For two days in October, a conference for the Indian Country Business Summit (ICBS) was held, attracting nearly 200 business professionals who represent all types of industries. Program and Tenant Representatives from various organizations at the Mike Monroney Aeronautical Center (MMAC) participated in this event held at the Metro Tech Conference Center in Oklahoma City. The ICBS is a Native American Business Outreach event hosted by the Oklahoma APEX Accelerator (OkAPEX) and Oklahoma’s Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC). OkAPEX Centers are in local Technology Centers located across the state, providing technical assistance to businesses interested in selling their products or services to federal, state, and local governments.
Each year, the ICBS offers informational sessions featuring experts in government procurement, as well as providing one day of business matchmaking, helping to introduce business offerings to government decision-makers. The event is tailored to government agency buyers, policy leaders, prime contractors, and tribal procurement representatives.
This is the first time the event was able to be held in-person since the global health crisis and the outpouring of support for this Native American and Small Business event was nothing short of outstanding.
The FAA MMAC has actively supported this Native American and Small Business Outreach activity since its inception in 2006, by providing program managers, and procurement officials to participate in the one-in-one matchmaking session.
This year, the Aeronautical Center was well represented with 15 participants representing six different program offices: FAA Academy (AMA), Aeronautical Center Acquisition Services Division (AAQ-700), FAA Logistics Center (AJW-L), Enterprise Services Center (AMK), Office of Facility Management (AMP), and the Civil Aerospace Medical Institute (AAM). There were additional volunteers from the FAA’s Logistics Center who were ready to support the event, however due to restrictions of room capacity, they could not be accommodated. There were 200 registered Native American and Small Businesses in attendance. Gerald Lewis, Sr. an FAA Small Business Advocate (AAP-20) for MMAC participated in a federal government panel earlier in the day, along with fellow Federal Small Business Program Managers, and advocates from Tinker Air Force Base (AFB), Altus AFB, Ft. Sill, and the Tulsa Corps of Engineers. Comments and feedback from the event have been outstanding. Small business outreach events like this provide Project Managers and Procurement Officials with a one-stop industry engagement opportunity to make contact and meet with prospective contractors in a neutral setting.
Furthermore, the outstanding support for this small business outreach event demonstrates our commitment to the small business community with the potential to increase our vital supplier base. This event tops off another successful year of Small Business Outreach at the MMAC, where we met or exceeded all of our Small Business Procurement Goals for FY-2023.
Special thanks to all the Aeronautical Center employees who helped to represent the Aeronautical Center and their respective program organizations.
Gerald Lewis of the MMAC’s Small Business Program Office (AAP-20), served on a federal government panel with Small Business Program managers and advocates from Tinker Air Force Base, Altus Air Force Base, and the Tulsa Corps of Engineers. This is a great networking event for businesses that aspire to work with government agencies. It’s a time for industry experts and panelists to come together and share valuable insights to help businesses become more successful.
More information about the FAA’s Small Business Office
