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KEN COLEMAN
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Coleman is chairman of one of the nation ’ s leading software companies serving the insurance industry . He founded ITM Software , has served as chairman at Saama Technologies and Accelrys , and spent a decade at HP , where he held several management positions .
Coleman ' s trailblazing career has spanned nearly 50 years . Throughout that time , Coleman found he was often the only Black person holding a senior position . That spurred him to seek out and hire Black talent wherever he could find it . The Global Silicon Valley Hall of Famer continues his mission to this day . He and his wife , venture strategy consultant Caretha Coleman , are advisers on a forthcoming Santa Clara University training program to help Black college students become the company directors of tomorrow .
“ We ’ ve made enormous progress . We have a lot of improvement left to do , but I ’ m confident that we can move the needle in a positive direction . The number of companies in search of Black directors is shockingly high . I would have never dreamed of this many opportunities . We just have to know that all opportunities are perishable .”
FIELDS JACKSON , JR .
Executive Director , HBCU Business Deans Roundtable
Jackson heads up a think tank dedicated to enhancing business and management programs at HBCUs . The Roundtable ’ s goal is to boost networking opportunities between often-overlooked HBCU business school leaders and C-suites .
One of Jackson ’ s earliest forays into D & I came in the late ’ 90s , when he — along with business partners NBA great Julius “ Dr . J ” Erving and former NFL running back Joe Washington — formed the second minority-owned NASCAR team in the racing association ’ s history . The experience would later inspire the creation of
Racing Toward Diversity magazine , which showcases top corporate diversity initiatives .
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STACY
BROWN-PHILPOT
Adviser , SoftBank
“ After spending my career at large tech companies and investment banks , it became clear to me that investing in founders of color was a crucial step to improving diversity across the industry . When you fund entrepreneurs to realize their vision , they can bring everyone in their experience along with them .”
Until September 2020 , Brown-Philpot was CEO of the freelance labor marketplace TaskRabbit , where she was one of Silicon Valley ’ s few Black female chief executives . She has also worked at Goldman Sachs and held directorial roles at Google , and she currently sits on the boards of Nordstrom , Black Girls Code , and HP .
Along with two other Black leaders in tech , Brown-Philpot oversees SoftBank ’ s $ 100 million Opportunity Growth Fund . This new initiative will invest solely in companies led by founders of color . The goal is to foster diversity in venture capital and startups .
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“ The companies that have it figured out know that we ’ re working in a global environment and they need to find the best and brightest from those environments . They need to have their companies look like society [ and ] look like who they ’ re marketing to . They ’ ve got diverse boards of directors , diversity initiatives , and they hold people accountable .”
HP / INNOVATION / FALL
2020
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