

The New York & New Jersey Minority Supplier Development Council, Inc. (The Council), established in 1973, is a vital link between major corporations and minority business enterprises (MBEs). Serving the New York and New Jersey region, The Council is one of the 23 regional affiliates of the National Minority Supplier Development Council, Inc. (NMSDC).

Mission and Values

The New York & New Jersey Minority Supplier Development Council, Inc. (The Council), is a not-for-profit 501(c) (3) organization that its operations in 1973 focusing on Albany through downstate New York and Northern and Central Jersey through Trenton. In late 2012, its service offering expanded to include Upstate New York (Buffalo, Syracuse, Rochester, etc.).

As a regional affiliate of the National Minority Supplier Development Council (NMSDC), The Council certifies suppliers that are Asian, Black, Hispanic, and Native-American. The Council’s membership consists of Fortune 500 corporations, government agencies, educational institutions, and non-profit organizations.

The Council has a staff of six (6) and is departmentally structured to include Administrative Operations, Corporate Services, MBE Services, Events and Programming.

The Council’s pillars - Certify, Develop, Advocate and Connect - serve as the basis for its mission in meeting the expectations and needs of each stakeholder.

Certify: Certifying MBEs not only promotes the value of certification and ensures a firm is in fact a minority, but also provides members with access to thousands of verified minority firms. The Council conducts a certification process that ensure MBEs are owned, operated, and controlled by a minority and comply with NMSDC standards for becoming a certified minority business. This verification is determined by a thorough examination of various documents, on-site visits, and interviews.
Develop: Developing MBEs to full capacity is paramount to their success and is a primary function of The Council. Building capacity and capabilities of certified MBEs as well as assisting corporate members in building and/or strengthening supplier diversity programs is critical to ensuring a viable supply chain.
Advocate: Advocating on behalf of MBEs and promoting the value proposition of minority supplier development as well as recognizing corporate members for their diversity initiatives brings awareness to the needs of minority firms and those striving to eliminate barriers they may face.
Connect: Connecting certified MBEs with corporate members and other organizations is critical to the mission of The Council. Providing networking opportunities, contract possibilities, and ultimately- economic development will assist in the growth of minority firms across New York State.

Our Vision

To be the pre-eminent go-to organization for supplier diversity, incorporating best practices to certify, develop, mentor, connect and advocate for ethnic-minority owned businesses and support the efforts of our corporate membership to build a more ethnically diverse and sustainable supply chain.

Our Mission

The mission of The Council is to:

Continuously enhance and expand our program offerings to create high level value for all stakeholders (Corporate Members and MBEs)
Certify and develop ethnic-minority business enterprises to build a sustainable diverse supply chain.
Provide a platform to connect suppliers with private and public sector procurement opportunities.
Advocate for the growth and development of our Corporate Member and MBE business relationships
To grow, develop and scale minority businesses.

Our Value Proposition

The Council actively seeks viable ethnic minority suppliers for procurement opportunities with its membership. The Council enables corporate members to diversify their base of competitive suppliers and strengthen the corporate supply chain. This “linkage process” increases opportunities for council-certified suppliers and helps facilitate the employment and economic development of our communities.

Our Team

Like so many of our affiliate chapters, The Council is driven by our passionate team of consummate professionals.

President and CEO

Terrence Clark

President and CEO
212-502-5663 | terrence.clark@nynjmsdc.org

Terrence Clark leads the way forward for staff and members of The Council community by providing oversight and guidance in relation to The Council’s goals and objectives. Prior to this position, he served as the Vice President of Entrepreneurship and Business Development for the National Urban League, where he was responsible for the management of all small business and entrepreneurship programs. Mr. Clark also served as the Senior Vice President of Knowledge Sharing for the Opportunity Finance Network, where he was responsible for community development for financial institutions nationwide.

In addition to serving on The Council’s board, Mr. Clark is proud to sit as a board member for TruFund Financial Services and the Supplier Diversity Development Council of New Jersey. He also sits on the Economic Impact Committee of Stonehenge Capital and on the Minority and Women Business Enterprise Advisory Councils for the NYC Comptroller and the NYS Governor. In 2021, he was named as one of the Notable Black Leaders and Executives by Crain’s New York.

Administration and Operations

Jacqueline Smith

Vice President, Operations, Strategic Planning and Development
212-502-5663 x1015 | jsmith@nynjmsdc.org

Jackie monitors the organization’s performance and continuously improves cross functions to drive operational excellence. In her role she works closely with Council’s President to make decisions for the operational activities and set strategic goals. Currently she oversees the organization’s internal operations, Human Resource, Information Technology and Finance divisions. Jacqueline has over 12 years of experience in non-profit operations management.

Prior to joining the Council, Jacqueline worked at the National Urban League. She provided operations management and support to the Programs department of 40 staff members and a $25 million budget. Jacqueline graduated from The City College of the City University of New York with a Bachelor of Art, Media Communication.

Maria V. Rosa

Director, Finance & Operations Administration
212-502-5663 x1012 | mrosa@nynjmsdc.org

Maria’s role prepares and maintains the financial records of the organization and provides financial support to the President and CEO of The Council through bookkeeping, payroll, banking, and reporting services. Under the direction of The Council President, she maintains all necessary and appropriate records, files, and processes to ensure the compliant financial operations of the organization, focusing on accuracy and transparency. She develops and monitors budgets to ensure revenue and expenses are kept within established boundaries.

