Listen to a panel of professionals discuss procurement opportunities for small diverse-owned businesses in Michigan as well as upcoming matchmaking events.
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Watch A Recap Of The Event:
Panelists:
Marie T. Gapinski, Assistant Director, Office of Small Business Programs, US Army TACOM
Marie Gapinski was born in Detroit and has a bachelor’s degree from Wayne State University in business management with an emphasis in production manufacturing. She is Level III certified in contracting and has been a warranted contracting officer and supervisor for most of her career at the US Army Tank Automotive Command (TACOM) in Warren, Michigan. In January of 2011, Gapinski became the associate director of Small Business Programs for TACOM at the Detroit Arsenal.
With 37 years of government contracting experience, Gapinski has a wealth of knowledge to share and has been recognized by the Army Material Command as the Small Business Individual of the Year from 1999 to 2010. She is a recipient of the Department of Army Achievement Medal for Civilian Service for her work with the modernization and integration of business processes for the Army Contracting Command as well as the Commander’s Award for Civilian Service for her efforts in organizational change and fielding of an enterprise resource planning tool to TACOM employees.
From 2018 to 2020, Gapinski was responsible for developing training sessions for acquisition and logistic associates in the continuous process improvement project to not only familiarize participants with the mission of the Office of Small Business Programs but to streamline the process and reduce administrative lead times by data modeling the acquisition process. Her efforts were recognized by the commanding general and the director of the Integrated Logistics Supply Center.
Prior to her current position, Gapinski served as the acquisition lead in the Project Manager Office for the Logistics Modernization Program.
Contact Gapinski at marie.t.gapinski.civ@army.mil.
Tommy L. Marks, Director, Minority Business Development Agency Business Center, Virginia Department of Commerce
Tommy Marks serves as the director for the Department of Commerce’s Virginia Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) Business Center, operated by the Capital Reg
ion Minority Supplier Development Council. Marks is responsible for managing relationships and sources of deals by promoting the interests of MBEs, educating MBEs on the benefits of strategic growth alternatives (e.g., mergers, acquisitions, and/or joint ventures), and providing service referrals to MBEs of all sizes. He served as the director of the MBDA Federal Procurement Center, operated by the Capital Region Minority Supplier Development Council from August 2019 to July 2021. Under Marks’ leadership, the Center was recognized as an award-winning MBDA Century Club center, with over $20.3 billion in contracts awarded servicing 1,313 clients, resulting in 1,494 jobs created and 1,319 jobs retained.
Marks is a retired member of the Army’s Senior Executive Service and the former director of the Army Small Business Programs Office for the Secretary of the Army, serving during the period of April 2015 to September 2018. Prior to serving as a civil servant, Marks served for 24 years in the army as an infantry and aviation officer, retiring as a Lieutenant Colonel in September 2001.
Contact Marks at tommylnmarks@gmail.com.
Malindia M. Westbrook, Procurement Deputy Directory, Supplier Diversity DBE/ACDBE Liaison Officer, Wayne County Airport Authority
Malindia Westbrook serves as deputy director of Supplier Diversity at the Wayne County Airport Authority (WCAA). The Airport Authority includes the Detroit Metropolitan Airport and Willow Run Airport, both of which are in Detroit. Westbrook serves as the airport concessions and disadvantaged business enterprise liaison officer. As such, she is responsible for the oversight of the Small Business Enterprise (SBE), Disadvantage Business Enterprise (DBE), and Airport Concessions Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (ACDBE) programs.
Prior to coming to the WCAA, Westbrook spent more than 25 years in progressively more responsible procurement positions with the City of Detroit and Suburban Mobility Authority for Regional Transportation (SMART). Her duties included commodity management, developing and negotiating contracts, vendor relations, and training. Westbrook holds a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from the University of Detroit Mercy and a Master of Arts in Organizational Management from the University of Phoenix.
Contact Westbrook at malindia.westbrook@wcaa.us.
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