Published date: 01/21/2025
Ask the Expert Takeover
The theme of this month’s Ask the Expert installment is Contract Compliance and Supplier Diversity. Speaking on the topic is GCAP Service’s Ed Salcedo.

Ed Salcedo brings a wealth of experience in supplier diversity and contract compliance, honed through leadership roles, including Vice President of Contract Compliance and Ethics Officer for a major government contractor. As founder and president of GCAP Services, he helps organizations develop compliance solutions, improve business practices, and deliver impactful training programs. Ed also volunteers with nonprofits such as the Orange County Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and Stanford’s Latino Business Action Network (LBAN).
Question
Is there a way to verify that a supplier is certified as a minority-owned, women-owned, or veteran-owned business?
Answer: The best way to confirm a supplier’s certification is through the official certification database. Most public agencies provide an online database where contractors can search for certified suppliers. If access to the official database is unavailable, contractors should reach out directly to the public agency to verify a subcontractor’s certification status. As a precaution, contractors should download or print a copy of the subcontractor’s certification and include it with their bid or proposal, keeping a copy for their records.
Additionally, contractors must ensure that the subcontractor’s certification applies to the work they are proposing for the project. Many certifications are specific to certain work categories, such as NAICS or SIC codes.
Question
Do you have any tips for companies trying to set realistic and achievable supplier diversity goals that align with broader organizational objectives?
Answer: First, they should review their historical spending data over the past several years (e.g., 3 to 5 years). This will provide insight into the company’s track record with diverse subcontractors, assuming this information has been tracked. This analysis also establishes a baseline or starting point for setting future goals.
Second, companies need to assess the availability of diverse subcontractors within their marketplace. This can be done by reviewing the types of work they have historically subcontracted and matching these with the availability of diverse firms offering similar services. By comparing the percentage of diverse subcontracting dollars spent in each work category (e.g., 10% for Engineering) with the availability of diverse firms in those categories, companies can better gauge the feasibility of their diversity spend goals.
Once the company has this data, it can evaluate opportunities to align its diversity spend goals with overall business objectives.
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Have a burning question about labor compliance that you’ve been eager to ask? Submit it anonymously to our live submission form and you might just see it answered in a future entry of our monthly Ask the Expert series! You can also check out our past entries here.
Want an opportunity to get questions like these and other topics answered in person? Check out our events page for our educational Spark Seminars. These are perfect opportunities for you to hear from industry experts and expand your prevailing wage knowledge.
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