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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contacts:
Alan Fogg, FCEDA, afogg@fceda.org, 703-790-0600 (o), 571-213-5065 (m)
Rick Gonzalez, VAHCC, rickgonzalez@vahcc.com, 703-790-0303
Fairfax County EDA, Virginia Hispanic Chamber host forum on creation of business partnerships
Booz Allen Hamilton executive to keynote March 10 workshop
Fairfax County, Virginia, February 28, 2005 – The Fairfax County Economic Development Authority (FCEDA) and the Virginia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (VAHCC) will present an Emerging Business Forum lunch workshop titled “Partnering with Major Corporations” on Thursday, March 10, 2005. The session will feature information for small and mid-sized firms interested in forming business partnerships with large corporations.
Keynote speaker Verna Montgomery is director of strategic vendor relations at Booz Allen Hamilton, which is based in Fairfax County. Lawrence Poos, dean of the School of Arts and Sciences at The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. also will address attendees.
James W. Dyke, Jr., chairman of the Emerging Business Forum and a partner with the law firm of McGuire Woods, and Gerald L. Gordon, Ph.D., president and CEO of the FCEDA and vice chairman of the Emerging Business Forum, will give welcoming remarks.
The program will run from noon to 1:30 p.m. March 10 at the Hilton McLean Tysons Corner, 7920 Jones Branch Drive, McLean. The cost to attend is $40 for VAHCC members and $55 for others.
Over the last two years, the FCEDA has worked with a variety of business organizations to produce Emerging Business Forum functions to reach minority business communities in Fairfax County. In 2004, the FCEDA worked on EBF seminars with the Greater Washington Ibero-American Chamber of Commerce and the League of Korean Americans-USA.
“In five years the EBF has exceeded our expectations in reaching out to Fairfax County’s strong minority business community, said Gerald L. Gordon, Ph.D., president and CEO of the FCEDA. “This latest forum in conjunction with the Virginia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce will be of great assistance to VAHCC members and will help build this vital segment of the overall economy.”
“This session will prove very valuable to Hispanic companies in northern Virginia that are interested in finding partners on government contracts and in building their presence in the community,” said Rick Gonzalez, vice president of VAHCC.
The Emerging Business Forum (www.emergingbusinessforum.org), created by the Fairfax County Economic Development Authority in 2001, specializes in creating partnerships between minority and woman-run enterprises and established businesses and government agencies, and on spotlighting Fairfax County and the Washington area as the nation’s preeminent location for minority-owned companies. In 2005 the EBF is hosting sessions with several minority-focused business groups.
The Fairfax County Economic Development Authority (www.FairfaxCountyEDA.org) promotes Fairfax County as a business and technology center. The FCEDA assists businesses by identifying possible sites and facilities, and provides demographic and economic statistics. The FCEDA’s Capital Attraction Program links technology entrepreneurs with potential investors, and another program supports the growth of small and minority-owned companies. The FCEDA maintains overseas offices in London, Frankfurt, Tel Aviv and Bangalore, and will open an office in Seoul, South Korea, in 2005.
The Virginia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (www.vahcc.org) was founded in 2000 as the first statewide organization to empower Hispanics in the Virginia business community by building economic, social, and cultural bridges between Virginia and its growing Hispanic community. VAHCC is based in Richmond and opened a northern Virginia office with the Fairfax County Economic Development Authority in 2004.
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