FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - Supplier Diversity



FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Sharon Patterson, President and CEO, Billion Dollar Roundtable Inc., 847-337-9102, sharonpatterson@

BILLION DOLLAR ROUNDTABLE INC. INDUCTS AVIS BUDGET INTO EXCLUSIVE GROUP

Vehicle Rental Leader Recognized for $1 Billion Annual Commitment to Supplier Diversity

ARLINGTON VA, June 1, 2009 – The Billion Dollar Roundtable Inc. (BDR) announced the induction of Avis Budget Group during its Annual Summit May 27-28 in Arlington, VA, recognizing the Parsippany, NJ company’s commitment of more than $1 billion in annual supply-chain spending with diverse suppliers. Founded in 2001 as a top-level forum for advancing the practice of supplier diversity, the BDR represents an exclusive group of 16 corporations.

Avis Budget Group joined Dell Inc. and Honda and as 2009 BDR inductees. New members are inducted bi-annually.

“Avis Budget Group has distinguished itself as a leader in supplier diversity by ensuring that diverse suppliers play an integral part of a vast supply chain that encompasses more than 238 airport locations. Avis Budget Group is the first vehicle rental corporation to join the Billion Dollar Roundtable. We welcome Avis Budget Group’s unique ideas about supplier diversity,” said William Moon, chairman of the BDR.

The BDR held induction ceremonies for Avis Budget Group, Dell and Honda during a dinner program May 27 at the Hyatt Arlington hotel that featured a keynote address by Karen G. Mills, administrator, U.S. Small Business Administration. The two-day summit, titled “An Integrated Approach to Fostering the Inclusion of Diverse Businesses,” offered a critical examination of a range of topics in supplier diversity, including, capacity of diverse firms, relevance of the practice of supplier diversity, certification procedures, government programs and globalization, as a backdrop to devise solutions to foster new opportunities.

“Our objectives for this year’s summit were to strengthen buying relationships between corporations and diverse suppliers and synchronize the supplier-diversity strategies of corporations, government and organizations to drive meaningful results and change,” said Sharon Patterson, BDR president and CEO. The Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College joined the BDR as the summit co-host. Sponsors were Verizon Communications Inc., Johnson Controls Inc., Honda and Wal-Mart Stores Inc.

The 16 member companies of the BDR are AT&T Corp., Avis Budget Group, Boeing Co., Chrysler LLC, Dell Inc., Ford Motor Corp., General Motors Corp., Honda, IBM Corp., Johnson Controls Inc., The Kroger Co., Lockheed Martin Corp., Procter & Gamble Co., Toyota Motor North America Inc., Verizon Communications Inc. and Wal-Mart Stores Inc.

ABOUT THE BILLION DOLLAR ROUNDTABLE

The Billion Dollar Roundtable Inc. was created in 2001 to recognize and celebrate corporations that achieved spending of $1 billion or more with diverse suppliers, including minority- and woman-owned companies. The BDR promotes and shares best practices in supply chain diversity excellence through summits, collaboration with other organizations and the production of policy papers. BDR member companies review and discuss issues, opportunities and strategies related to supplier diversity as a way to advance opportunities for corporations and diverse suppliers. The BDR encourages corporate entities to continue growing their supplier diversity programs by increasing commitment and spending levels each year. For more information, go to .

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