 So just a few quick housekeeping pieces if you haven't already visited our restroom It's across this hall over here, and there is some water in the back That's about that I just Yeah, so I'm Crystal Howard and I work here at the gaming commission in our workforce diversity development We are we I personally was a little bit concerned about how daylight savings would impact the energy of this room So thank you all for having your coffee this morning I know I needed two cups because you guys have brought a lot of energy already, so I hope you're ready for our program I know there are a lot of other engagements this week being a national Small business week for veterans, and I'm really excited you guys came here. So thank you very much And I'd like to introduce Jill Griffin the director of workforce supplier and diversity development to get our program started Thank you. Thank you As Crystal said, I'm Jill Griffin. I direct the workforce supplier and diversity development department and On behalf of the gaming commission. I'd like to welcome you here today as the daughter of a US Army veteran who served as an ammunition non-commissioned officer in World War two in the Pacific Campaign and the sister of a veteran who served an active duty as a captain in the field artillery unit for the US Army This is really important to me I'd like to say for the men and women here today who have served our country. Thank you for your service Our event today is aligned with the charge to fulfill and maximize the Charge of the gaming law regarding economic opportunity for the men and women who have served our country Today you will hear about each casinos Casino licensees goals their commitment to an interest in doing business with companies owned by veterans I'd like to actually introduce a champion within the commission For economic development and someone who has made a priority to ensure that we maximize Opportunities for our men and women who have served our country And here to tell you more about the priorities of the gaming law related to veterans Massachusetts gaming commissioner Bruce Stebbins Come on. They deserved applause too. We were a little silent Good morning or good afternoon everyone. Thank you for joining us Is Jill pointed out I'm one of the four members of the Massachusetts gaming commission I had when I took this role on my biggest interest was looking at the economic development impacts of gaming The bill was certainly passed with the intention of one creating jobs from Massachusetts residents But it was also trying to recapture revenue that we knew Massachusetts residents were spending out of state But ancillary to all of that was the notion built in of providing business opportunities for small and medium-sized businesses across Massachusetts and as I've quickly realized What's interesting about this purchasing piece which is prioritized in the statute is that Employment kind of is localized. I mean you'll only travel so far for a job But when it comes to purchasing when it comes to buying supplies that supplier can be on the other end of the state MGM which we're happy to have here It's located right along the Connecticut River But believe it or not that's not where they thought of when they thought where we're going to get seafood for our restaurants So they had a great opportunity to partner With businesses and Gloucester and businesses in New Bedford to supply Their needs in the culinary side of the house so Again, I want to thank Crystal I want to thank Jill for putting this program on together as we lead up to Veterans Day and Acknowledging veterans small businesses again if you saw the headlines today We're reminded about the tremendous sacrifice that our veterans make one in particular a mayor from Outwest who sadly leaves behind his family while he was being deployed in Afghanistan So this work is very important to us When the gaming statute came out it talked about making sure that our licensees do business with minority women and veteran owned businesses Well minority and women owned businesses have always kind of been out there in the forefront. There are resources available The veteran certification was something new to everybody in the Commonwealth. How do I become a veteran certified business? How how do I know what businesses out there are owned by veterans? So we kind of took up the charge to get the word out and we had some great partnerships With the team in the back from supplier diversity office and OSD or in the Commonwealth to try to come up with a solution Try to figure out how we not only draw a veteran owned business to raise their hand and say I'm a veteran owned business But how to get them certified so that they could be Taking advantage of the opportunities available to them through the expanded gaming statute. So We're excited to have all of you here We're looking for people to help us get the word out to veterans You might know in your own community or if you're a veteran owned business We want to make sure that you have an opportunity to talk to one of our licensees We're lucky to have a number of resources that are available to veterans Located in the back of the room. So is you're out talking to veterans who might own a business There are resources for a street wise NBA. They're resources for certification They're resources with mass hire for finding veterans to be your employees. We have our team from game sense Which is a unique effort here in the Commonwealth to help Massachusetts residents Avoid the pitfalls of addiction to gaming and we we also know through our research that veterans are sometimes the most predisposed to fall victim to addiction Especially when it comes to gaming so our game sense team has been Helpful in helping people get the right resources Helping to educate them about being on the exclusion list so that they have some support and not gambling but again Veterans are as much a focus for us as it is for all of you in this room. So with that I want to again Thank you for your participation. Thank you for your attendance I think you're going to hear some great information today from our licensees and from our partners that the supplier diversity office But again on behalf of the gaming Commission. Thank you. Thank you for your time Thank you for the great job that you do. Thank you for the important job that you do And we look forward to working with you in any capacity that we can and with that I will turn it back over to the real brains behind the operation of this event crystal Howard We're really lucky to work with Bruce. Thank you, Bruce He supports us not only in this but all of our initiatives for women minority and veterans I Really have the great honor of introducing our first licensee who is going to give you a lot of information That you're here to actually here Eli Heard from Plain Ridge Park Thank you Hey, everybody welcome. Thank you all for coming out. Thank you crystal and Jill and Commissioner Stebbins for having me here and buddy all of us and To on the curtels of Jill statements for all of you who have have served. Thank you for your service and supporting our country My name is Eli Heard. I'm the purchasing manager at Plain Ridge Park casino so I want to begin and kind of tell everybody a little bit about our property and myself and then we'll get into pen national gaming a little