What are the Advantages of Being a Woman Owned Business?
The Women’s Business Enterprise National Council, also known as WBENC, is the largest certifier of women-owned businesses in the United States. They offer certifications for businesses who are primarily owned, controlled, operated, and managed by women to provide benefits like tax incentives and increased profitability. There are a growing number of women-owned businesses in the United States as more people are starting to prioritize diversity in the workplace. When you’re looking for new partnerships, there are many benefits of choosing a business owned and operated by a minority. To start, here are some of the reasons why it’s beneficial to hire a certified woman-owned business.
What is a Certified Woman-Owned Business?
A certified woman-owned business is a business that has a majority of women owning and operating the enterprise. For prospective companies to be certified, they must be at least 51% woman-owned and operated. This allows for special contracts and resources from the federal government, which often extend past the WBENC business and onto their clients. Businesses must also show fiscal responsibility and up-to-date cash flows for consideration. In order to be officially certified from the Woman Business Enterprise (WBE), a business needs to have the capacity to succeed and appropriate licensing needs to be held.
If companies qualify to become a certified woman-owned business, it’s beneficial to proceed throughout the process. Obtaining a WBE certification opens a lot of benefits to qualifying companies. It produces more access to operations, inclusive training and educational programs, outstanding networking opportunities, unique access to certain buyers, access to leads for bids and proposals, purchasing agents, and mentorship programs.
However, one thing to keep in mind is that just because you receive certification does not mean that you’ll start receiving contracts. It’s still important to put in the work to succeed.
The Benefits of Hiring a Certified Woman-Owned Business
As an owner of an enterprise, becoming a certified woman-owned business comes with a lot of benefits. It also produces a lot of opportunities for woman-owned partnerships. If you’re looking to hire a business for services, product distribution, or consultation, find a reputable certified woman-owned business through WBENC. Their goal is to fuel economic growth globally by identifying, certifying, and facilitating the development of women-owned businesses. Some of the benefits of doing so include the following:
Promote Diversity
When you partner with certified woman-owned business, you’ll show prospective clients and partners that your company promotes diversity and is ready and excited to work within diverse markets. This boosts community support and can increase your business recognition. According to a recent Harvard study, diversity helps to drive market growth and unlock innovation. In fact, employees of firms with diversity are 45% likelier to report a growth in market share over the previous year and 70% likelier to report that a firm captured a new market. Over time, this continues to attract new business and company support, creating a long-lasting equation for successful business.
Encourage Innovation
The more diversity a company has, the more innovation follows. With higher rates of diversity within your company and partners, you’ll experience more “out of the box” ideas and find more opportunities for growth, profit, and positive change. Working with a certified woman-owned business promotes the entrance of new products, services, innovation, and creativity. With 99% of diverse suppliers meeting or exceeding client expectations, there’s no reason you shouldn’t partner with a certified woman-owned business like Bee Line.
Reduce Overall Costs
It’s been found that certified women-owned businesses win more state contracts. Since the federal government’s goal is to award at least 5% of federal contracting dollars to women-owned businesses each year, you’ll reduce your overall costs and put more money back into your long-term goals. Working with diverse companies can also help lower your overall operating costs by roughly 20%.
Higher Tax Incentives
Another benefit of hiring a certified woman-owned business is the tax incentives. The federal government offers several tax incentives to companies who work with women-owned businesses. This can help reduce overall taxable income and other tax liabilities. Some states also provide further tax incentives for women-led companies. If you’re looking for ways to get a tax break, hiring a certified woman-owned business is a great option. This can also increase your diversity in both your suppliers and customer network, creating even further benefits.
Increase Profits
The goal of every business is to increase your profits and maximize your return on investment. A study conducted by the Hackett Group has demonstrated that working with a certified woman-owned business can help increase your overall profitability with as much as a 130% return on investment. In another study by the Peterson Institute for International Economics and EY, it was found that having at least 30% of women in leadership positions adds 6% to the net profit margin of a company.
If you’re looking for ways to attractive high-quality talent that will help increase company profit, showing that you work with diverse, or minority owned businesses is essential. Over 67% of active and passive job seekers today look at a company’s diversity when evaluating companies and job offers. If your company isn’t interested in increasing diversity, both internally and externally, you’ll be less likely to attract quality talent.
Founded in 1966, Bee Line is a privately held, certified woman-owned business enterprise headquartered in the Pilsen neighborhood of Chicago, IL. From startups to national branches, we provide the most efficient cleaning services, technology, well-trained teams, project services, and immediate customer service available. We’re proud to be recognized as a WBENC Certified business, as we believe that diversity promotes innovation, opens doors, and creates incredible long-lasting partnerships that fuel the economy. Bee Line is dedicated to hiring local job seekers out of the Chicago empowerment zip codes—neighborhoods with the highest unemployment rates—to ensure that everyone has access to the employment they deserve.
Bee Line takes cleanliness seriously, which is why we require CMIP (Certificate of Mastery in Infection Prevention) Certified Management for many of our facility sites. These managers carry vast knowledge in microbiology, precautionary safety measures, and infection prevention throughout all stages of disinfection and train all cleaning staff on all infection prevention protocol. We go above and beyond typical cleaning companies to ensure that all of the industries we serve receive the best quality disinfecting paired with impactful values.
For more information on Bee Line’s cleaning services, our representatives are standing by to help. If you’re ready to benefit from hiring a certified woman-owned business and get started on the path to cleanliness, contact Bee Line today.
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