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TAKING CARE OF BUSINESS – With backdrop of glitz and neon, NGLCC hosts 11th annual conference in Las Vegas

Laura Spaulding, owner of Spaulding Decon LLC More than 700 LGBT entrepreneurs, corporate partners, government allies and organization leaders from seven countries gathered at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas for the sold-out 11th Annual National Business & Leadership Conference of the National Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce. Shaun T, celebrity fitness trainer and creator of the INSANITY workout and Focus 25, delivered the opening session keynote address. Attendees, who had been encouraged to wear workout attire, were invited to take advantage of a special workout afterwards. Other keynote speakers included Beth Brooke-Marciniak, global vice chair of public policy, Ernst & Young LLP, and one of Forbes World’s 100 Most Powerful Women; Marcus Lemonis, chairman and CEO, Camping World and Good Sam Enterprises LLC, and host of CNBC’s “The Profit”; and Judy Dlugacz, founder and president, The Olivia Cos. LLC.
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Aspen Ideas Festival unites leaders to create solutions to challenges

By Victoria Fulkerson, senior vice president, NGLCC This summer marked the 10th anniversary of the Aspen Ideas Festival, an event dedicated to bringing together leaders from around the globe and across many disciplines to engage in deep and inquisitive discussion about the ideas and issues that shape our lives and challenge our future. Produced by
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Chamber president urges Nevada’s LGBT businesses to seek certification

Dina Proto By Melissa Lowery In 2011, when Dina Proto founded Teazled LLC to create greeting cards and became certified as a LGBT business enterprise through the National Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce that same year, she was surprised to learn that only three other businesses in Nevada were certified. After realizing
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The Inman Co. coordinates interior design, mixing in a pop of good will

Shane Inman, president and senior principal designer of The Inman Co., subscribes to the motto that life is about being a part of something larger than one’s self. “What I do needs to make a difference,” he said. “Being a corporate member of the National Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce is the perfect platform
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A new voice for supplier diversity

As JPMorgan Chase & Co. began celebrating 20 years of supplier diversity in 2014, it also welcomed a new vice president, William Kapfer, who is responsible for further elevating its global supplier diversity initiative. With experience in LGBT marketing and corporate relations, the opportunity to work at JPMorgan Chase provided an outlet for his considerable
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Human Rights Campaign

Releases report on status of LGBT workers Companies have made solid strides in establishing equal protections for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender employees, according to “The Cost of the Closet and the Rewards of Inclusion,” a study conducted by the Human Rights Foundation,the educational arm of the nation’s largest civil rights organizations. In fact, more
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StartOut Boosts LGBT Startups

By Suzanne Squyres It was optimism and concern that inspired a cadre of friends in New York City to organize a nonprofit networking group for lesbian, gay,bisexual and transgender entrepreneurs back in 2009. That year, the nation experienced the worst economic slump since the Great Depression — yet another setback for lesbian, gay, bisexual and
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Business Equality Excellence Champions

In December, the Human Rights Campaign released its 2014 Corporate Equality Index, an annual survey of U.S. companies regarding their LGBT-related policies, such as nondiscrimination workplace protections, domestic partner benefits, transgender-inclusive health care benefits, supplier diversity and engagement with the LGBT community. Of 934 companies surveyed, a record 304 achieved a grade of 100. Of those 304, 73 met the following criteria:
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