SDI Presence On Track to Spend Over $5M with Fellow Minority and Women/Veteran-Owned (M/W/VBE) Business Partners in 2018

SDI's Diversity Program Drives Local MBE Business Growth, Workforce Diversity

News provided by

Oct 31, 2018, 14:23 ET

CHICAGO, Oct. 31, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- IT managed services provider (MSP) and consultancy SDI Presence LLC (SDI) announces that it is forecasted to spend over $5M with its diverse partners this 2018 fiscal year. The annual spend goal is part of SDI's on-going commitment to diversity and inclusion leadership in the Chicago minority IT community.

"We believe that strong minority firms strengthen every link in our local economy's supply chain," states SDI Presence Chief Executive Officer David A. Gupta. "The impact of minority business partnerships is exponential, as MBEs are likely to contract with other MBEs - as we do so often."

MBE-certified SDI Presence has an established track record of leadership in Chicago's minority technology community: SDI has achieved platinum status within the Chicago United Five Forward™ program, which enlists established Chicagoland corporations to commit to working with five local minority firms over five years. Five Forward has created opportunities that have generated more than 4,700 jobs and $800 million in economic activity. Notably, SDI participates not only as an MBE, but manages its own team of MBE firms as a committed corporate member. Since the program's onset, SDI has spent over $11M with its Five Forward MBE partners.

"SDI definitely is one of our Five Forward success stories," said Gloria Castillo, President and CEO of Chicago United. "The formation of business partnerships like those between SDI and its minority partners is emblematic of the value of strengthening our economy and enhancing job creation by supporting a strong, vibrant Chicagoland MBE community."

Believing that inclusion starts at home, SDI actively recruits from a diverse pool of local talent at community colleges, technical schools and diverse networking organizations. SDI's in-house recruiter works collaboratively with youth workforce development nonprofit Year Up, the City Colleges of Chicago, and M/WBE-owned recruiting firms. SDI has also mentored over 140 students over the past 20 years, including minority students from Chicago Public Schools, City Colleges, Mercy Home for Boys and Girls, the Chicago Summer Business Institute, and Year Up.

"We actively seek to use our presence to empower our employees and the clients we serve to find innovative ways to solve tough problems that drive positive change," states Cecelia Bolden, SDI Presence's Chief Development Officer who oversees the firm's diversity and inclusion programming. "We believe our recruiting strategies and minority business collaborations will result in great technology solutions for our customers, as well as increase the number of minority technology firms in our community to better reflect the diversity of the City itself."

About SDI (SDI Presence LLC)
SDI Presence LLC is an IT managed services provider (MSP) and consultancy that leverages its strong team presence to advance our clients to a secure digital enterprise. With a 20-year corporate resume, SDI delivers strategic managed services, IT consulting, and hybrid infrastructure solutions to optimize our clients' technology environments. SDI is a certified Minority Business Enterprise (MBE), with a portfolio of clients that includes some of the nation's largest airports, utilities, commercial real estate portfolios, and government agencies. Visit us at www.sdipresence.com and connect with us on Twitter and Instagram.

About Chicago United
Chicago United is a corporate membership and advocacy organization whose mission is to achieve parity in economic opportunity for people of color by advancing multiracial leadership in corporate governance, executive level management, and business diversity. Founded in 1968, the organization is focused on transforming the Chicago region into the most inclusive business ecosystem in the nation by engaging the top publicly and privately held corporations in leading talent management and inclusive diversity practices. Chicago United's signature programs include its Business Leaders of Color publication, which showcases a diverse pool of corporate director candidates, the Five Forward Initiative™, designed to invigorate job creation in communities of color by increasing the scale of large MBEs in the Chicago region, Inside Inclusion featuring the Corporate Diversity Profile and the Corporate Inclusion Institute, an innovative new program launching in early 2019 that expands organizational capacity for inclusion through the recruitment and retention of critical talent.

For media inquiries, please contact Dawn Nash Pfeiffer at 312.580.7516 or [email protected].

SOURCE SDI Presence LLC