Mayor Wu Celebrates Supplier Diversity Week in the City of Boston

This week, Mayor Michelle Wu and the City of Boston's Department of Supplier Diversity are celebrating the third annual Supplier Diversity Week, reaffirming the City's commitment to supporting local, diverse businesses. Throughout Supplier Diversity Week, the City's Department of Supplier Diversity will host a series of free and open networking events, informational sessions, and workshops to highlight and promote fair access to opportunities in the City's contracting processes while also celebrating the success of the City's equitable procurement initiatives.

"In Boston, we are lucky to have a diverse ecosystem of small businesses that keep our city running, strengthen our local economy, and empower our communities," said Mayor Michelle Wu. "Supplier Diversity Week is a great opportunity to provide businesses with hands-on support that allows them to flourish and expand their roots, an important part of making Boston a home for everyone."

Over the last three fiscal years, $628.7 million in City contracts have been awarded to certified minority- and women-owned businesses, a 94 percent increase compared to the previous four fiscal years. In fiscal year 2025, $232.5 million in contracts were awarded to certified minority- and women-owned businesses. This is equivalent to 13 percent of all contracting dollars awarded by the City in FY25. To celebrate the City's recent success, the Department of Supplier Diversity and the Procurement Department have released its annual Equity in Contracting Report for FY25, highlighting the City's equitable procurement data and achievements. Additional information about the City's efforts is available on the Equitable Procurement webpage.

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"Mayor Wu has made it a priority to create on-ramps to procurement opportunities for Boston-based businesses and those owned by Boston's rich diverse community. As a result, we have had four periods of year-over-year growth that have seen more contracts that are worth more awarded to capable and qualified firms," said Chief of Economic Opportunity and Inclusion Segun Idowu. "Our city has benefitted from greater participation of local and diverse firms, from providing culturally relevant and tasty meals to our students, to helping our neighborhoods come alive during Open Streets, to supporting major construction projects. I am grateful to my colleagues in public service who have been strong partners in not only achieving this success, but helping to implement policies and programs that will ensure its continuation."

"As a Finance Cabinet, we are committed to continue lowering the barriers that exist in City contracting to ensure Boston's local, small, and diverse businesses have a fair opportunity to access government contracts," said Chief Financial Officer Ashley Groffenberger. "Under Mayor Wu's leadership, our teams have worked to streamline processes, meet vendors where they are, and publicly report on our contracts and spending. I am grateful to the Mayor, Chief Idowu, and the Supplier Diversity, Procurement and Auditing teams for their dedication to this effort."

"Boston has done an admirable job in the past few years of increasing its supplier diversity numbers, but we need to keep pushing forward to improve opportunities for all of our Bostonians," said City Councilor Brian Worrell (District 4). "The events of this week are a crucial way to highlight our path forward."

Successful Supplier Diversity initiatives include the Supplying Capital and Leveraging Education (SCALE) program and Inclusive Quote Contracts designed to build businesses' capacity to more effectively pursue government contracts. SCALE is a grant and technical assistance program designed for small businesses in specific industries (snow removal and landscaping, food and dining services, design and architectural services, and construction). The 27 diverse Boston-based businesses selected for the SCALE program will ultimately receive a grant award of up to $200,000 and engage in a six month course on capacity building and business expansion with City-selected industry technical assistance providers.

"This week of events reflects the Department of Supplier Diversity's mission of making contracting with the City of Boston accessible to diverse businesses," said Director of Supplier Diversity Andrea Caruth. "We are grateful for the support we receive under Mayor Wu's leadership from our City partners—the Office of Small Business and the Procurement Department—to share information that will result in tangible benefits for businesses."

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Initiated by Mayor Wu's home rule petition in 2022, the Inclusive Quote Contracts procurement method—soliciting at least three quotes from certified diverse businesses—allows City officials to use the written quote process to procure higher values of supplies and services up to $250,000 when purchasing from certified small, local, disadvantaged businesses. The City has awarded 54 total Inclusive Quote Contracts, 28 of which were awarded in fiscal year 2025. Since 2022, the City has awarded $7.4 million in contracting dollars to certified businesses through Inclusive Quote Contracts.

Supplier Diversity Week events—both virtual and in-person—will provide diverse, small, and local business owners with essential tools and knowledge to successfully navigate the City's contracting processes. To register for Supplier Diversity Week events and workshops, please visit the Supplier Diversity homepage.

ABOUT THE DEPARTMENT OF SUPPLIER DIVERSITY

The Department of Supplier Diversity (DSD) of the City of Boston is dedicated to promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion in City contracting. DSD certifies businesses owned by people of color, women, veterans, and small and local businesses, and manages programs to encourage their participation in public contracting and foster their growth. More information about business certifications is available on the certification webpage.

ABOUT THE PROCUREMENT DEPARTMENT

The Procurement Department's mission is to purchase the highest-quality goods and services at the lowest possible price for the City and its residents. Procurement also supports non-profits through community grantmaking. More information about the Department is available on the Procurement homepage.

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