WEConnect International: Empowering the world’s women-owned businesses through a single platform
Driving money into the hands of women business owners
Increasingly, large corporations are making a commitment to supplier diversity and inclusion by supporting women-owned businesses. However, it can be a challenge to identify and connect to women-owned suppliers. With help from SAP solutions, not-for-profit WEConnect International is making it easier for buyers and sellers to connect.
| Industry | Region | Company Size | Partner |
| Federal, national, and central government | Washington, D.C. | 27 employees | Premikati Inc. |
growth in registered women-owned businesses in three years.
of member buyer purchasing power, up from $1 trillion in 2019.
countries with registered businesses.
CEO and Co-Founder, WEConnect International
Breaking down barriers to new market opportunities
Partly funded by the United States Agency for International Development, WEConnect International has a vision to help women around the world run successful businesses that create wealth and contribute to the prosperity of their communities. Many large corporations share this vision, adopting supplier diversity and inclusion policies that encourage support for women-controlled businesses.
To help realize these goals, WEConnect International created a register of women-owned companies to enable corporate buyers to find new suppliers. It also established a first-of-its-kind certification program that validates companies as being owned and managed by women.
However, the poor user experience offered by the not-for-profit organization’s existing technology systems made searching for companies a cumbersome task. The registration process was conducted in English, creating a barrier for women in non-English-speaking countries when trying to register their business. In addition, inefficient manual processes for managing certifications slowed down validations and lengthened the process to onboard new suppliers.
Collaborating closely with SAP to turn a vision into reality
WEConnect International looked for a scalable, global solution that would offer smooth user experiences in multiple languages for both buyers and suppliers. With sensitive business details provided as part of the registration process, it was also crucial that the new solution met robust security standards that businesses could trust. The SAP Ariba Supplier Lifecycle and Performance solution and SAP Business Network fulfilled these criteria, with the added advantage that many WEConnect International’s member buyers were already transacting on the network in their day-to-day procurement operations.
With help from SAP partner Premikati Inc., a wholly women-owned business itself, SAP experts worked closely with WEConnect International to deploy the software. In addition, members of the SAP Innovative Business Solutions organization collaborated with the team to create an online registration portal. Based on SAP Business Technology Platform, the portal provides a smooth registration journey for new suppliers – in the language of their choice. The most recent phase of the project has seen the rollout of a mobile-enabled version of the solution, enabling women to register their businesses and initiate requests for certification using their phones.
Connecting supply with demand to help businesses thrive and change lives
Thanks to the intuitive and multilingual user experience offered by WEConnect International, the number of women-owned businesses joining the register has almost doubled since the start of the project. Today, WEConnect International has certified women-owned business in 134 countries. What’s more, the organization expects this number to rise sharply following the recent launch of the mobile-enabled version of the registration portal.
Advanced searches help corporate buyers quickly find the right women-owned business for them, helping member companies meet sustainability targets while quickly accessing the products and services they need. Once selected, buyers can easily send purchase orders to the women-owned businesses through the integrations that exist on SAP Business Network. Within three years, buyer membership has increased by 91%, representing a US$3 trillion increase in purchasing power.
Meanwhile, centralized and automated processes help WEConnect International run its certification program more efficiently. This helps the organization validate women-owned businesses faster, smoothing the path for the creation of successful and lasting buyer-seller relationships that help businesses thrive and communities prosper, changing lives for the better.
Want to know more about WEConnect International?
Empowering Women-Owned Businesses with SAP (2023 SAP Innovation Award)
Featured partner
Certified by the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council, Premikati Inc. is a woman-owned management consulting and business process outsourcing firm that offers services tailored to effective procurement and supply chain management. The SAP partner assists both buyers and sellers with all aspects of procurement strategy and operations, helping them pursue digital strategies.