In 2020 we had a goal to become an 8A certified minority business. Sadly, a confluence of events prevented that from happening. Now we are in 2021 and its time for a do over.
For some time, we are certified by South Carolina Small and Minority Business Contracting and Certification which helped to foster the wonderful business relationship we currently have with Greenville Tech.
Why are we seeking this certification? The 8A certification is designed to help disadvantaged minority businesses. Many companies with federal contracts must reserve a percentage of their work for minority businesses.
For many years, our company has enjoyed a great reputation for doing excellent professional services. And yet, we struggle to gain new clients. We enjoy very satisfied clients with longstanding relationships. However, there seems to be an invisible wall that I cannot seem to penetrate to expand and earn the trust of new clients. Many companies are very relationship driven and I have not been part of that relationship.
My hope is that the certification will at least partially open the door to some business relationship opportunities. I have no doubt that our ethics and professionalism will cement the relationship in the long term. But right now, I just need the opportunity to prove our worth with just a little small opening.
I believe in holding ourselves accountable for the services we deliver. In the past when there was a complaint, as the owner I do the work to find out exactly what happened and why. I have taken responsibility for any mistakes and apologized for them. I report to the client what I discovered, what I did to rectify the issue and what I plan to do so it never occurs again. I would never claim that we never make mistakes, but on the rare occasion that they have occurred I made it right to the best of my ability. For this reason, our business relationships are long lasting.
Under the 8A program we become certified for 8 years. Typically, an already established 8A certified company with business relationships will work with and mentor the new certified company. After I have completed my 8 years, I can gain another 8 years under the program if I do the same and share my business and mentor a new 8A company. I am not sure how this would work for a company like mine that is both a safety company and a language service company hybrid. I do not know of any other company that does exactly what we do. Anyway, this is our goal for 2021 and we will keep you updated on the progress.
