It goes down in history as a great success.
That’s the phrase used by Lance Hyde, diversity manager at EQT, referring to his company’s Supplier Diversity Matchmaking Event; Six Degrees of Connection, held Aug. 17.
“Activities like these are very critical in our region as ‘recruiting and retaining’ top African American talent in our area has and continues to be a regional charge and concerted effort,” Hyde said. He said more than 60 of EQT’s prime suppliers were on hand conducting over 400 one-on-one meetings with diverse firms. The focus of the matchmaking event was to help expand business opportunities and to identify areas of support to assist minority, women and veteran-owned businesses.
Brad Maddox, director of drilling and plugging operations at EQT production, stated that having a diverse business supply chain is not only good business for corporations, but it assists in enhancing the rate of available business solutions, leading to game-changing and innovative ideas that can improve operational and financial results.
Along with the prime suppliers, supporting organizations on hand included the local African American Chamber of Commerce, Allegheny Conference on Community Development, American Association of Blacks in Energy, Eastern Minority Supplier Development Council Inc. and Women’s Business Enterprise National Council.
Bofta Yimam, WTAE-TV anchor, served as mistress of ceremonies. She helped facilitate a fireside chat between Hyde and ex-Steeler Jerome Bettis, also president and CEO of Bettis Brothers Sand and Gravel. Co-owned with his brother, John, BBSG serves the needs of the oil and gas industry in the region.
BBSG is described as a supplier of superior quality silica sand and sand-based products used by oil and gas exploration and production companies to enhance the productivity of their wells. It provides quality products, strong technical leadership and applications knowledge to end users. The company’s logistics capabilities include a wide-range of networks of alternative storage, distribution terminals and access to thousands of barges, rail cars and trucking partners that allow BBSG to effectively serve customers wherever they operate. Their major company strengths are accessibility and flexibility, enabling them to move products by barge, rail or truck, and their core values are quality, reliability and accountability. Their mission is to help companies reach their greatest potential by being strategic partners for all transactions. BBSG achieves greater efficiency and delivers exceptional service because of its cutting-edge technology, depth of experience, and rapid production turnaround times.
A business at Notre Dame, Bettis said even though he knew football, his goal always was to be involved with business. His first entrepreneurial venture was an Internet service provider started during his early years, playing for the Los Angeles Rams. Out of necessity, he said Jerome Bettis Enterprises was started as a way for him to control his image and the companies he represented as a spokesperson because he felt he could better handle it. “Twenty years ago, my business manager and I were very specific and strategic with the people we worked with. Even now we control all my speaking engagements with ESPN, television appearances and the like.”
With his 13 years in pro football culminating to his induction in the NFL’s Hall of Fame in 2015, Bettis advises potential, fledgling and prosperous entrepreneurs to continuously work hard, seize the opportunity and execute. His philosophy and four keys to success are sacrifice, to be able to endure pain, to accept failure and to love.
“Building a successful business means lost time with family, time that you won’t ever be able to get back but there is no way around it, it’s a sacrifice you have to make. Enduring pain means many sleepless nights, tough and stressful moments as well as dealing with physical and emotional pain. Failures can come in numerous ways including business and personal,” he said, as he touched on marriage and relationship failures due to both people not aligned with the same vision. “When you are on the road to success the sacrifices are real. You have to be willing to address the issues head on and come out on the other side a better person.”
Taking a deep breath, Bettis said the fourth key, love, brings it all together. “If you love and have a passion for what you do and are willing to sacrifice with the understanding that it is going to be difficult, and if you are willing to deal with the pain and the failures that come with your drive, then the love that you have makes you willing to survive and overcome. Once all those four things are realized, that’s when the road to success becomes possible and the vision you can see it and obtain it then it becomes possible.”
Like us at https://www.facebook.com/pages/New-Pittsburgh-Courier/143866755628836?ref=hl
Follow @NewPghCourier on Twitter https://twitter.com/NewPghCourier