bit and who we are as a company and Then I would like to the opportunity after we're all done Here and it's no you a bit more about what you are and what your company is all about There's Park casino is the first operation to open in Massachusetts. We opened up in June of 2015 We are a slot parlors. We're not a full-blown casino. We've got a class be licensed so no table games what we do offer harness racing and Simulcast harness racing is a live April through November. So we're just getting into the last end of that If you haven't been out to a see a life harness race it's a very fascinating those horses are absolutely gorgeous animals and they do a great job We also offer our summer cast year-round so we get to see other opportunities for Racing around the other properties around the country and sometimes even around the world That can all be viewed for our semi-cast opportunities. We do have six food and beverage outlets Including slacks, which is a features local seafood and so high-end gourmet restaurant. That's some pretty good steaks They're too so go out try some oysters all from the local region and some really nice steaks We also offer sports pub which is open seven days a week if that's Doug flu sports pub and They've got some really good burgers there too if you're ever interested We do offer a banquet space and some some meeting an event space there as well Located on the second floor overlooking the racetrack This is actually the best time of the year to get out there and take a look because we're still running the horses And the foliage is absolutely gorgeous So pretty much Park casino is part of Penn National Gaming. We just recently acquired pinnacle gaming About a month and about a month ago And that puts us as the largest regional operator of gaming in the country So we've got 40 locations across the country. We employ over 30,000 team members It is a great opportunity for us locally we off we've got Barpreet's all the way up in Bangor, Maine And then in the Northeast region all the way down to West Virginia So part of my job is to work very very closely with the Penn National and pinnacle teams to Find other opportunities and synergies across the entire company So there might be some meeting today that happens that could have a global escalation Throughout all of Penn National Gaming as I've got direct contact to all of the heads of procurement and all of the regional directors Throughout our history here at Playmarch Park casino Diversity year-over-year spend has been on the study incline We've done some pretty amazing numbers since we've opened in 2015. We did struggle in the beginning Just sheer due to you know Registration opportunities and trying to find the right vendor mix since then we've Attended a lot of events like this moving in the right direction and hopefully today We'll be able to bring on some more opportunities for Playmarch Park casino Penn National Gaming and yourselves as well One of the opportunities that's coming up would be a diversity fair. It'll be happening in the early 2019 Date has not yet been finalized but we're working with our banquet staff to try and make sure that this is going to happen and we'll be able to collaborate with a Gaming commission and provide some information about the event at that point in time We're partnering with the Center for Women and Business Enterprise the Greater England Minority Supplier Development Council The local area chambers and we plan to have some networking events we would have some customized matchmaking sessions with key Key decision-making Personnel at the property get you in and talking to the appropriate people people can answer questions better than I can About their specific needs Will be some property tours and some nice giveaways Showcase here are a couple of opportunities for us at the property But we are certainly not limited to a few of these opportunities If there's something that you think that you can offer us I want to hear about it I want to be able to talk to you. I know my team. I know my property and I know Penn National Gaming so I'll be able to Listen to what it is that you've got and put you in the right direction put you in touch with the correct people to See if there is in fact an actual fit if there is a fit Fantastic, we would love to be able to make sure that this works We could work very very closely together to get you registered with the Massachusetts Gaming Commission and get you registered with Penn National Gaming Claimers Park as you know as a vendor Again these are some areas of opportunity for us We would absolutely love to talk to you anybody in with these categories, but there are so many more opportunities out there as well and We just recently announced a hiring event and we're always looking for Folks to join our team at Claimers Park as you know and Penn National Gaming so if you know of anybody in the workforce that's looking for opportunities as a That might be interested in working with us. We're always interested in that as well Here's some key contact information for you. So If you would like to do business with us or if you have any other contacts and colleagues that you would like to send some information to plr-purchasing at pngaming.com is the Direct line to everybody in the procurement staff at Playwrights Park, you know including myself We will be able to review a statement of Capability send that along to us. We'll be able to review get in hands of the right people will be in contact with you If there's any interest Part of the registration process with the Massachusetts Gaming Commission requires a statement of business relationship form to be completed by a gaming licensee My contact information is right there. I'll be more than happy to supply that if there's a good fit I'll fill out the appropriate information and send it along so you can complete your application to the gaming Commission I'd also like to remind everybody that the vendor registration submissions for the master's gaming Commission We sent to one-on-one federal Street right here in Boston Contact information is right there. Any questions about the licensing process. You can email to vendor licensing Mgc at state.ma.us They will be more than happy to walk you through the process as well I I've been working with them for about four years now to complete the process. So if You have any questions, I'll be more than happy to help out Again, Playwrights Park, Casino. We're located in Plainville, Massachusetts right off of 495 and Route 1. We're about Three and a half miles south of Gillette Stadium on Route 1 Everybody has any knowledge of the area. We're right off the highway Thank you very much everyone. I look forward to speaking with every single one of you later on this afternoon Thanks Eli. That was great So I would like to bring up Ryan Geary from MGM Springfield was as many of you know just opened in August Good afternoon everyone My name is Ryan Geary I'm the operations controller for MGM Springfield. So I oversee The procurement team on the ground here locally in Massachusetts As well as our supply chain operations team, which includes our warehouse and inventory control I'd like to take a few minutes today To give you a little update on how the project's going We as you may know opened up August 24th of this year And the opening was a huge