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Conference Call Meeting

Meeting Minutes

Wednesday, July 5, 2017

Members in Attendance

• Cheryl Gonzalez (University of North Florida)

• Julius Davis (VoltAir Consulting Engineers)

• Janet Harris-Lange (Agenda Dynamics, Inc.)

• Mariana Lugaro (United Data Technologies)

• Sherod Halliburton (Manatee Community Federal Credit Union)

• Augusto Sanabria (Prospera)

• Jay Narang (GDKN Corporation)

• Deborah Thompson (Deborah K. Thompson Consultants)

Staff in Attendance

• Donna Williams, Marketing Manager, Office of Supplier Diversity (OSD), Department of Management Services (DMS)

• Bre Stephens, Marketing Assistant, OSD, DMS

Public in Attendance

• Kenneth Pratt, Senior Vice President of Government Affairs, Florida Bankers Association

Call to Order

• A quorum was not reached. Discussion of non-voting items took place after roll call.

Public Comments

• None

Council Chair/Vice Chair/Member Updates

• Chair Gonzalez briefly discussed disparity studies and issues taking place throughout the state.

o She stated that there is a strong standard being set in the state for the organizations conducting disparity studies using legal staff.

o The training of procurement officials are beneficial because they can learn the law behind the processes as well as the philosophical factors.

o She suggested that the members of the Council should become more active with Florida’s landscape for small minority business issues, contribute to data and become involved with the Florida Chamber of Commerce.

• Vice Chair Narang shared with the Council that he attended a matchmaking event in Orlando sponsored by the Florida State Minority Supplier Development Council.

o He expressed that these types of events are a good forum for Council members to attend and network.

• There were no other updates from Council members.

Commentarian

• Kenneth Pratt, Senior Vice President of Government Affairs with the Florida Bankers Association (FBA) delivered a report on the changes, challenges,and disruptions facing the banking industry.

• Mr. Pratt discussed the importance of lending to the small business market and how the majority of small business loans are made by community banks which have similar regulations as larger banks.

• He also addressed the challenges the banking industry faces including how there is a lack of bankers compared to the past. Some banks were forced to consolidate or close all together. The Federal Reserve and FBA are both considering what can be done to encourage the opening and/or expansion of more banks. FBA has a project that’s studying how Florida’s banking will be by the year 2020.

• Banks are limited due to industry regulations leaving them vulnerable to disruptions in the banking industry. Today there are other lending sources that small businesses have access to that offer a smoother process and have a higher approval rate. These sources include online lending companies, peer-to-peer lending sources and more. The additional sources outside of banks also have a more user-friendly platform.

• Mr. Pratt also shared with the Council that the U.S. Treasury is examining the online and peer-to-peer lending industry and that could possibly result in new regulations on those loan sources.

• Vice Chair Narang asked Mr. Pratt how does technology and the alternative lending source disruption affect FBA. Mr. Pratt expressed that the FBA must adopt an objective that pertains to learning how to compete on that level of the lending aspect.

• Deborah Thompson inquired about FBA’s involvement in local financial literacy programs. Mr. Pratt shared with the Council that FBA does get involved in local financial literacy programs and that they partner with other organization to provide such training. Mr. Pratt shared his contact information for anyone interested in training.

News Articles and Links

• None

Committee Reports

• Communications Committee, Jay Narang, Chair

o Chair Narang explained how a draft of the Council’s commentarian reports and social media posts from July 2016 to June 2017 were prepared to be included in the annual report.

o Chair Narang requested the drafts be distributed to the Council for their review and suggestions.

o For the August meeting, Chair Gonzalez requested Council members provide feedback on the drafts mentioned by Chair Narang and also provide official Council recommendations for the annual report.

New Business

• Chair Gonzalez discussed disparity studies during the Chair’s update.

Announcements

• None

The next scheduled Council meeting is August 2, 2017.

The meeting was adjourned at 2:55 pm.

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