Panelists address facts and myths of forming strategic alliances.

Embedding diversity into daily operations has become commonplace at today's Fortune 500 companies, where corporate managers continually strive to seek the widest source of suppliers that reflect their employee and consumer population.

As a result, certified minority- and women-owned businesses are aggressively pursuing mutually beneficial strategic alliances that yield reciprocal returns, such as the one forged by JRT Realty Group, Inc., the commercial real estate industry's largest woman-owned company, and Cushman & Wakefield, the largest privately held commercial real estate services firm.

This alliance was one of several case histories recently presented as part of the Women Presidents' Educational Organization (WPEO) Strategic Alliances Panel, hosted by Lehman Brothers. The discussion, with an informative question-and-answer session, included Jodi Pulice, JRT Realty's founder and president; Aaron Blumenthal, Lehman Brothers' vice president/ supplier diversity manager; Diane Ashley, Citigroup senior vice president/director of supplier diversity; and Avis Yates Rivers, president and chief executive officer of Technology Concepts Group, Inc. Marsha Firestone, Ph.D., WPEO president and founder, served as the moderator.

"A common misconception is that a strategic alliance is a joint venture or partnership," noted Pulice. "Alliances are cooperative agreements that combine resources in a way that is beneficial to both parties, who retain their autonomy. Together, members of the alliance create business opportunities to achieve a specific goal or goals."

Pulice explained, "My strategic alliance with Cushman & Wakefield in 2003 was a key turning point in terms of JRT Realty's company direction. It has enabled me to expand into a more global arena and increase JRT Realty's portfolio by 400 percent in terms of leasing and asset management assignments."

A regional partner of the Women's Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC), WPEO administers Woman-Owned Business Enterprise (WBE) certification for New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Washington, Maryland and Virginia and is committed to creating access to business opportunities for its members. The organization is comprised of a coalition of corporations as well as regionally focused business organizations and certified business owners like JRT Realty. Among its more than 40 corporate sponsors are Lehman Brothers; Citigroup; Deutsche Bank; New York Life; Time Warner; and Wachovia.

JRT Realty, along with its alliance partner Cushman & Wakefield, provides leasing and asset management services at more than 150 executive office and industrial buildings nationwide, totaling over 13 million square feet, in key urban and suburban markets. The company's benchmark for superior service enables corporate and institutional clients, as well as city government, to achieve their diversity spending requirements and long-term success through a full-range of customized client services. These include strategic planning, corporate real estate portfolio management, tenant representation, leasing and property marketing, financing and investment sales.

In addition to earning the coveted WPEO/WBENC certification, JRT Realty is accredited by the National Minority Business Council (NMBC) and New York City Department of Small Business. The firm also is certified as both a small business and a woman-owned business enterprise with the State of New York and the Port Authority and the recipient of numerous industry and diversity awards.