Professional service industries constitute the fastest growing portion of our economy and are a significant contributor to high-wage employment.

Most professional services opportunities are obtained through relationships with senior leaders within a company, rather than going through the traditional purchasing channels. They are often overlooked by supplier diversity professionals, and as a result of long-standing exclusive relationships, minority professional service firms remain substantially underutilized by corporations, foundations and educational institutions.  The University has benefited greatly from the enormous pool of diverse talent that we meet with and hire as a result of the Professional Services Symposium.

“Building these relationships takes patience and effort. At the University, we are building sustainable partnerships with minority professional service firms one relationship at a time.”

—Nadia Quarles, Assistant Vice President for Business Diversity