KC Council of Women Business Owners Director Zurbuchen Helps to Forge Ground-Breaking Agreement With State of Missouri

State to begin Accepting 3^rd Party Certification for Women Business Owners

Kansas City, MO (May 23, 2003): ??Nancy Zurbuchen, co-founder and Director of the Kansas City Council of Women Business Owner (KC-CWBO) was invited to Jefferson City on Wednesday, May 21, for the launching of a new action that will benefit women business owners. In a reception at the State Capitol, Speaker of the House, Rep. Catharine Hanaway, made the announcement that a historic agreement has been signed between the State of Missouri and the National Women Business Owners Corporation (NWBOC) to provide the 3^rd party certification. Missouri is the first state to sign an agreement with NWBOC to accept their WBE certification, in addition to the State's own Women Business Enterprise (WBE) certification.

Also at the podium on May 21, was Janet Harris-Lange, Lakeland Florida, founder and President of NWBOC; Joyce Murphy, Missouri State Deputy Commissioner of Administration; and Zurbuchen.

Zurbuchen, who was recently honored as the SBA Regional "Women in Business Advocate of the Year," has been championing the cause for nearly two years to produce the positive result. "My role was to basically broker a deal so that it was a win-win for both the State and NWBOC. I see it as the first step in what I hope will be the beginning of a mini-trend. If other governmental entities sign similar agreements with NWBOC, the duplication of effort will be further reduced."

With this agreement in place, women business owners now have an additional choice in certification that will help the State to conserve internal resources that would otherwise be spent on the certifying process. NWBOC's single verification process will eliminate redundant certification reviews, a growing complaint among women business owners who many times must be separately certified with each entity with whom they want to do business.

The action for the NWBOC certification arose out of a 2001 legislative conference, hosted by Hanaway, for Missouri women business owners in which Zurbuchen participated. On Wednesday, Hanaway thanked the Office of Administration for their assistance in forging the agreement with NWBOC and Zurbuchen for her diligence in following through with all parties to reach consensus. Hanaway added that work must continue to improve opportunities for women business owners in regard to doing business with the State of Missouri.

NWBOC National President, Harris-Lange stated that because of this agreement with the State of Missouri, women business owners who are certified through NWBOC will have more business opportunities. Harris-Lange added that NWBOC's certification is accepted by over 100 major corporations in the United States. Other states are currently considering entering into the same agreement with NWBOC. "This agreement is the first step in eliminating multiple layers of certification, so that as we progress, the certification process will not be so complicated and intimidating," adds Harris-Lange.

Women business owners who are NWBOC-certificated will receive a listing of over 1000 procurement contacts. They will be listed in the NWBOC database and new e-commerce marketplace. NWBOC uses only highly qualified individuals to review a business for certification. Each reviewer signs a confidentiality agreement stating that no copies are made of the application materials to ensure total privacy. To be considered for NWBOC certification, a woman must own and control 51% or more of the business, be President or CEO of her business, be active in the daily management of the business. Complete information is available at www.NWBOC.org.

Lt. Governor Joe Maxwell, who was vital in his support, recognized the significance of the agreement by presenting a Declaration from the Lt. Governor's office. In addition, Speaker Hanaway presented Harris-Lange with a Resolution from the Missouri House of Representatives recognizing and showing support for the work of NWBOC.

Also attending the event was Becky S. Wilson, WDS Marketing & Public Relations, co-founder of the KC-CWBO, and other women business owners from across the state.

The NWBOC is a national, not-for-profit organization with a mission to increase the number of bona fide women-owned businesses that can meet the requirements of private and public sector contractors. Based in Lakeland, Florida, the NWBOC has been established to increase competition for corporate and government contracts through implementation of a pioneering economic development strategy for women business owners.??

The Kansas City Council of Women Business Owners is a non-profit organization focused on improving the business climate in Kansas City for all women business owners. The membership is specifically for women who own and run larger businesses in the area. The organization's activities focus on public policy initiatives and improvements in certification and procurement processes. For more information about KC-CWBO, contact Nancy Zurbuchen at (816) 452-4700.

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