For over fifty years, proponents of supplier diversity have discussed the positive effect on revenue that comes from using underrepresented suppliers. The problem lies in proving such assertions. For far too long, contracting with businesses owned by women, minorities, and those identifying as LGBTQ has been viewed as a "feel-good" act of corporate citizenship-one that rarely survives the next economic downturn. Hacking Supplier Diversity represents the first time the myriad benefits of a diverse supply chain have been thoroughly detailed and documented. Diversity and Inclusion expert Scott A. Vowels, PhD, redefines supplier diversity, focusing on three core issues: The economic impact of diverse suppliers The ways in which a robust supplier diversity program is a revenue enabler The formula for calculating the return on investment of a supplier diversity program A comprehensive and informative read, Hacking Supplier Diversity does for supplier diversity what Jim Collins' Good to Great and Built to Last did for how companies do business. Utilizing a keen sense of humor and expert storytelling, Vowels makes a definitive argument for supplier diversity as a business imperative.

"We regularly read and hear exhortations for women to take up positions in STEM. The call comes from both government and private corporate circles, and it also emanates from enthusiasts for free and open source software (FOSS), i.e. software that anyone is free to use, copy, study, and change in any way. Ironically, rate of participation in FOSS-related work is far lower than in other areas of computing. A 2002 European Union study showed that fewer than 2 percent of software developers in the FOSS world were women. How is it that an intellectual community of activists so open in principle to one and all -a community that prides itself for its enlightened politics and its commitment to social change - should have such a low rate of participation by women? This book is an ethnographic investigation of efforts to improve the diversity in software and hackerspace communities, with particular attention paid to gender diversity advocacy"--

Is anonymity a crucial safeguard—or a threat to society? “One of the most well-informed examinations of the Internet available today” (Kirkus Reviews). “The author explores the rich history of anonymity in politics, literature and culture, while also debunking the notion that only troublemakers fear revealing their identities to the world. In relatively few pages, the author is able to get at the heart of identity itself . . . Stryker also introduces the uninitiated into the ‘Deep Web,’ alternative currencies and even the nascent stages of a kind of parallel Web that exists beyond the power of governments to switch it off. Beyond even that is the fundamental question of whether or not absolute anonymity is even possible.” —Kirkus Reviews “Stryker explains how significant web anonymity is to those key companies who mine user data personal information of, for example, the millions of members on social networks. . . . An impassioned, rational defense of web anonymity and digital free expression.” —Publishers Weekly

This book provides an in-depth view of supplier diversity programs and how they have contributed to the meteoric rise of minority businesses. Incorporating expert advice from supplier diversity practitioners as well as empirical data, it looks at the emergence of supplier diversity programs, how to make them effective, and their future. Supplier diversity ensures an open and inclusive competition for contracts during the procurement process, and the use of vendors of different backgrounds fosters a better understanding of a diverse customer base. Over the last decade the number of minority-owned firms in the US has increased 38 per cent. As the number of minority entrepreneurs continues to rise, these business owners have recognized the need for B2B opportunities, and supplier diversity programs that create the fastest path to scale and grow a small business. Porter highlights the history and impact of these programs as sources of business education as well as pipeline development for minority and women entrepreneurs. Finally, readers interested in levelling the playing field in business have a go-to source.

A new industrial revolution. The age of making. From bits to atoms. Many people are excited by the possibilities offered by new fabrication technologies like 3D printers, and the way in which they are being used in hacker and makerspaces. But why is the power of hacking and making an idea whose time has come? Hackerspaces: Making the Maker Movement takes the rise of the maker movement as its starting point. Hacker and makerspaces, fab labs, and DIY bio spaces are emerging all over the world. Based on a study of hacker and makerspaces across the US, the book explores cultures of hacking and making in the context of wider social changes, arguing that excitement about the maker movement is not just about the availability of new technologies, but the kinds of citizens we are expected to be.

It is a very real and unfortunate circumstance in today's economy that corporate and government buying entities all too rarely solicit goods and services from businesses owned by minorities, women, veterans, and those in the LGBT community. The field of supplier diversity, however, provides programs to encourage a paradigm shift in this situation, and Scott A. Vowels, PhD, had the privilege of cofounding and moderating The BIGGER Discussion—an event in which small business advocates and economic leaders from across the country assembled to candidly debate the proverbial elephants in the room regarding the supplier diversity field. Don't Be Afraid to Call the Baby Ugly is Vowels' answer to the hundreds of questions he receives from interested people wanting to learn more in order to make a positive difference. Experience the event's creation and debate through his eyes, while also gaining critical personal commentary on the topics discussed. As of this book's writing, over thirty-two thousand people have viewed the first event's discussion on YouTube, making it the most-viewed program on supplier diversity in the industry's history. Read this entertaining and informative book and join the effort to change and support our wonderfully diverse economy.

Cyber Mercenaries explores the secretive relationships between states and hackers. As cyberspace has emerged as the new frontier for geopolitics, states have become entrepreneurial in their sponsorship, deployment, and exploitation of hackers as proxies to project power. Such modern-day mercenaries and privateers can impose significant harm undermining global security, stability, and human rights. These state-hacker relationships therefore raise important questions about the control, authority, and use of offensive cyber capabilities. While different countries pursue different models for their proxy relationships, they face the common challenge of balancing the benefits of these relationships with their costs and the potential risks of escalation. This book examines case studies in the United States, Iran, Syria, Russia, and China for the purpose of establishing a framework to better understand and manage the impact and risks of cyber proxies on global politics.