Cal Water’s Jose Espinoza Named Supplier Diversity Champion of the Year by ASIAN, Inc.
October 09 2017 - 4:15PM
(NYSE:CWT) -- At its annual gala Friday night, Oct. 6, 2017, ASIAN,
Inc. named California Water Service’s (Cal Water) Jose
Espinoza its Supplier Diversity Champion of the Year. This award
was presented to Espinoza for his efforts to advocate for the
diverse business community.
Espinoza, Cal Water’s Supplier Diversity Program Manager, is
responsible for the utility’s goal to enhance procurement sourced
from minority-, women-, disabled veteran-, and LGBT-owned
businesses. In 2016, Cal Water spent $48.46 million on goods and
services with certified diverse suppliers to support its utility
operations statewide, compared to $40.88 million in 2015. The
utility did business with 216 diverse suppliers and expanded its
certified diverse supplier database by 7% last year. This year,
Espinoza also led a water utility industry effort supported by
California Water Association to conduct four workshops on capacity
building for diverse suppliers.
ASIAN, Inc.’s mission is to empower socioeconomic minority
communities by reducing dependencies that block their access to
opportunities in business development, housing, and financial
education. Headquartered in San Francisco, the organization serves
20 counties in northern California and the state’s Central
Valley.
“One way we fulfill our commitment to providing quality,
service, and value to our customers is to utilize suppliers who
provide the highest-quality services at the lowest prices. We help
achieve that by expanding our pool of diverse suppliers,” said
Martin A. Kropelnicki, President and CEO. “Jose has been at the
forefront of this effort and integral in growing our pool of – and
spending with – certified diverse suppliers. He has led the way for
us to surpass the California Public Utilities Commission’s goal of
21.5% spending with diverse suppliers for the last three years, and
the benefit to our communities has been quite impactful.”
“Jose has been an exemplary leader in supplier diversity; he not
only actively engages local diverse businesses, but he has also
been very engaged in working with local professional and business
organizations, including Minority Business Development Agency
(MBDA) centers,” said Raymond Au Yeong, Project Director of the San
Jose MBDA Business Center. “His approachability and transparency
has lent much visibility to Cal Water as a buyer as well as a role
model in diversity.”
In addition to his role at Cal Water, Espinoza serves as
co-chair of the Utility Supplier Diversity Committee for California
Water Association, is a member of the Intercultural Competency
Advisory Council Workgroup of Santa Clara County, is a board member
of the Rainbow Chamber of Commerce of Silicon Valley, serves as an
advisory council member of the American Indian Chamber of Commerce
of California, and is SV Next Committee co-chair for The Silicon
Valley Organization.
California Water Service serves about 2 million people through
482,400 service connections in California. The company has provided
water service in the state since 1926. Additional information
may be obtained online at www.calwater.com.
Contact: Yvonne Kingman, 310-257-1434
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