How Jodi Watkins, Nikita Tiffany, of GTN Solutions turned a certification setback into a disciplined growth strategy—and a statement of work secured after Connections to Contracts.
Introducing Jodi Watkins and GTN Solutions
For Jodi Watkins, President of GTN Solutions, building a business has never been about chasing the fastest win. It has been about creating a company that is prepared to deliver when the right opportunity arrives. Based in Dallas and serving clients across North America and beyond, GTN Solutions provides technical and professional talent solutions through statement-of-work management, staff augmentation, direct hire placement, managed field services, cybersecurity, infrastructure support, and complex data center transformation.
That combination of enterprise capability and entrepreneurial agility is central to the GTN story. The company is built to help organizations scale teams without losing sight of value, service, or speed. Yet Jodi also understood an important reality: strong capabilities alone do not always create access. For women-owned businesses seeking to work with large corporations, the path to the right decision-maker can be difficult to navigate. Certification could help GTN Solutions demonstrate its ownership, strengthen its credibility, and enter supplier-diversity conversations with greater intention.
When Certification Was Denied
GTN Solutions’ first certification outcome was not the one Jodi hoped to receive. The application was denied. For any business owner who has invested time, documentation, and optimism in the process, a denial can feel deeply discouraging. It can be tempting to interpret the decision as a closed door—or as a judgment on the value of the business itself.
Jodi chose a different interpretation: this was not “never”; it was “not yet.” Instead of walking away, she treated the outcome as information. Certification is a rigorous validation process, and the work required to meet its standards can expose where ownership, control, governance, records, or business practices need to be clearer. The denial became a prompt to ask better questions, understand the gaps, and strengthen the company from the inside out.
“Looking back, I would not change the process. We weren’t prepared to receive the certification; we weren’t aligned internally as we needed to be. So that denial really helped me laser-focus and put me in a position for the company going forward exactly where it needed to be.” – Jodi Watkins
Turning Determination into Business Readiness
Jodi’s next steps were deliberate. She revisited the application requirements, clarified how GTN Solutions was owned, operated, and controlled, and ensured that the company’s documentation consistently reflected the reality of its leadership. Rather than viewing the process as paperwork to complete once, she used it as a framework for operational discipline. Records had to tell the same story as the business itself.
The work also required patience. Jodi stayed engaged, asked questions, responded to feedback, and kept moving. That persistence empowered GTN Solutions beyond the application. Clearer governance, stronger supporting materials, and a sharper articulation of the company’s capabilities made the business more prepared for buyers, partners, and future opportunities. Certification became one part of a broader readiness strategy—not a substitute for one.
When GTN Solutions ultimately received its woman-owned business enterprise certification, the milestone represented more than a credential. It validated Jodi’s determination and the company’s ability to meet a recognized standard. It also gave GTN Solutions a stronger platform from which to pursue corporate supply-chain opportunities. The certificate did not promise revenue, but it helped establish that GTN belonged in the conversation.
Introducing Nikita Tiffany: Turning Access into Action
Nikita Tiffany, Executive Vice President at GTN Solutions, plays a key role in translating company capability into client value. Her work spans growth, account strategy, service delivery, project oversight, and the development of scalable workforce solutions. She understands both sides of a successful engagement: what an enterprise buyer needs and what GTN must be ready to execute.
That perspective was essential when GTN Solutions prepared to attend Connections to Contracts, WBCS’s procurement-focused signature event. Certification supported the strategy by placing GTN within an ecosystem designed to connect qualified women-owned and small businesses with corporations and Tier 1 suppliers. Instead of relying only on cold outreach, Nikita could sit across from decision-makers, listen to procurement priorities, communicate GTN’s capabilities, and begin building trust in real time.
Connections to Contracts—and a Clear Path to an SOW
At the event, Nikita’s goal was not simply to collect contacts. She wanted to understand what it would take to move from an introduction to a viable statement of work. That meant asking practical questions: Where did GTN’s services align with an active business need? Who owned the requirement? What outcomes mattered most? What scope, service levels, timing, pricing, risk controls, and delivery capacity would need to be demonstrated? What would a credible next step look like?
Those conversations helped GTN Solutions focus on fit rather than a generic sales pitch. Nikita could connect the company’s staffing and managed-services experience to a defined need, follow up with relevant information, and make it easier for the buyer to evaluate GTN as a capable partner. Certification helped open the room; preparation, consistent follow-ups, responsiveness, and demonstrated value moved the opportunity forward.
Approximately four weeks after Connections to Contracts, Nikita secured a statement-of-work contract with Jack Henry. The result was a powerful proof point for both GTN Solutions and WBCS: purposeful face time can change the trajectory of a supplier relationship. Jack Henry’s supplier-diversity program includes certified diverse businesses in its purchasing process while making clear that certification alone does not guarantee a contract. Suppliers must still compete on value, alignment, performance, and the criteria of the opportunity. GTN Solutions did exactly that.
Not every conversation from the event produced the same momentum. GTN Solutions encountered follow-up paths that stalled, contacts who were not aligned to the relevant buying area, and one discussion that felt more like a sales pitch to the supplier than a source of procurement opportunity. Jodi shared that feedback constructively because she values the council and wants future connections to be as useful as possible. The contrast also underscored a central lesson: one well-matched, well-managed opportunity can create significant value, even when other conversations do not progress.
Why Certification Matters for Long-Term Success
For Jodi and Nikita, certification matters because it supports a long-term business development strategy. It provides third-party validation, creates access to supplier-diversity networks, and helps qualified businesses become more visible to corporations seeking capable partners. It can also encourage stronger internal systems and clearer positioning. What it does not offer is “overnight microwave satisfaction.” A certificate is not an instant contract, and an introduction is not a purchase order.
Long-term success comes from combining certification with readiness: knowing the customer, articulating a relevant value proposition, maintaining complete supplier profiles, following up professionally, and delivering consistently after the win. It means cultivating relationships before an opportunity is available and staying prepared for the moment when need, timing, and capability align. GTN Solutions’ journey—from denial, to determination, to certification, to a signed SOW—shows how those pieces work together.
Jodi and Nikita’s shared advice is simple: approach certification as an investment in the future of your company. Learn from setbacks. Build the operational foundation. Use the education and connections available through WBCS. Enter buyer conversations prepared to listen, solve, and perform. Then remain patient enough to nurture the right relationships. Sustainable growth is rarely immediate, but it becomes possible when opportunity meets a business that is truly ready.
Take the Next Step
If your company is ready to strengthen its credibility, expand its network, and pursue new opportunities, contact the Women’s Business Council – Southwest to begin your certification journey. WBCS offers WBE, WOSB, SBE, and SBE Plus pathways, along with education and procurement-focused programs that help business owners prepare for meaningful connections.
And if your organization needs a talent partner that can support technical hiring, managed services, staff augmentation, direct placement, or statement-of-work delivery, contact GTN Solutions. Their story is a reminder that the most impactful partnerships begin long before the contract: with preparation, perseverance, and a willingness to keep going after “not yet.”
In collaboration with Brydric Wright, Director of Marketing, WBCS and GTN Solutions.
