Great Lakes Women's Business Council

What Great Lakes Women's Business Council does

Great Lakes Women's Business Council (GLWBC) is a Michigan-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 1984 that serves as the regional certifying partner for the Women's Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC) in Michigan and Indiana. Its core activities are (1) administering WBENC Women's Business Enterprise (WBE) certification, providing women-owned businesses access to a national database and corporate procurement opportunities; (2) operating the CEED Lending program, which delivers Small Business LIFT loans and microloans across nine southeastern Michigan counties and has cumulatively disbursed $13 million supporting 2,261 jobs; and (3) running an SBA-funded Women's Business Center that delivers business development programs including MentorWE, WE Succeed, execWE, Trusted Connector, LaunchU, and the Business Growth Program, supplemented by the Michigan Women's Marketplace virtual platform and an annual Great Lakes Women's Business Conference.

The organization earns revenue through a mix of corporate and small business membership fees, certification service fees, CEED Lending interest income, corporate sponsorship of events and programs, and grants from the U.S. Small Business Administration, the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC), and other public-private partners. Its customer base spans two primary segments: women-owned small businesses seeking certification, capital, and procurement connections, and corporate members (including Ford and Stellantis) pursuing supplier diversity goals. GLWBC has certified or represents 1,500+ WBEs that collectively generate $21.2 billion in annual revenue and employ 81,300 U.S. workers, and it maintains 70+ corporate partner relationships.

GLWBC's technology stack is non-proprietary: it relies on Authorize.net for payment processing, GoTo Webinar and Zoom for virtual programming, Google Analytics for web measurement, and edX (via Verizon Skill Forward) for online course delivery. No proprietary AI, ML, or platform technology is developed or licensed. The organization operates from a single headquarters at 33109 Schoolcraft Road in Livonia, Michigan, with 11-50 employees, and it received national recognition as an SBA Women's Business Center of Excellence in 2020 and as part of the AWBC 2026 National WBC of Excellence cohort.

Name

Great Lakes Women's Business Council

Legal name

Great Lakes Womens Business Council

Website

https://greatlakeswbc.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1984

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Great Lakes Women's Business Council is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 1984 and based in Livonia, Michigan, that serves as the WBENC certifying partner for Michigan and Indiana, delivering WBE certification, microloans via CEED Lending, and SBA-funded business development programs to women entrepreneurs and corporate supplier-diversity partners.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Women's Business Development and Supplier Diversity Services

NAICS

Business Associations (813910), Business Associations (81391), Professional Organizations (813920), Professional Organizations (81392)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

STEM, Digital Literacy & Maker Education Nonprofits (BPAGADAG)

Keywords

• Women business certification
• Small business lending
• Business development programs
• Supplier diversity services
• Entrepreneurship training

Headquarters

HQ city

Livonia

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Membership Fees: Corporate members, small business members, nonprofits, government agencies, and public institutions pay membership fees for access to resources, events, networking, and recognition.
2. Certification Services: WBE certification services for women-owned businesses seeking to do business with major corporations and government entities.
3. CEED Lending Interest: Business expansion financing and small business loans to startup and existing enterprises, generating loan interest income.
4. Sponsorship Revenue: Corporate and organizational sponsorships for events including the Great Lakes Women's Business Conference and year-round programming.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Great Lakes Women's Business Council is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that provides Women's Business Enterprise (WBE) certification, CEED Lending small business loans, and Women's Business Center programs to women entrepreneurs in Michigan and Indiana. It serves as the regional WBENC certifying partner and delivers business development services including training, mentoring, peer growth circles, and executive education, connecting certified WBEs with corporate procurement opportunities.

