I’m Certified, Now What?
Maximizing Your WBENC Certification
May 14th, 2026 | 1pm to 2pm EST | Virtual Session
Certification is just the starting line.
Join us for a special WOW edition of I’m Certified, Now What? and discover everything your certification has unlocked. Learn how to leverage your certification, tap into a powerful network of resources, and fully embed yourself in a community built to help your business grow. If your certification has been sitting on the shelf, it’s time to put it to work.
Join speakers Dr. Drena Valentine, CEO of Integrative Management Solutions, LLC, and Liz Whitehead, CEO of 12PointFive, as they share valuable advice on how to get the most out of your certification.
Reserve your spot today!
Click here to register.
Dr. Drena Valentine is a visionary, transformative leader and a force for economic equity who has dedicated more than 25 years to strategically revitalizing of businesses, particularly those owned by Black, minority, and women entrepreneurs. A recognized authority in Strategic and Operations Management, Dr. Valentine has built her career around an unyielding commitment to creating sustainability, access, and excellence systems that empower small and midsize businesses to thrive.
As the founder and Chief Executive Officer of Integrative Management Solutions, LLC (IMS), Dr. Valentine has led her firm to become a nationally certified minority business enterprise that redefines how small businesses access, manage, and sustain operational growth. IMS specializes in actionable, performance-based strategies integrating structure, process, and people to drive repeatable results and achieve operational excellence. Under Dr. Valentine’s leadership, IMS has become a premier strategic partner for public agencies, anchor institutions, and community development financial institutions (CDFIs), seeking to strengthen internal operations and expand procurement readiness for underrepresented businesses.
Liz Whitehead is the CEO of 12PointFive, a business development consultancy that specializes in growing small and diverse businesses by building business development strategies for larger organizations. At 12PointFive, she supports her clients in reaching their goals through facilitation, consulting, and one-on-on coaching. Recognizing that diverse businesses need a program to give them the information they need, when they need it, and in a way that drives them to take action, Liz co-founded Mastermind my Company with Heather Cox. Our signature program is an online curriculum focused on building a roadmap to certification success.
Liz currently serves on the WBENC National Forum and the WBEC DMV forum. She is Chair of three local Chapters of the Women Presidents Organization, facilitating monthly meetings for multi-million-dollar business owners as part of an international peer advisory group. As a certified B Corp business, she is also on the Leadership Circle of We The Change, a collective of purpose driven women business leaders that grew out of the B Lab network. Her awards include WBEC DMV’s WBE Connection award, Outstanding Women’s Business Advocate Award and the WBE Star Award. She was recognized by Women’s Enterprise Magazine (WE USA) as one of the Top WBE CEOs of 2021 and by the Women Presidents Organization as a President’s Award winner. In 2023, she was recognized by WBENC as a WBE Star, the most prestigious award for women business owners in the network.