Prior to the Council, she was the Financial and Operations Administrator for the America Geographical Society for 10 years, also a non-for-profit organization. Her favorite thing to do is creating memory quilts for my family.

Corporate and MBE Services

Theodora (Dora) Reddick

Senior Director, MBE Services & Constituency Relations
212-502-5663 x1006 | dreddick@nynjmsdc.org

Dora is the principal manager for identifying, recruiting and retaining certified suppliers. She processes the incoming certification applications from start to finish. She also works to build innovative programs for MBEs to drive growth and development. Dora participates in and maintains an active role in organization-wide efforts to geographically expand the Council’s network services and solutions.

Prior to joining the Council Dora started her career in minority businesses development in 1995 for a non-profit organization in New Jersey where she served as Manager of Business Services. Dora has 2 adult children and two grandchildren. She celebrates 25 years with the Council in April of this year.

Lizzette Santos

Director, Corporate and MBE Services
212-502-5663 x1003 | lsantos@nynjmsdc.org

Lizzette manages our corporate services and recertification processes and assists in certification and finance.

Prior to coming to the Council Lizzette was a Project Manager with William Lea Tag providing services to Pfizer. She has also worked for Tata Consultancy Services, Dentsu and the National Foundation for Teaching Entrepreneurship. She has a BA from Canisius College, Buffalo, NY and is currently working on her MBA. She has been with the Council for 3 years.

Events and Communications

Colin Allum

Director, Events and Communications
212-502-5663 x1007 | callum@nynjmsdc.org

Colin oversees the Communications and Events processes for the Council. He is responsible for both internal and external stakeholder relations, and the MarCom strategy for the organization. This includes but is not limited to the Council’s website, social media presence and email marketing. He serves as a liaison between the President and CEO and the Council’s staff, consultants, and constituent community. Colin is also responsible for coordinating and managing all Council events and meetings including its signature events – the Business Opportunity Exchange, Networking for Scholarships Golf Fundraiser, Biz-Connect and Partnership Awards Gala. He also assists the Council’s MBE Department in the processing and review of MBE certification applications to determine eligibility for certification.

Prior to joining the Council, Colin worked at the National Urban League for 13 years in the Partnerships & Advancement department supporting the league’s fundraising efforts. Colin graduated from the University at Albany in 2008 with a B.Sc. in Actuarial Mathematics and Economics and enjoys spending time with his family and his friends.

Michelle Smith

Manager, Events and Communications
212-502-5663 x1005 | msmith@nynjmsdc.org

Michelle works in coordination with The Council’s Director of Events and Communications on all aspects of event planning and management, along with weekly communications that include but is not limited to email and social media marketing. Her commitment is to improve the event experience via NYNJMSDC’s (The Council’s) Mission Statement. Prior to joining The Council, Michelle worked at the National Urban League for 10 years in the Marketing and Communications department. As the Director, she planned, promoted and managed small and large meetings and events. In her spare time, she is a board member for Brooklyn For Peace and an aspiring multi-genre DJ.

Board of Directors

The Council is committed to advancing supplier diversity initiatives to a world-class level — and it all starts with our dedicated Board of Directors.

Executive Committee

Rondu Vincent

Chair

Executive Director, Global Supplier Diversity & Sustainability Strategic Sourcing & Procurement - Bristol Myers Squibb

Melanie Gunn-Nieves

Vice Chair

Manager, Supplier Diversity - Warner Bros. Discovery

Darrien Pinkman

Treasurer

Senior Director, Global Corp. & Property Mgmt. Procurement - Tishman Speyer

Sheri Shafir

Secretary

Director, Supplier Diversity, Procurement - AMC Networks

Cheryl McCants

MBE Input Committee Chair

President & CEO - Impact Consulting Enterprises

Mr. Terrence Clark

President & CEO

President & CEO - NYNJMSDC

Members

Shendora Pridgen

Executive Director, Global Head of Supplier Diversity - Morgan Stanley

Trung Tieu

Supplier Diversity Program Manager, Chief Operating Office – Supplier Diversity & Sustainability - Wells Fargo

Carl Tietjen

Assistant Vice President, Corporate Purchasing & Supply Chain - University of Rochester

Laurinda Thomas

Director, Supplier Diversity, Global Procurement - ADP

Jeanine Pedoto

Vice President - Prudential, Global Enterprise Services

Fuquan Collins

Vice President, Community & Citizenship - Turner Construction

Marisol Ramirez

Senior Manager, Supplier Diversity & Sustainability - Interpublic Group of Companies (IPG)

Wesley W. Joseph

Senior Director, Procurement - Johnson & Johnson

Mark Prince

Senior Vice President, Economic Empowerment-Media - dentsu

Rose Hatcher

Director, Supplier Diversity - Paramount

Greg Michel

Chief Procurement Officer - NBA

Dawn Wells

Assistant Vice President, Supply Chain - Northwell Health

Punita Patel

Head of Supplier Diversity - Guardian Life

Daniel Sung Park

President - eClaro International

Jessica Johnson

President - Johnson Security Bureau, Inc.

MBE Input Committee (MBEIC)

The MBEIC is a collective of minority business owners whose mission is to help NYNJMSDC certified minority owned businesses grow and expand by providing counsel and specific program recommendations to The Council.