success Big embracement from the community Great turnout. We saw over a hundred and fifty thousand visitors in the first weekend And we've hosted 21 events since we opened so I give everybody a little bit of Inside to the type of entertainment that kind of bringing to the area We've had Jabba walkies blue man group the dropkick Murphys as well as many other featured local bands as part of our entertainment offerings and As part of the plaza activation, which is our outdoor area We've had numerous other local events such as farmers markets We've brought in a local brewery called the white lion. We do a white lion Wednesday event through the the summer and the early fall The procurement efforts of my team, which is all here today who I hope you all stop by and meet us later We don't have a table, but we're all here. We've all got the the name tags on to make it easy for everyone Through their efforts and the efforts of our you know our corporation our global procurement team That's also located out in Las Vegas We were able to procure over over 90 million dollars in pre-opening Goods 37 million of which were biddable spend which we consider for Diversity owned businesses So With that I'd like to invite you all to come see our property if you've heard about it. It's it's one of the only properties in our portfolio that's located in a downtown urban district and It's fully integrated And when I say fully integrated I don't know I don't only mean the types of food and beverage offerings and entertainment offerings It's fully integrated into the community. So what they did with this with this site is really something to behold It pulled together. I believe it was 21 different parcels to make the site and they They kept the historical Items of historical significance and integrated them into the property So everywhere you look our pieces of Springfield and pieces of that history that We've all come to know and love about our city. So please come visit us We'll be actually putting an ice skating rink out on the plaza here to celebrate the holidays pretty soon And we'll have a tree lighting ceremony So we're going to continue these types of activations throughout the the winter season Just a quick look at our commitments to diversity Through our host community agreement. We have a total of 27 percent overall goal Which is one of the highest throughout our company And these goals we always like to mention these goals for us are a floor not a ceiling Our our intent is to exceed these goals each year We're here today to talk about veteran owned businesses, which means all of you and We would love, you know to see that 2% Climb up into the you know closer to the a 10 or 15 percent But what we need in order to to achieve that is We need to identify some more veteran owned businesses. So that's why we're here today Again, please make sure that you come see us Any questions you have regarding our process or our approach? Or any of the opportunities we have Throughout our property our team would be more than happy to speak with you about they're very knowledgeable and They live and breathe this every day Briefly. I wanted to just touch on our approach. This is kind of the approach that that we've been utilizing throughout the the development phase of the project and and again into the the operating phase and The question we try and answer with this this diagram here is really how do we achieve our goals in a way? That are both sustainable and mutually beneficial to not only our suppliers, but our business and ultimately the community, right and the number one way we do that is to build a foundation of Community partnerships, so we actually Were extremely lucky in that our construction and development team were able to develop some really strong relationships early on during the campaign phase of the project and We were able to take advantage of those relationships moving into the operation phase of the project so We you know meet frequently and and throughout the pre-opening and again through operations with various group, excuse me groups local chambers our partners at the Commission And our certification partners and what these allow us to do Is is really establish our roots in the community Understand who's out there what they can do for for the business and really strive to to match them to our operational needs And that's the other kind of cornerstone of this foundation that you see here And when I say matching That really talks about a couple of different things So one of the things that we like to do is right-size the opportunity so what I mean by that is I'll use a a mattress supplier for example, so during the pre-opening phase. We had a an opportunity to We were sourcing all the mattresses for our hotel and we had a local supplier who we really liked Really had the quality we're looking for But that supplier Was only able to supply the the mattresses for For our suites so our elevated guest experience suites so we were able to break that opportunity really into two opportunities and allow that supplier To take advantage of that and do business with us and hopefully eventually grow and to be able to support the volume for the rest of our rooms Another thing we like to do is You know, even though we're a large corporation and many large corporations They they'll look at their tailspin and they'll try and manage that and consolidate it into a smaller supply base to to drive savings In a lot of cases where we're not doing that we're diversifying our supply base and And in order to do so there's instances where we're paying a markup to do business with a local diverse supplier So that's definitely something to keep in mind and you know, obviously we want to we want to keep it competitive, but You know when it comes right down to it We want to we want to do as much business as possible with with all of you with diverse and local suppliers This is just a brief overview of our process I'm not going to spend too much time on it. This is really what we what we use throughout the pre-opening phase and so we we looked at our budget and we developed a a mechanism if you will to operationalize that that information and we We developed the matrix of better opportunities that we then brought to these meetings with our community leaders and with the the gaming Commission and we really leveraged our Supplier task force To to help match and help identify And relieve any gaps that we had in our supply base so all this kind of boils down to What we talked about in the last slide which is matching the supplier to the opportunity and really making sure that that opportunity is right size so we're we really want to develop long-term relationships and and so You know that initial opportunity might not be You know the entire piece of business depending on what supplier we're talking to that suppliers ready to grow then that's great We we would definitely Be open to you know to to bidding that whole opportunity, but in the case that the supplier is a You know still trying to get their footing doesn't know You know if they can handle all that volume initially We'll allow them to step into it a little bit and and we also offer Supplier mentorship programs not only locally, but but through our corporate partners That really helped any new suppliers that are maybe even new to the industry Get their feet