Product overview

Great Lakes Women’s Business Council is a nonprofit organization that provides a comprehensive suite of services to support women entrepreneurs. The core offerings include WBENC Women’s Business Enterprise certification, CEED Lending (small business loans), and a Women’s Business Center program. The organization also delivers multiple business development programs including Business Growth Program (BGP), MentorWE, WE Succeed, execWE, Trusted Connector, and LaunchU. Membership programs serve both corporate partners and small businesses. The organization hosts the annual Great Lakes Women’s Business Conference and partners with edX to offer the Verizon Skill Forward Readiness Program for free online education. The Michigan Women’s Marketplace serves as an additional online resource hub for members.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Women's Business Enterprise (WBE) Certification

Quantifiable outcome

• 15,000+ small businesses trained
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration8 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Association of Women's Business Centers (AWBC)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 15 December 2025Great Lakes WBC graduated in the 2026 National Women’s Business Center of Excellence program offered by AWBC. The program involves six milestone assignments focused on strategic goal-setting, service delivery, continuous improvement, and peer relationships. AWBC is a nonprofit supporting the national network of 152+ Women’s Business Centers.
• StellantisminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 12 November 2025Recognized 54 global suppliers at Fifth Annual Supplier of the Year Ceremony in Paris, with Great Lakes WBC member suppliers included in the recognition.
• Verizon Skill Forward / edXminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 11 November 2025Partnership to provide free, college-level certifications from Harvard, IBM, Columbia University and other top institutions in areas like marketing, data, AI, and cybersecurity. Great Lakes WBC can earn grant funding when 200 people sign up and 50 complete courses.
• Ford Motor CompanyminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 7 November 2025Ford partnered with Great Lakes WBC for the Ford MentorWE cohort, graduating 11 WBEs in a mentorship and business development program.
• Women's Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGreat Lakes WBC serves as the Michigan and Indiana certifying partner of WBENC, a nationally recognized certifying body endorsed by leading American corporations. WBENC certification provides access to a national database of certified WBEs.
• StellantisminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerStellantis recognizes suppliers at annual Supplier of the Year ceremonies. Great Lakes WBC provides access to women-owned suppliers in the Stellantis supply chain through their network.
• Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMEDC partners with Great Lakes WBC through Pure Michigan Business Connect (PMBC) to provide matchmaking events, procurement opportunities, and webinar training programs for women-owned businesses.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Women's Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC): The national certifying body of which GLWBC is the Michigan/Indiana regional partner. Operates the same WBE certification standard and provides the national WBE database that GLWBC's certified firms access.
• Women's Business Enterprise Council - East (WBEC-East): Another regional WBENC Partner Organization providing WBE certification, training, and corporate connections across the U.S. East Coast—directly comparable to GLWBC in mission, structure, and revenue model.
• Heartland Women's Business Council: A WBENC regional partner providing WBE certification and business development services across Midwestern states—shares the same nonprofit, certification-driven model as GLWBC.
• Women's Business Council - Southwest: A WBENC regional partner serving Texas and surrounding states with WBE certification and corporate matchmaking—analogous service portfolio and member economics.
• Women's Business Development Center (WBDC): Chicago-based nonprofit providing women's business center services, certification support, and lending—operates a comparable nonprofit model delivering certification, training, and capital access to women entrepreneurs.
• National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO): National membership organization advocating for and supporting women business owners—comparable membership-based, advocacy- and resource-driven nonprofit model serving the same end-customer segment.
• U.S. Women's Chamber of Commerce: National membership-based nonprofit supporting women-owned businesses through certification, advocacy, and corporate connections—operates a parallel women-business ecosystem with similar revenue streams (memberships, certification, events).
• Association of Women's Business Centers (AWBC): National nonprofit supporting the WBC network of 152+ centers; GLWBC's WBC program is a member. Operates the WBC of Excellence designation framework that GLWBC graduated from.

Broad incumbents

• SCORE: Larger national nonprofit providing small-business mentoring, training, and resources—overlaps with GLWBC's training/mentorship programs (MentorWE, Trusted Connector) but does not focus exclusively on women-owned firms.
• Small Business Development Centers (SBDC): SBA-funded national network of small-business advisory centers offering training and counseling—broader incumbent operating across all demographics, comparable in funding structure and advisory mission to GLWBC's SBA-funded WBC.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/GreatLakesWBC
• Facebookfacebook.com/GreatLakesWomensBusinessCouncil
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/greatlakeswbc
• Instagraminstagram.com/greatlakeswbc

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors2 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Great Lakes Women's Business Council