Black women are beginning to emerge as leaders across all industries, academia, government and non-profit organizations. This trend is particularly evident in the creation of new businesses: the 2016 American Express OPEN State Of Women-Owned Businesses Report found that women-owned businesses have grown five times faster than the national average since 2007, fueled primarily by Black and Hispanic women.
We have seen this trend in our own activities: in the seven weeks since we wrote about Black Women Talk Tech, we have attended six events featuring successful Black women as speakers or panelists. Equally impressive to the growing quantity of businesses owned by Black women, is the exceptionally high quality of these events and the presenters they attract.
Black women face well-documented adversities, ranging from socio-economic hurdles to unconscious bias and discrimination. What we heard from many of these presenters is that they have used adversity to fuel their determination, hone their talent and build their resilience. And now they are using their success to raise their visibility, share their experiences and inspire more black women to take up the challenges of leadership.
If you are a leader who cares about diversity and inclusion, you can find dozens of similar events each year in virtually any urban area. For instance, just this week if you are in New York you can attend the Women of Color in Tech event by the Digital Diversity Networkor the Harlem Tech Summit.
In the meantime, we encourage you to peruse the initial list of 28 women, follow them on social media, visit their online profiles, and get to know them. And the next time you need a speaker or panelist for an event, or if you are looking for outstanding talent, please reach out to them.
We have also made an online version of this list that we will continue to grow and update. Please drop us a lineto suggest additional names – and please include the LinkedIn URL and Twitter handle of any suggested individuals. (Update: we are grateful for all the submissions we have been receiving – we will curate them and update the online list next week)
1. Cally Waite, Associate Professor of History and Education at Teachers College, Columbia University (@ProfWaite)
2. Camille Hearst, Cofounder and CEO, Kit
3. Chana Ginelle Ewing, Founder/CEO, GeenieBox (@chanaewing)
4. Colleen Taylor, Executive Vice President, Mastercard
5. Crystal McCrary, Author, Filmmaker (@crystalmccrary)
6. Demma Rosa Rodriguez, Systems Integration Analyst, Google (@DemmaRosa)
7. Dorinda Walker, Vice President of Consumer Strategy, Prudential (@DorindaWalker)
8. Elisa Leary, VP of Human Resources, Macy’s (@eleary)
9. Elise James DeCruise, Vice President of Global Learning & Development, MediaMath (@AthletesWork)
10. Gina Athena Ulysse, Professor of Anthropology, Wesleyan University (@ginaathena)
11. Jamilah Lemieux, VP, News & Mens Programming, InteractiveOne (@jamilahlemieux)
12. Janice Johnson Dias, President, GrassROOTS Community Foundation (@GrassRootsFound)
13. Jennifer Lambert, Cofounder, Swivel Beauty
14. Kelcey Gosserand, Brand Ambassador, Galvanize (@kelgoss)
15. Latraviette Smith-Wilson, Senior Vice President of Communications, Sundial Brands
16. Lauren Maillian, Entrepreneur, Marketer, Investor (@laurenmaillian)
17. Leslie Short, Owner/CEO, K.I.M. Media LLC (@KIMMediaLLC)
18. Lola Banjo, Strategic Innovation Executive, Salesforce (@lolajbanjo)
19. Marcia Cole, CEO/Chief Creative Officer, Ivy Digital (@marciaacole)
20. Regina Dixon-Reeves, Assistant Vice Provost for D&I, University of Chicago (@dr_rdr)
21. Renae Bluitt, Founder, Crush Media/In Her Shoes Blog (@inhershoesblog)
22. Rhonesha Byng, Founder, HerAgenda (@neshasagenda)
23. Scherri Roberts, SVP of Human Resources, Hearst Magazines
24. Tiffany “The Budgetnista” Aliche, Financial Educator (@TheBudgetnista)
25. Tiffany Warren, Chief Diversity Officer, Omnicom Group (@DiverStar)
26. Valeisha Butterfield Jones, Head of Black Community Engagement, Google (@valeisha)
27. Veronica Webb, Supermodel, Entrepreneur, Fashion/Beauty Writer (@veronicawebb)
28. Wanda Jackson, SVP of Human Resources, National Urban League (@WandaPHJackson)
Read more on Forbes.com.
