The Illinois Department of Central Management Services recently announced in its annual report that the Illinois Tollway was ranked number one in small business spend amongst all state agencies participating in the Small Business Set-Aside Program, a program designed to help small businesses compete against large businesses for state awards and contracts. As Program Liaison to the Tollway’s Department of Diversity and Strategic Development for matters related to the 15-year, $12 billion program, Move Illinois: The Illinois Tollway Driving the Future, R.M. Chin & Associates, Inc. (R.M. Chin) implemented an aggressive outreach campaign for the Tollway to identify eligible small business firms and help them participate in the program.
In a one-year period, the Tollway has moved from a 5th place rank to a 1st place rank in small business spend and 28 Small Business Set-Aside contracts have been awarded – totaling more than $26 million. The Tollway has two additional Small Business Set-Aside contracts slated for award in June, with more set-aside contracts to be advertised in the future. “As an M/W/DBE firm, we recognize the need to have programs like this to support small businesses. Our firm is proud to have played a direct role in awarding Small Business Set-Aside contracts to uniquely qualified small, minority, women, and veteran-owned firms,” said R.M. Chin President Eileen Chin.
R.M. Chin is also providing assistance for external and internal communications related to the Move Illinois program and serves as a liaison for the Program Management Office among Tollway Engineering, Diversity and Strategic Development, Communications, and other departments. Additionally, R.M. Chin provides overall messaging and strategic communications related to the program and reports to various stakeholders. Visit our website for more information about our work with Tollway.
