Indiana government is highlighting businesses owned by Black Hoosiers, women, veterans and people with disabilities with the launch of the Hoosier Business In Action campaign.
Indiana’s Chief Equity, Inclusion and Opportunity Officer Karrah Herring said the state wanted to explore ways to highlight businesses owned by “underrepresented” groups. The result was 22 businesses chosen from a pool nominated by the Indiana Economic Development Corporation and the Indiana Department of Agriculture.
“We were really looking at, you know, how long they’ve been within the Indiana economic ecosystem," Herring said. "Do they have a story that represented resilience, empowerment and integrity?”
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Herring said the state will work with the businesses to promote them, both on its website and with companies the state does business with.
“These are businesses that your company can add to a list eligible to contract with your company," Herring said. "It’s really about trying to get more exposure to them, for some empowerment with contracts.”
Herring said the state will track the business’s contact with state partners, to measure the effectiveness of the campaign.
Contact reporter Brandon at bsmith@ipbs.org or follow him on Twitter at @brandonjsmith5.