Lenzy Petty believes every solution starts with a conversation. For his business, a solution to the challenge of business growth began with conversations and mentoring provided by DTE’s supplier diversity team.
Petty is a DTE minority supplier. He owns Northville, Michigan based Data Analytics Technology Advantage, LLC (DATA).
“We’re a certified Microsoft partner that helps customers integrate, analyze and visualize information so they can make better informed decisions more quickly,” he said.
When DTE’s Supply Chain team needed help migrating dashboards to Microsoft Power BI, Petty’s commitment to customer service stood out in crowded field of competitors.
“We issued a bid and interviewed several major contracting companies, but DATA was the only one willing to work side-by-side with us and agree to complete the project by the end of the year,” said DTE business analytics supervisor Brenda Ervin. “Lenzy was flexible and he exceeded our expectations. He made sure that my team was self-reliant and well-trained. He also contacted us after project completion to make sure that our needs were being met.”
Petty’s opportunities multiplied when DTE invited him to speak at a meeting of local supplier diversity corporate professionals. The successful presentation lead to additional speaking engagements and DTE-sponsored tickets to attend two national business conferences. He quickly parlayed these invitations into additional presentations and eventually into growth opportunities. He estimates his relationship with DTE generated over $250,000 in opportunities with Fortune 500 companies.
“Data Analytics wins business because of our speed, price, flexibility, expertise and our ‘yes’ attitude,” Petty said. “But the mentoring and networking from DTE was an important part of making the initial contacts that lead to these opportunities.”
Today, Data Analytics continues to grow. They were one of only 26 firms accepted into an international consultancy’s mentoring program and recently created a web-based solution to help others find veteran-owned businesses more quickly. The company also maintains its commitment to deliver outstanding service. One recent corporate customer brought Petty in after spending nine months trying to build a contact analysis system internally. DATA completed the project in three weeks.
“The DTE presentations from a few years ago continue to pay dividends. The relationship with DTE has been invaluable in terms of growth for my business,” he said.
DATA is a is a National Minority Supplier Development Council-certified, minority-owned business. Visit their website at dataanalyticstechnologyadvantage.com. To find out more about DTE’s supplier diversity commitment, visit our web site at dteenergy.com/supplychain.