Fern Gillespie
A pioneer in minority business development has died. For decades, Brooklyn resident Joy Crichlow was responsible for minority business owners achieving corporate contracts with Con Edison, one of New York City’s leading Fortune 500 companies. She also was instrumental in innovating business structures for corporate—MBE supplier diversity programs.

When Crichlow first joined Con Edison in 1971 as a Consumer Affairs Representative, she held a bachelor’s and a master’s degree from New York University and had taught in NYC Department of Education public schools and at New York University, Pratt Institute, and The City University of New York. At Con Edison Consumer Affairs, she utilized her experience to implement one of New York City’s first pre-occupancy tenant education programs for immigrants and low-income families.

By 1979, Crichlow assumed leadership of Con Edison’s Minority Business Program, what would later evolve into today’s Supplier Enablement Engagement and Development (SEED) efforts. Through bold strategy and unwavering commitment, under Crichlow, Con Edison’s purchasing expenditures with minority-owned firms grew from approximately $3 million to over $47 million. In 2011, Crichlow announced the annual spend was $300 million.

“There was no supplier diversity program at Con Edison before Joy Critchlow pushed to have it instituted. She was very forceful, and she created a lot of wealth for minority suppliers by making sure that they got contracts from the program,” Harriet Michel, former President and CEO of the National Minority Supplier Development Council told Our Time Press.

Michel is considered one of the leading experts on corporate – MBE collaborations. “Not only did Joy influence Con Edison, but she influenced the trade association of power companies. She would go to trade association meetings, and speak forcefully about the value of supplier diversity.”

Crichlow’s commitment to promote the utilization of minority businesses in the Northeast Utility Industry served as a catalyst for the development of the Edison Electric Institute’s Minority Business Development Task Force. Through her efforts, Con Edison’s Supplier Diversity Program has served as a model for numerous corporations.

“Joy was fiercely tireless in her ability to achieve positive results for minority-owned businesses. She helped them thrive with the company’s programs through her leadership,” said D. Joy Faber, former Public Relations Manager and Spokesperson for Con Edison, told Our Time Press. “Her significant impact laid the cornerstone for opening up business opportunities that will be modeled for years to come.”

Born in Jamaica, Crichlow was actively involved in leadership roles among diversity organizations in the New York’s African American, Caribbean American and minority communities. Among her many achievements are Chairperson of the New York/New Jersey Minority Supplier Development Council, board member for the Association of Minority Enterprises of New York (AMENY); and board member of Caribbean American Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CACCI). She was a member of the Mayor’s New York City Small Business Services Advisory Board and the Governor’s Corporate roundtable MWBE Advisory Board.

“Joy’s consistency on working on issues that relate to Black businesses in Harlem and New York communities is one of her most important achievements. A lot of people get involved for an issue or a particular concern, but don’t have the time,” Wallace Ford, Chair of the Department of Public Administration at Medgar Evers College, told Our Time Press. “Her consistency is something that I was fortunately able to witness over decades. That is something she will be remembered for.”

Crichlow worked at Con Edison for 40 years, of that, for more than 32 years as Director of Supplier Diversity. Her work elevated Con Edison’s social responsibility reputation. She retired in 2011 and had a successful career in real estate. In Brooklyn’s real estate community, she was also known as a business mentor.

Tohma Gadson-Shaw, Director of Supply Chain Corporate Social Responsibility and Supplier Enablement, Engagement, and Development (SEED) at Con Edison, reflected on Crichlow’s impact on minority and small business development at Con Edison. “Perhaps most telling of her legacy is to this day is I cannot encounter a supplier without hearing a heartfelt testimony of the support, access, and belief they experienced through Joy Crichlow’s leadership.

Her impact lived not only in metrics and milestones, but in people, in businesses sustained, in doors opened, and in futures changed.” Today, Con Edison has over $745 million in annual spend with small businesses.
Since Crichlow retired, supplier diversity initiatives have changed in American corporations.

The Trump administration’s anti-DEI commitment has made many corporations cautious on diversity programs. “There are corporations that are calling supplier diversity other names but are committed to get contracts to not only minority suppliers, but women, veterans, and all those categories. There are companies that were champions in the past, who just walked away the minute that Trump started to push,” said Harriet Michel.

“There were a lot of heroes in supplier diversity during those years,” Michel continued. “They carried the supplier diversity program on their shoulders and pushed the executive suite to do something. Some of them were very successful. And Joy Crichlow was one of them.