under them. Make sure that they're doing the right things to to support the volume and to be able to To grow with with the business Quick touch on my team. They're here. Those are their faces We have Jeffrey Lines our procurement operations manager. He's right up here in the front Eddie Australia our assistant manager And Deborah Arnold who I didn't have a picture for sorry Deborah She's also here. She's our purchasing coordinator. So that's the team that makes up MGM Springfield procurement and They are what I like to tell everybody is they they have local knowledge they're all Eddie and Jeff born and raised in Springfield and Debbie's from from Massachusetts Milford, correct originally So they they have local knowledge of the the market The the supply chain and the vent and the supply base They have a local commitment to our to our goals and to our suppliers and our business and they are the local support So these are the guys that initiate the process address any issues that come up throughout the process whether it be submitting your gaming application registering Getting your first PO all of those things. These are the guys that that reach out and and really help to make that process Go smoothly just to touch on some success here. So it's a lot of information on the screen But really what I what I'd like to show everybody and highlight here is that all the Suppliers that are highlighted in yellow are diversity suppliers in the state of Massachusetts So you can see we have quite a few This represents minority owned businesses and women owned businesses And then the pictures surrounding this graphic are just Examples of different types of events. The team has been attending. We do site visits with suppliers We've got a local Lenders network event highlighted there and then some Volunteering that we've done so the bottom right we've we that was us doing a cleanup event at the Connecticut River And all the hard work really that we've done through the pre-opening kind of Came out in the third quarter report for internally for diversity reporting So two of our two of our diversity suppliers here made the top ten across the company in you know in disperse funds For diversity spent so I think that's huge it's a huge testament to the work that we've done to our commitment and we're just all just delighted to see that and And share with you all The last thing I want to touch on is the reason we're here today We need you guys so All that success and everything that that long list we had on the last slide. It's it's all great But we are still looking for more veteran owned businesses. We want to grow this list quite frankly, you know, we need to grow this list and That's why we're here. So please again Stop by talk to the team before we leave today And I want to get everyone's information and make sure that And we know who you are Some resources outside of our team here We have the as I mentioned earlier the vendor advisory task force So we met monthly through pre-opening and we're continuing to meet Post-opening and this is again where those discussions are being had we have our our community Leaders and our certification partners present and we're talking about upcoming opportunities who might fit Who they know of? That could help fill fill the gaps that we have right now So that's a great resource another one is our website. Please go ahead and visit. It's MGM springfield calm slash suppliers You can register with us there Submit all your information What kind of service or product you provide and then you'll be in our database so we can add you to our any upcoming opportunities we have That's all I have for today Thank you Thanks again, Ryan. We know that both you and Eli came pretty far to be here today. So So demonstrates your commitment to this cause and we're glad you guys will actually get to connect with them That's pretty important I think Yeah, all right, so as Accidentally skip to the next slide. We are showing you who's coming right up next I'd like to introduce David Granada who's hiding in the back very inconspicuously From Encore Boston Harbor Welcome. Thank you for coming out Just I'm gonna give a brief overview of the property and some of the goals and objectives that we've set as a company Before I get into that. I just want to let you know we have a table in the back You can go back there and talk to Nadia and Andrew. We've got handouts We've got some really granular details on some of the opportunities that we Anticipate in the coming months So just a couple of pictures and then we'll get into the numbers and the commodities Which I think is what everybody's mostly interested in this is as of about a month ago before our tower crane came down So we're a little bit further along For those of you that don't know our anticipated opening is June of 2019 We're right on the shores of the Mystic River in Everett with a lovely view of the natural gas tanks in Everett and the the summer the Somerville shoreline This is an error again, these are all about a month old I Want to talk a little bit about the property itself? So this is a 33-acre lot Which over the centuries actually was heavily contaminated so I think the last commercial usage of it was a Monsanto plant that was there for a Hundred years 75 years highly contaminated Before that though going back to the Revolutionary War there were tanneries all along the the Mystic River and I guess the chemicals that they use were highly caustic so there were literally hundreds of years of contamination and The encore Boston Harbor team predating me Removed 480,000 tons of contaminated soil scooped it up Railroad cars week after week month after month trucking it out. I don't know where it went, but it's not an Everett anymore Drudging the the Mystic River and the inlet there Laying new sand new gravel One of the coolest things is if you look along the shoreline that green strip we are now in the process of Planting a natural shoreline. So we're bringing the shoreline back to what it looked like a thousand years ago We're planting native plants the birds are coming back the fish are spawning I mean, there's a lot of good stuff happening and All of that time and energy was before they ever even dug the first footing so The facility itself is three million square feet 200,000 square foot gaming floor which is bigger than all the gaming floors for wind in Las Vegas combined It's really going to be quite a property and like I said we we hope to open in June One more picture and then we'll get into some of the commodities. This is I believe it's is it red eight Nadia? Do you know? Yeah, okay. This is Going to be one of our Asian restaurants when it does open and it's really just I don't have a lot of pictures I think this is the last one but just to show how far we are in the construction project that we've got Ceilings in and marble down and we're really We're really trying to make this a quite a special place So there were three phases To the entire project the first is the construction phase which we're using Suffolk, which is a very very well renowned Boston construction firm Moving into the furniture fixtures and equipment phase Which is where we do a lot of the load-in for the for the really big stuff the big kitchen equipment and A lot of the hotel furniture stuff of that nature Where we're now approaching