Thanks to the Business Courier for running the article below about Black Achievers. Here is a link to the original article: https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2020/07/24/black-achievers.html
Eighteen months ago, Michael Moore launched a nonprofit designed to give Black professionals their own space within Cincinnati's business community.
Now, as companies double down on their inclusion efforts, he's seeing an increase in opportunities for the organization's future.
Moore is the founder and president of Black Achievers, a networking organization for Black professionals that now includes more than 4,000 members within the Tri-State. In an interview with the Business Courier, Moore said the recent death of George Floyd while in the custody of Minneapolis police officers and the resulting civil unrest has prompted more local corporations and nonprofits to look at his organization as a vehicle to help boost the diversity of their boards and workforces.
"We can act as that pipeline to create those relationships," Moore said. "And these are vetted, quality people."
For instance, Black Achievers recently partnered with Flywheel to help the Union Hall-based organization recruit Black professionals to serve as coaches for companies trying to scale and grow their businesses. So far, Black Achievers has connected Flywheel with seven new coaches, Moore said.
Black Achievers is also working with Leadership Council to help train and prepare its members to serve on nonprofit boards. And they're teaming up with the Greater Cincinnati Women's Fund to have members participate in the fund's program that prepares people to serve on civic boards, meaning those boards that are appointed by elected officials.
Moore said the key is to help Black Achievers' members "get plugged into opportunities that already exist in our city."
"People stay in the networks they key," he said. "If you have a network of white people, then that's where you go."
And as Black Achievers continues to build its reputation in Cincinnati, Moore is hoping the model they're building here will be easily replicated in other cities. He aims to officially expand next year into Dayton, where the organization already has some members. He then hopes to push into Columbus and eventually Cleveland.
Locally, Moore said his goal is to build stronger partnerships with companies in Cincinnati, so they will turn to Black Achievers as a way to connect with a potential pool to recruit diverse talent.
"Everyone is talking about systemic racism; we're a systemic solution," he said.
-End
Kommentare