From Locked Doors to Open Network: One Founder's MBE Journey
When Tonia Bui started PWP Strategies in Silver Spring, Montgomery County, she had no idea where to begin with state government contracting. Coming from the policy world, she knew agencies needed strategic communications and culturally responsive community engagement — but the certification process felt like a locked door, and she couldn't determine which agencies were actually looking to procure the services her firm offered.
With DoSEM's support, Tonia earned her MBE certification — a milestone that took about a year and a half after her application transitioned from MDOT to DoSEM. Along the way, she attended several Ready, Set, GROW! Procurement Connections Expos across Maryland, which revealed how differently each county and city handles procurement. The experience reshaped how she thinks about growth: rather than pursuing prime contracts alone, she now builds relationships with other primes and subprimes — relationships that put her in the room when procurement opportunities come up.