Verizon CEO Recognized for Leadership and Commitment to Diversity

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NEW YORK - Verizon President and CEO Ivan Seidenberg has earned the National Minority Supplier Development Council's Leadership Award. Seidenberg will accept the honor at the organization's annual awards dinner tonight in New York City.

The council presents its annual leadership award to individuals who demonstrate a strong commitment and dedication to building alliances with minority businesses.

"Ivan Seidenberg is a CEO who values diversity and understands the importance of making it a top priority for Verizon," said Harriet R. Michel, National Minority Supplier Development Council president. "The success of the company's supplier diversity program underscores Verizon's commitment to ensuring that all Americans participate in the economic process."

Verizon spent $1.5 billion in 2001 with minority and women-owned businesses. The company also helps minority businesses develop and grow. In 1999 Verizon contributed $10 million to a private equity fund sponsored by Black Enterprise magazine and Citigroup to finance growth of minority and women-owned businesses. In 2000, it contributed $10 million to the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce equity fund for the development of Hispanic-owned businesses.

As a charter member of the Billion Dollar Roundtable, Verizon belongs to a select group of corporations that spend more than $1 billion annually with minority and women-owned businesses. The company's diversity efforts have earned awards and recognition from numerous publications including Working Woman magazine, which named Verizon to its list of the country's top 30 companies for supplier diversity in 2001.

The recognition is the outgrowth of programs designed to attract and develop a pool of diverse suppliers. Verizon's Corporate Sourcing organization recruits qualified minority and women suppliers to submit competitive bids for company purchases. The company also joins forces with advocacy groups -- including the National Minority Supplier Development Council, the Women's Business Enterprise National Council, the United States Hispanic and Pan Asian Chambers of Commerce, regional purchasing councils and local chambers -- to identify and mentor minority and women-owned firms.

The company's state-of-the-art interactive Web site allows suppliers to register online and find out more about Verizon's competitive bid process at www.verizon.com/about.

Verizon Communications

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) is one of the world's leading providers of communications services. Verizon companies are the largest providers of wireline and wireless communications in the United States, with 133.8 million access line equivalents and approximately 29.6 million wireless customers. Verizon is also the largest directory publisher in the world. With more than $67 billion in annual revenues and nearly 248,000 employees, Verizon's global presence extends to more than 40 countries in the Americas, Europe, Asia and the Pacific. For more information on Verizon, visit www.verizon.com.

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