is the operations phase, which is where my team comes in and we now have the responsibility of Filling this place so it's three million square feet and The total project cost is estimated at two and a half billion dollars And as I keep reminding my team probably 80 times a week If we don't fill this place and that's two and a half billion dollars that For an empty building so we have a lot of stuff that we have to get across Such a wide variety of commodities again I encourage you to visit our table back there because we really have a detailed listing of what those opportunities are This slide right here is really just a summary of those 76 commodities that I just described so It just runs the gamut whether we're talking about beverages whether we're talking about Different food types China glass silver disposables General ops hotel ops. I'm not gonna. I'm not gonna read the list. It's very extensive but these are all the areas that are in play for us and Similar to the other gaming properties in Massachusetts. We've made some very strong commitments not only in the Minority women and veteran-owned business space but also with our local communities Everett is our host community Molden Medford Boston Chelsea Cambridge Somerville are our surrounding communities and we have made commitments to all of the above To the tune of almost a hundred million dollars so We're not only looking for businesses that are based in one of those seven towns and really anywhere in Massachusetts Those those are our core towns, but we're looking for Massachusetts vendors and more specifically We're looking for MBEs WBEs and VBEs And again, there's a lot of money out there and a lot of categories and I just have to imagine that the There must be a lot of overlap between some of the veteran-owned businesses in the Commonwealth and what we're looking for so We were very excited about attending this event because This is where we can kick all of those relationships off Real quickly on the timeline again, we are not open yet But the timing for this event is great because for the last year we've been anticipating Q4 18 as When we would really start RFPing large swaths of our business in earnest and We're right in Q4 18 right now. So timing is really good on all of this. Nobody's missed the boat on anything Obviously we expect to be awarding business soon thereafter. So December January February March, etc. etc The Really don't want to just read this stuff verbatim. Obviously certain categories have certain criteria We are going to have a very large Engineering team so we're going to hire electricians and carpenters and plumbers etc. Etc. But It's a three million square foot facility. We could never hire enough of them So some of the bigger opportunities with us is in the trades simply supplementing our internal Staff So obviously some of those things have special requirements You can't be an electrician unless your license or a plumber etc. Etc. So if you look at the handout that we have back There and you can also go to our website on Corbuson harbour comm click on I think it's called vendor opportunities So the handout back there if you don't get one is also on that website And it gives some pretty good details on which of those services we think need to be on call Which of them are 24-7 which of them require certain licenses? But we're trying to get as granular as we can in the information we provide because if we don't then We can't make that match if we just say we need engineering stuff and we're going to be buying food You know, that's not granular enough to really You know create the opportunity for somebody that maybe Owns a pastry business or they sell cleaning chemicals. So we felt strongly that the more Details we provided to the public The better chances we had of finding those partners that we're looking for Ah Work with businesses of all sizes Obviously there are some scaling requirements. So there are you know if we need Supplemental landscaping services, I don't think a guy that owns a pickup truck and a lawn mower is really going to do it for a 33-acre property But having said that what we're working very hard on is Partnering smaller companies with bigger companies and we think there's a lot of opportunities there as well So we do work with businesses of all sizes again. Some of it is contingent upon the type of service as Some of the other properties I've mentioned today that there is a Licensing requirement with the MGC And That is usually not usually it's triggered by our intent or statement of intent to do business So the way that works is we identify you as a company that we want to do business with Then we send the statement out then you register with MGC So what we really don't want people doing is rushing the mess was choose its gaming commission saying please register me It starts with one of the three power property saying we intend to do business with this firm And last but not least certification is a really big thing. So this is a veteran Event today if you're not certified I would encourage you to go see John in the corner back there, right? Are you the man? Okay, John will explain that process to you and what's really great about certification is it creates opportunities? Well beyond gaming. I mean it really does there are so many initiatives out there for diversity and It's not just the gaming properties. There are federal opportunities state opportunities and most all of them if you're claiming to be a veteran owned business is they're gonna want to see a Certification, but it just leads to business that might otherwise not be attainable And with that That's it So thank you very much for your time and come visit us back here Thank You David. Thanks for giving us an update all of our licensees I want to take a moment and kind of jump in before we invite Bill McAvoy up because We're pleased this afternoon to have a very special guest with us I would say he's heading into a busy week with veterans stay next week, but Knowing what his calendar is and what he does across the Commonwealth. I'm not sure he has a quiet week. So The gentleman I'm about to introduce many of you probably already know him in the room But he has been an incredible partner of the gaming Commission He is lent not only his time and support but that of his team To helping us be successful in this one niche of our work Which is supporting veterans veterans for jobs supporting veterans who own a business? But he is certainly seen around the Commonwealth I think he has gone to every corner of the state to recognize veterans offers support for veterans He's a veteran himself But I know we would like to have an opportunity to bring some word of greetings from from the governor and lieutenant governor It's a great pleasure to introduce our veteran services secretary Francisco Urana. Thank you very much Well, so good afternoon to all of you all Thank you for your commitment to veterans and as we all embark upon the month of veterans month It is a very important ask But this week is a very important week for you all as business for you all as veterans seeking Opportunities for you all as a community that cares to wants to deliver that great news of opportunity As we celebrate small veterans business week here in the Commonwealth and across the country To our partners in the gaming Commission to