MILLION WOMEN MENTORS WITH WELLS FARGO LAUNCH MWM ENTREPRENEUR MENTORING PROGRAM

March 9, 2018

Partnership to Make a Difference!

Washington, D.C. – STEMconnector with its Million Women Mentors (MWM) Program and Wells Fargo & Company announce their unique partnership in launching a new program together, called MWM Entrepreneur Mentoring Initiative (MWM-EI). This program was officially launched on Monday, October 23, 2017, at the MWM Summit & Gala, in Washington, D.C. The MWM-EI Mentor Program is a one-year development program designed to strengthen and grow Women Business Enterprises (WBEs). The mentee companies selected are positioned for growth through STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering or Mathematics) ventures. Somewhat ironically, all the companies selected for mentorship are in the Tech/IT area.

Regina O. Heyward, SVP and Head of Supplier Diversity from Wells Fargo & Company, shared, “Our country needs strong women entrepreneurs in STEM to be at the forefront… and this Entrepreneur program is a focused effort to increase technical capacity and know- how and I am pleased to serve as Chair of Initiative.” In 2017, Wells Fargo’s Supplier Diversity spend was $1.27 billion. Wells Fargo invests more than $1 million annually in supplier development and capacity building activities focus on access to capital, technical assistance and mentoring to grow high potential diverse businesses.

As part of the MWM-EI program, STEMconnector & Wells Fargo matched seven (7) WBEs to a respective mentor for one year, assisting the mentee company in ways to achieve growth. We are pleased to announce the seven (7) mentees that were selected for this special program along with the prime mentor for each:

Alka Dhillon, CEO & Founder of Technalink, Inc., a Certified EDWOSB, 8(a) STARS II, IT Services and Management Consulting firm located in Northern VA. Mentor: Edie Fraser

Peggy Gionta, President & Founder of Partner’s Consulting, Inc., a nationally certified woman-owned Information Technology consulting firm, in Broomall, PA. Mentor: Monica Smiley

Theresa Harrison, President & Founder of GEORGE STREET Services, Inc., an IT and software solutions, cyber security and workflow automation solutions, headquartered in Walkersville, Maryland. Mentor: Dr. Gloria B. Herndon

Rashi Khosla, CEO & Founder of MARS Solutions Group, offering Information Management Services and world class PaaS Solution via Neolink, located in Wauwatosa, WI. Mentor: Roz Alford.

Meena Krishnan, CEO & Founder of Inoventures, a company delivering strategic solutions in the commercial, government, and international markets, located in McLean, VA. Mentor: Sheila Boyington.

Prema Patil is Founder and CEO of Tanson Corporation, an IT staffing firm called providing highly skilled technicians to health care sector, located in Bloomington, MN. Mentor: Terese Taylor.

Tamara Nall, CEO & Founder, of THE LEADING NICHE, an internationally company known for using data and cutting-edge consulting to deliver “actionable intelligence,” located in Washington, D.C. Mentor: Gloria Bohan.

Enterprising Women (EW) Magazine held a panel on this program on March 6, 2018, with seven (7) participants from this program and produced with MWM a program summary. Since its inception, Edie Fraser and Million Women Mentors have built a partnership with EW and produced a special issue of the magazine on STEMpreneurs for high school girls across the nation, introducing them to STEM mentoring.

With a new year and the new MWM-EI Mentor Program, STEMconnector and Wells Fargo will be the change they want to see by partnering to help strengthen and grow Women Business Enterprises (WBEs) whose organizations provide advancement of women and women of color.

Million Women Mentors (MWM) is a movement to advance STEM career opportunities for young women and girls through mentoring. In four years, Million Women Mentors has gained 2.3 million commitments for mentorship, sponsorship and internships and has fulfilled more than 1.1 million mentor matches. More than 65 companies are national and global sponsors of MWM while STEMconnector® has over 170 sponsors. MWM overall has over 200 annual co-branded events with sponsors and organizations, in addition to the annual awards summit and gala.

Wells Fargo & Company is a diversified community-based financial services company with a deep commitment to strengthen business and empower entrepreneurs and small business owners through its Supplier Diversity Program.

 

Media Contact: Kim R. Grimes, kim.grimes@stemconnector.com