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We Mean Business 2020 | Virtual Conference

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Speakers

Dr. J.C. Baker

Founder & CEO, J.C. Baker & Associates | Keynote Speaker

ERIC KEARNEY

President & CEO, The African-American Chamber

Edward Mathis

Vice President of Republic Commercial Real Estate

Bernard Johnson

Director of Programs, Interise

Rita Ricks

Founder, Speaking To Your Spirit

Anthony McIntosh

President & Founder, SSE Advisors, LLC

Porscha Jackson, PhD

Business Development Manager, City of Houston's Office of Business Opportunity (OBO)

Ryan Rahinel, PhD

Executive Director, Progress Ally

Kari Hicks

Director of Technology, Progress Ally

Ella Frye

Director, Cincinnati and Southern Ohio Women Business Center

Jerome Jones

Lender Relations Specialist, The U. S. Small Business Administration

Louis Garcia

Owner, Garcia Media

Pamela Vest Boratyn

Assistant Director of Business and Human Resources & Chief of Staff, ODOT

Mauri Griffin

ECDI Program Administrator

Marlene Fout

Minority Business Assistant Center Business Advisor - Piketon Office

Tanisha Dambreville-Pierre

Interise Program Manager for Partnerships

Juleda Stoltz

Regional Outreach Manager ODOT Division of Opportunity, Diversity, and Inclusion

Deborah Davis

Cincinnati Regional Director of the Minority Business Assistance Center

Eric Denson

City of Cincinnati Senior Development Analyst Department of Community and Economic Development

Jennifer Mackenzie

Interim Director of the Department of Economic Inclusion

Michael Adams

Commercial Banking Relationship Manager, Forcht Bank

Larry Brown

Procurement Specialist Ohio University Procurement Technical Assistant Center

Diop Adisa

Entrepreneur & Social Capital Expert

Bob Leslie

SCORE

Mike Eriksen

University of Cincinnati Associate Professor of Real Estate & Academic Director of the UC Real Estate Center

Arthur Barbut

CEO of the Downtown Windsor Business Accelerator - Windsor, Ontario, Canada

Nicole Pickard

U.S. Small Business Administration Lead Economic Development Specialist – Cincinnati Region

MIKE SMITH

President & CEO of Ironsmith Development LLC

Aubrey McQueen

Outreach & Marketing Specialist

Michael Porter

CPA & President of M D Porter, PLLC

Anne Richie

President & CEO of The Mezzanine Fund

George Middleton

President & CEO of TheGeorgeMiddleton.com

Valeria Swope

City of Cincinnati Development Manager Department of Economic Inclusion

Alexander Pezo

CEO of Caliber Real Estate Investment Group, LLC

Everett Woodel

District Director - U.S. Small Business Administration's Columbus District Office

Amy Connor

President/Owner, CMO-OnLoan

Larry Forester

Senior Vice President, Forcht Bank

Andre Conner

Ohio DSA Agency Portfolio Officer - Finance & Internal Affairs

Arthur Davis III

Owner, Davis Group, LLC

The event is over

Hosted by

Cincinnati Minority Business Assistance Center

Booths

We Mean Business Help Desk

Trouble Shooting and Technical Support

Prus Construction

Every partnership begins with enthusiasm. But the truth is, most projects are an endurance test of goodwill and determination. At Prus we welcome that challenge, never losing sight of our common goals, because we know that’s how we’ll build something of value for you.

Metric Environmental

Metric Environmental is a sustainability consulting company that assists clients in air, water, waste compliance and workplace safety

Forcht Bank

Forcht Bank is a Kentucky-based bank with 25 locations throughout 12 community markets offering loans, mortgages, checking accounts and more.

BBB

BBB sets standards for ethical business behavior and monitors compliance. Almost 400,000 Accredited Businesses meet and commit to our high standards.

Progress Ally

Progress Ally is a non-profit startup aimed at boosting businesses that demonstrate support for racial causes and engage in sustainable production.

SCORE

For over 50 years, SCORE has served as America’s premier source of free, confidential business education and mentoring.

City of Cincinnati

Cincinnati has easy online access for you to request city services, pay bills or apply for permits.

Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority

To shape our future by utilizing sustainable funding models to develop quality housing solutions in partnership with our community stakeholders.

Ohio Department of Transportation

With the mission to provide safe and easy movement of people and goods from place to place, the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) supports the state highway system and promotes transportation initiatives statewide.

Economic Community Development Institute

ECDI, a statewide SBA lender, started in Columbus in 2004 before expanding to Cleveland in July 2012, Akron in November 2014 and Cincinnati in January 2018. ECDI also has Field Offices in Toledo and Canton.

Department of Economic Inclusion

The Department of Economic Inclusion is responsible for administering, enforcing, and monitoring the Equal Employment Opportunity Program, the Living Wage Program, MBE/WBE/SBE certification programs, and Local, State & Federal Prevailing Wage laws.

Greater Cincinnati Microenterprise Initiative

GCMI provides Entrepreneurship Education, Small Business Training, Business Coaching, Access to Capital, and supportive resources to low to moderate income individuals or business owners.

Minority Business Assistance Center

The Minority Business Assistance Centers (MBACs) provide MBE and EDGE entrepreneurs with management, technical, financial and contract procurement assistance in addition to loan and bond packaging services. These services are available without cost to businesses located throughout Ohio and serve the needs of Ohio’s small, minority and disadvantaged businesses.

Ohio SBDC

The Ohio Small Business Development Centers (SBDC) provide business counseling and assistance to individuals who are either starting or growing their business.

Ohio Department of Administrative Services

The Ohio Department of Administrative Services (DAS), led by Matthew M. Damschroder, is committed to providing quality centralized services, specialized support and innovative solutions to state agencies, boards and commissions as well as local governments and state universities.