our partners in the federal VA I see so so many folks and just to our partners in general You know on behalf of our governor Charlie Baker and lieutenant governor Pallido and our 365,000 veterans who call Massachusetts home. It is a true privilege to lead this Department of Veteran Services We lead in so many things across the country and our delivery our connections our services our local veteran service officers that you Well should get to know when if there is Which there is a partner a community in every one of your gaming Locations make sure that they are partners But when it comes to hiring veterans is there's no better partner than our one-stop career centers And I can't speak enough for the quality of work that they do not just for you all this game You for for veterans in general who are unemployed underemployed and those for seeking better opportunities now What we find ourselves here in Massachusetts over the last three years is that our unemployment rates are extremely low and yes for you all who are looking for employers that gives you a little bit more of a challenge and It has been trending that for the last three years our Numbers of veteran unemployment are lower than the general population and that trend yes is positive And but that's a new trend for us here in Massachusetts and across the country used to veteran unemployment used to be higher And for the I see a lot of heads nodding because you know you remember it wasn't that long ago And so we are so very committed that these opportunities remain but in this new industry of gaming in This aspect of looking for diversity not just in veterans But diversity in what makes the Commonwealth great is Creating the sense of trust that you all is as the latest and greatest industry in the Commonwealth could come in and open your doors To anybody and everybody and make our way for a path for success for our veterans I'm so very pleased that the set of sides that you all have set our benchmarks as a floor and not a ceiling that we could continue to work towards Making realistic numbers realistic goals and yes 7% of the population in Massachusetts are veterans But not 7% of the veterans in that population are part of the workforce Because half of our veterans of the 365,000 are Vietnam era veterans in their 60s and late in early 70s And so if you look at that bell curve The realistic numbers of the workforce are much lower than our 7% of population So you all notice that level of integrity in the numbers and how we could adapt but Again setting those percentages as a floor and not a ceiling And so you all did them in the construction area and now that you move into the next phase of operations as our friends at MGM and our friends in Plainville and our friends soon at Boston Encore are soon to do is making that again that opportunity that pathway for veterans and families during the time of construction, I did have a opportunity to tour several of the sites and I had an opportunity to engage with many of the veterans Some of you all took it a step further and issued hard hats that distinguished veterans and set that sense of pride among the construction aspect of the gaming Building these massive facilities Veterans are good for business veterans are good for community the sense of mission accomplishment a sense of teamwork the sense of putting Finishing the work and camaraderie and all the things that veterans learned while in the mental theory They will be great and I know you know that and I know that's why your commitment to our hiring our veterans is continues We must do more not just for the veterans that live here in Massachusetts But make Massachusetts a great destination for veterans to come move to and that opportunity Relies with you all to continue to spread the word about where to apply how to apply and that the opportunities They are not keep it a best-kept secret or no pun intended leave it up to chance, right? That was a joke, but I guess you all too serious today, so Nobody rolled the dice on that one now so but listen To all the veterans in the room Thank you for your service and your your sacrifice and we know here in Massachusetts that yes While your service matters your biggest contribution to the Commonwealth is upon Time once you don that uniform off and you stepped in here as a civilian bringing all the great skills That you learned in and out of the military and applying that and it is our role as a Commonwealth and as agency heads And as partners to find those pathways to success find true partnerships that lead to great opportunities and make it a Great place not only to live to work, but to play To the families of veterans among us you too have sacrificed and it is our wish that you know How much you mean to us and as a veteran myself? I know having a family that has you know wished for better days During the time that we were in the military and deployed that we could have the sense of success Upon returning home and I think that's what we're creating here was that's what the Commission continues to strive to set a good playing field for all and If we as an agency could be of any help Please let us know if there's great ideas sometimes they are in the communities The best ideas exist let us foster those together so that they don't stay bottled up to our great friends at the office of supplier diversity Thank you for continuing to guide us all in this path of not just diversifying the gaming Commission and the institution of gaming, but the Commonwealth as a whole when we came here in 2015 just a short three and a half years ago less than $400,000 was being spent on a handful of companies and It was just a small tweak and common sense approach Into not just giving opportunities for service disabled veterans Yes, that's important, but giving opportunities for all veterans because the numbers just weren't there and The message was being was being kept as a best kept secret and that has changed a lot has Come to the table with the leadership again of so many great partners in government that Are truly here to see our citizens and our Commonwealth continue to move forward. Thank you God bless you all and again Thank you for your commitment and setting this today as a kickoff to small veterans a business week. Thank you We really appreciate you being here. Thank you secretary Irana So as he alluded to there are lots of opportunities There's more opportunity coming and to speak to the opportunity as far as certification actually goes I'd like to welcome Bill McAvoy. Thank you crystal. Good afternoon everyone It's a pleasure to be here today And I want to thank all of our veterans for your service to our country And I want to thank all of the folks that have committed to helping veteran businesses for your service to our veterans It is a very difficult act to follow secretary Irana, but the couple former Lawrence boys we Usually when we're doing the speaking circuit, I'm first and he's he's the prime speaker, but He still is the prime speaker and thank you secretary for coming today. He has been an amazing asset and and Model for all of us actually and in establishing the veteran program that I'm about to talk about in a few minutes and I thank you for all of your guidance and leadership throughout the years to establish our certification program as well as our goals for veterans, so