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DBE participants urge hands‑on cohorts, mentor program and clearer guidance as TDOT re-evaluates firms
Summary
Several DBE participants at TDOT’s quarterly meeting urged targeted, hands-on cohort sessions, mentor‑protégé assistance and clearer B2G walkthroughs to help firms complete the new personal narrative and net‑worth requirements; TDOT said it will provide guides and targeted outreach.
At a TDOT DBE meeting, multiple participants asked the agency for hands‑on workshops and mentor‑protégé arrangements to speed re‑evaluation and reduce confusion over the new personal narrative and personal net‑worth requirements.
Angela Curtis said a targeted, half‑day cohort that provides in‑person help would make it easier for tradespeople and small business owners who are less comfortable with narrative writing or financial statements. "I think hands‑on would be very useful and I think that we can get a lot more interest," she said.
Participants and TDOT staff discussed practical training options including visual walkthroughs of the B2G portal, short videos and targeted outreach to firms that had recent TDOT contracts. Paula Jennings asked about turnaround time; TDOT estimated certification review could take a couple of weeks in typical cases and said staff would work iteratively with applicants to improve narratives rather than reject them outright.
Jeremiah Watson of Innovative Engineering Services asked whether professional services such as engineering or accounting will see opportunities through the DBE program; TDOT said most current bid notices are construction‑oriented but noted other agencies use TDOT’s database and that expanding inclusion of professional service goals remains a point to explore when re‑establishing goals.
TDOT staff agreed to consider more visual guidance and targeted cohort events and said the agency is already in conversations with Memphis partners about joint outreach. Several participants volunteered to help as mentors or trainers. TDOT reiterated that re‑evaluation submission is through B2G and encouraged firms to contact staff via the DBE portal for assistance.
The session closed with TDOT repeating contact instructions and asking firms to submit narratives and net‑worth statements promptly so the agency can finalize its mid‑June submission to USDOT and resume normal goal‑setting.
