MINORITY BUSINESSES

OCIPs CAN HELP MINORITY-OWNED BUSINESSES AND PROVIDE OTHER ADVANTAGES

Owners regularly struggle with the concerns of minority and disadvantaged contractors that have difficulty meeting county insurance requirements. Global Risk Managers, Inc. specializes in OCIPs that provide a more even playing field for these small businesses by providing a single insurance program for all contractors and subcontractors.

OCIPs are advantageous to the owner, the experienced broker, the construction manager, the general contractor, the subcontractors, and the wrap-up insurance carrier. The programs maximize cooperation, integrate functions, and eliminate redundancy among partners on a project.

Global Risk Managers recognizes that enabling as many minority and disadvantaged contractors to participate in projects as possible is an important objective for the vast majority of our clients. We have proposed two strategies to work in conjunction with our OCIPs that have merit:

• The first strategy is Subguard, an insurance alternative to bonds. Subguard insures the client against default by any subcontractor or supplier. Minority and disadvantaged businesses can participate in projects without having to supply a surety bond. Subguard is similar to an OCIP in that a group purchase can lead to significant savings and efficiencies.

• The second surety strategy available is a Surety Support/Mentor/Protégé program. Global Risk Managers has numerous programs of this nature in place around the country. While this approach does not produce the cost savings available under the Subguard strategy, it does offer the program participants the ability to complete projects as a better, more sophisticated firm, capable of tackling larger projects in the future. The goal is to help the firms get approved for surety bonds and thus create a bond track record for them, which is important for their future projects. The mentoring process includes training in areas such as accounting, financial management, surety, and safety.

Global Risk Managers is very active with these programs, the most recent being the program for the Georgia State Financing and Investment Commission.

Our proven track record with large construction projects and the depth, creativity and experience of our team suggest that we are well positioned to assist our clients in maximizing financial results and achieving key project objectives through the professional implementation and management of the client's OCIP.