Brett Bucktooth is the Supplier Diversity Manager at Ongweoweh Corporation. He believes that bringing supplier diversity to such an organization was helped to a large degree by Ongweoweh being a minority business enterprise in its own right. Its founder Frank Bonamie is a Cayuga tribal member of the Iroquois Confederacy, and operates the business on a philosophical model derived from the Iroquois’ “Seven Generations” principle: any decision made has to be considered in terms of its impact seven generations into the future. This way of thinking has helped Bucktooth and Ongweoweh reach a diverse supplier spend of some 40 million dollars in 2021, as well as reach a number of crucial environmental goals as well, including 11.1 million recycled pallets to date, saving more than 730,000 trees.
Bucktooth is also responsible for the implementation of a diverse supplier Standard Operating Procedure at Ongweoweh, streamlining the identification of opportunities and building internal awareness across all departments and functions. Above all, he is devoted to both accountability and the use of business analytics to track target goals for new business. This allows Ongweoweh to measure the impact of diverse supplier business not just in social justice terms, but in terms of economic impact through job creation and economic growth as well.
Favorite Quote: “Pallets make the world go round.” — Brett Bucktooth