Meet the Black business leaders funding and redefining the future

Black history is being made right now by industry leaders and pioneering entrepreneurs making game changing strides not only in their respective industries, but for them. From the first Black woman to run a Fortune 500 company, to the duo making room for more women of color startups with their venture capital firm, meet the Black trailblazers in business who are shattering barriers and paving opportunities for others.

The future of funding: Why more firms are writing checks to Black women

When Arian Simone was trying to open her own retail store, it didn’t take long for her to notice that nobody cutting the checks looked like her—a Black woman. But now, she and her partner, Ayana Parsons are doing exactly that.

Ursula Burns, the first Black woman to run a Fortune 500 company, is done taking calls from nervous white leaders

To most people, Ursula Burns, the former CEO of Xerox, is largely famous for two things. First, and most significantly, for being the first Black woman to run a Fortune 500 company. And second, for her astonishing candor.

Designing opportunity: Nike design alum D’Wayne Edwards is creating equity for the next generation of Black footwear designers

Creating greater equity across apparel and textile design careers has been a big part of Edwards’ focus, and it is what drove him to his most recent endeavor: reopening an HBCU in Detroit.

Meet the founder of the first Black-owned clean cosmetics brand sold at Sephora

LYS Beauty launched in February 2021 with the mission to make the clean beauty category more inclusive by offering universal shades with high-performance results. It's the only Black-owned clean cosmetics brand at Sephora, and has since sold out of its products at least twice online.

Getting more Black women on corporate boards is this new program’s urgent mission

Black Women on Boards is a six-month accelerator program that includes workshops, webinars, individual coaching sessions, and whatever else it takes to place high-potential executives into board roles that are a good fit.

How we got here and how we get out: A Q&A with venture capitalist Melissa Bradley on the Black funding gap

Bradley, managing partner at 1863 Ventures, discusses what sectors Black entrepreneurs are most active in, why Black founders struggle to secure loans, and some of the most exciting innovation happening within the Black community.

Pascal Desroches describes his path from Haitian immigrant to CFO at the world’s biggest telecom company

In their late 30s with four kids, Desroche's parents came to the United States from Haiti in search of better opportunities for their children. That led to his becoming the finance chief of the biggest telecom company in the world.

Designing the change: Black designers on equity and representation in the industry

Black designers are sharing their thoughts on how an industry with so much opportunity and innovation can leverage its inherent strengths to foster, support, and grow good design talent in the Black community.