thank you In addition to veteran affairs Obviously the mass gaming commission and the operational services division supply diversity office We also have someone here from mass office of economic development not if you wanted it to waive And the other state agencies here. So as you can see the Commonwealth takes Economic development takes supplier diversity takes veterans inclusion within our Purchasing opportunities very seriously What I'm going to talk a bit about today is there's my PowerPoint working I'm going to talk a little bit about our agency the operational services division and the supplier diversity office that I oversee with an OSD I also serve as general counsel there at OSD. So I wear a couple different hats We're talking about a certification program Some of our programs for small and diverse businesses which include veteran businesses But some Commonwealth business opportunities as well as the combines system, which is where you can find bidding opportunities OSD is an oversight agency within the executive department of the Commonwealth We're a diverse organization. We actually procure goods and services for state on statewide contracts which are available for any business including veteran businesses to take part in in In addition to anyone being able to bid on those there are specific programs I'm going to talk about in a few minutes that are open for minority women veteran and other types of businesses where they can have a Subcontracting opportunity. So actually you have two bites at the apple You have the opportunity to be able to bid as a prime bidder and also I'll talk about our programs You can be bidding as a subcontracted for subcontracting opportunities two of the things that again be focusing mostly on today again our supplier diversity office our certification and Programs as well as the combine system This slides talks about our certification opportunities We actually certify within the supplier diversity office minority and women businesses which we've spoken about being Available for many years. These programs have been as well established. You're going to see through our funding The this the amount that the Commonwealth spends with these programs How much better established they are in time and and in terms of investment and what you're going to see the growth that we've shown With veteran businesses over the years as well In addition to those internally certified by the supplier diversity office We also accept certification for those categories as well as for service disabled veterans disability and LGBT businesses and that program was put in place for all veteran LGBT and Disability businesses to be part of our supplier diversity program three years ago by Governor Baker We also have a federal program that's overseen by the Massachusetts Department of Transportation And that's called the unified certification program and that's for federal highway projects that are federally funded These are certification opportunities. You see we're focused mostly on the ones that are in red, but minority women Certifications again, we do in-house. We also have some partners similar to The casinos that we've heard from today they accept Greater New England as well as Center for Women and Enterprise We have actually worked partnerships with that those organizations as well as the city of Boston where if you're already certified by them Why are we going to make you jump through hoops and fill out a full application to become certified by us? So we're going to have some reciprocity there with those organizations to get certified by the supplier diversity office We also have a small business purchasing program. We're going to talk about in a minute Our disability owned business program and LGBT business programs that are certified by two national organizations and Why we're here today service disabled veteran and veteran programs the service disabled veteran We accept certification by an organization called Disability in used to be known as US business leadership network and also by the US Department of Veteran Affairs otherwise known as vet biz and for We for veteran certification non non disabled veterans We accept that vet biz certification as well in two and a half years ago Governor Baker Lieutenant Governor Polito and Secretary Urena directed us to start certifying veterans internally We noticed that certain veterans was taking a little longer to become certified by the federal government So we offered a more streamlined certification. It's probably only good in Massachusetts Other states may accept it. You can check with them and we'll certainly work out agreements with them But we thought that they should be that is veterans should be able to become certified within the four to six weeks We certify minority and women businesses, you know, I'd have to wait what we'd heard was up to nine months for federal certification These are some of the opportunities that are available in the Commonwealth As you can see 4.7 billion dollars. This was the end of fiscal year 17 was spent on goods and services 1.4 billion of it was on statewide contracts certain items are on statewide contract Those are the contracts that we issue from the operational services division 1.46 billion of that one 4.6 billion. We're talking pretty serious money here was spent with minority Women veteran and Massachusetts small business. So as you can see there's a lot of opportunity With the Commonwealth Here's some of our Procurement programs that we have available. We have a small business purchasing program applies to any small procurement under $150,000 That should be awarded to a small business, which is defined as under 15 million in revenue Under 50 employees and based in Massachusetts Veteran businesses can of course supply for that program if they're based in Massachusetts Service disabled. I'm sorry supplier diversity program applies to anything over $150,000 and that's what the prime bidder So if someone is getting a large contract for computers, let's say They're all supposed to include within their bid a commitment to spend money with minority women veteran businesses So that's where you saw that prior page of 1.46 billion dollars was spent with through these programs We also have a municipal affirmative marketing construction program as well as our affirmative marketing program for state agencies and that Program actually is for the construction of state buildings or state-funded schools throughout the Commonwealth On the right side of this slide. You'll see our our benchmarks again. The well-established programs that have been around for decades Minority program for example has 8% benchmark women program 3% benchmark veteran I'm sorry 14% veteran program 3% small businesses 3.3% Disability and LGBT businesses we have an established benchmarks. They're new new new certifications This is slide is a little bit more information about our affirmative market construction program John oversees that program in addition to a few more programs again John is in the Back right of our room there if folks would like to speak with him afterwards about these opportunities He can tell you more information than I can about them Here's where the rubber hits the road. This is the spending the Commonwealth has had over the past three years So under the Baker administration actually