This panel-based seminar explores how the design-build delivery model is evolving through owner-led programs, such as the Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA) Multiple Award Task Order (MATOC) Contractor Design Partner (CDP) model, with a focus on diversity in contracting, inclusive delivery practices, and the business development dynamics shaping architect–contractor partnerships. Using LAWA’s MATOC design-build program as the primary case study, the session examines how procurement strategies, inclusive contracting frameworks, and intentional team formation influence competitiveness, innovation, and long-term program success. Moderated by Breanna Weaver (PCL Construction), the panel brings together perspectives from construction, architecture, and ownership to discuss how design partners are identified, evaluated, and selected—and why diversity, cultural alignment, and collaborative capacity are increasingly central to those decisions. Panelists will address how progressive and lump-sum design-build structures affect partner selection, risk allocation, cost certainty, and innovation, while reinforcing the importance of inclusive processes that elevate diverse firms as true delivery partners. Through the LAWA MATOC lens, the session demonstrates how diversity has become a strategic business development lever, shaping shortlisting, proposal evaluations, and repeat work, and aligning equity with performance and competitive advantage.