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Small businesses are to play a greater role in boosting the economy in the upcoming years. State and federal governments and private enterprises are pursuing many initiatives to encourage the growth in SMB sector. A recent announcement by a consortium of large businesses belonging to diverse industry sectors clearly reflects this ongoing process.

The consortium of AT&T (News - Alert), Bank of America, Citigroup, IBM, Pfizer, and UPS announced a new way for small businesses to compete with greater ease to sell goods and services to global companies, potentially leading to the creation of new jobs and economic growth. The participating companies have agreed to standardize and simplify the application process required for qualified small- and mid-sized U.S. suppliers to undergo, as they compete for nearly $150 billion in contracts collectively awarded by those companies every year. 

To qualify as a supplier for large organizations, SMBs need to invest considerable time, money and expertise, which often become a prohibitive factor for the SMBs to compete.

The application forms, formats and requirements of each company can vary, making it even more difficult for smaller suppliers to pursue business with a single large company, let alone multiple global companies.

Under the initiative, the participating companies will establish a free, public website, created and maintained by IBM through a grant of more than $10 million from the IBM (News - Alert) International Foundation. The site will provide visitors with a single, streamlined electronic application form. 

The Supplier Connection website is designed to accelerate and streamline the application process leading to increased contracting with small- and medium-sized firms, noted the consortium spokespersons. 

Small vendors will simply need to complete the application form once to potentially become suppliers to the participating companies. This will eliminate all the potential hazards traditionally associated with the process of applying to become a vendor of the large companies. The website will enable the SMBs to more easily connect for opportunities to sell services, marketing, food, human resources, and construction, among others. 

The Supplier Connection website is expected to launch in the first quarter of 2011. It is expected that gradually the qualified firms will be able to reach not only the U.S. markets, but potentially nearly 200 countries -- the number of places worldwide where the participating companies operate. With the advancement of the program, many large businesses are also expected to sign up and many small companies are also going to benefit.

The website will enable small suppliers to learn from, collaborate with, and sell to each other so that they can become more competitive and successful. It will offer the participating companies a mechanism for sharing valuable business information with these prospective small- and mid-sized suppliers.

Large companies will also have easier access to small, innovative companies that generate new products and services.