starting fiscal year 716 fiscal year 15 was You'll see the service disabled veteran program. I hate to contradict the secretary He said just want to clarify the number that was spent actually was less It was only 33 thousand dollars that we had spent with veterans in our service disabled veteran program And it was three two and a half to three years into the program We only had 15 certified services able veterans 33 thousand dollars We're now up to over 150 certified veterans as you can see in fiscal year 17 that 33,000 has grown to almost 15 million Our goal is to get that even higher Just so you know what the 3% represents it's about a hundred million dollars So we have a long ways to go but unfortunately when the program was started by the prior administration There was a benchmark that was established with the program before there was the capacity to really Be able to handle the amount of business In other words, we only were certifying one or two businesses at a time and there was a goal of 3% Which is really unachievable, but we're making we're doing all we can to To grow that and with all of you folks here Some of the tools i'm going to talk about in a few minutes about how to become certified and how to Do business with us. Hopefully you'll help us grow that number and grow your own revenues as well Here's where you'll find bidding opportunities combis This is our e-procurement system. It's free. Just go on to combis.com Register your business. You can say what areas you sell Products or services in you'll get automatic email notifications about any of the opportunities that are available on combis that are posted by state agencies or cities and towns And you'll be able to bid for those opportunities on there as well You'll also be listed your business will be listed for agencies and cities and towns to be able to see If they're looking for folks to do business with and they'll be able to see you as a veteran or as a small Massachusetts business The secretary state also has a couple bulletins. They put out You can contact their office at Is the link there for for their information? Those are printed materials. I think they also published them electronically And they actually will have some of the more construction related information available On their publications also municipalities. There are opportunities for you folks to talk to municipalities Talk to your local city in town. Tell them that you're a local business. You're a veteran owned business A lot of those folks are really interested in supplier diversity programs, especially as it pertains to veterans Some of the needs that the commonwealth have we have Currently has we have trades contracts. You can see all the different trades here That we are trying to get veteran and minority and women businesses on and these are everything from boiler services to painting To hvac, etc. Etc. Everything that goes into the maintenance and services related to buildings Some of the resources that are available for veteran owned businesses. We have training For you to learn how to do business with the state Our pre-certification workshop to become certified as a service disabled as a service disabled veteran or as a veteran owned business We also have con buys training to learn about the system. I've been talking about Um, you're also so you're encouraged to again register in con buys Also register for the small business purchasing program I was talking about if you qualify for that and take advantage of another tool We have on our website at mass doc gov slash sdo You can determine if you're you may be eligible for other certifications. It's a self assessment tool You can go through and show a few questions. It will tell you yes You qualify as a small business as a veteran business and as a woman owned business perhaps We're also holding sdo in the community days. We're going out into the communities starting with um cities and towns throughout the commonwealth To to find out if there are needs that folks have and would like us to address on the local level So you don't have to come all the way into boston every time and these are individual meetings We're setting up if anyone's interested in us coming to your community. Let us know and we'll do that And one last thing we're doing is we're co-sponsoring events like this working with the mass gaming commission Which is really one of the most forward-thinking organizations in terms of supply diversity Under the commissioner and jill and crystal doing wonderful work like this today this is Watch out for events like this and this is the big month for it. Obviously veterans month that There are a lot of events like this Here's some information about our about our from our website And our phone numbers things like that where you can reach our agency I'll leave that up there for a few seconds in case folks would like to take a picture of that And lastly just to talk a little bit about certification in terms of the requirements There are for you to become a veteran business or minority businesses, you know, women-owned business, etc There are certain requirements that we have to you have to go through We try to make those as streamlined as possible. We used to have a 32 page paper application years ago It's down to seven pages. You can submit it electronically. It's not paper And we we took away a lot of the unnecessary requirements But we asked folks to go to a pre certification workshop to make sure that it's right for you to make sure that you do In fact qualify and to learn a little bit about some of the opportunities available for the Commonwealth After you apply for certification We actually conduct an investigation and we determine in fact that there is in fact ownership By a veteran in this example if someone's applying for VBE certification That you do in fact control the company And that it's independent from any other company Exerting any control over it and that's the type of investigation that we conduct In order to make sure that it is in fact legitimate business and as you saw several of the folks here rely on that certification So it's important that we get it right And it's also important for you as veteran-owned businesses, but there isn't someone that's gaming the system. No pun intended, I guess to To you know, try to become a veteran or women or a minority-owned business when in fact they don't qualify for it So that's why we take these Certifications very seriously Again, John Fitzpatrick if you go away John and I are in the back of the room there if any folks have any additional questions Or need any additional information I think that's my last slide Thank you That's great information bill. Thank you As regulators we obviously are very concerned with Making sure that our licensees have all the help that they need in order to reach their goals for veteran Business as well as veteran employment, but we ourselves are a state agency So we also use convoys to put out our procurements and it's Something that we have the ability to use utilize you guys for as well So that concludes our speaking program But I'd really like you guys to take the opportunity to stick around network meet our licensees our speakers from today And check out the resources that are available to you in the back of the room So feel free to get up and stretch your legs. Thank you