Author: CIO Business Leaders

John Martin, CEO and Co-founder of Young Black Leadership Alliance (YBLA), has one vision – to develop young Black men and women into positive leaders in their community now and in the future. This “Blessed” leader, as he describes himself, is on a mission to create young Black leaders who will be a force of change in the world. The Visionary John has an interesting story to describe his inspiration to start YBLA. While watching his favorite team play football, his wife Tammy asked him, “What are you passionate about?” The obvious answer at that moment was, “this game.” But…

Bernie Lawrence is a seasoned transactional attorney and the principal of B. Lawrence Watkins & Associates, PC, a legal practice specializing in entertainment, copyrights and trademarks, new media, and corporate law. Throughout her career, she has been able to carve out a niche for herself by representing multi-platinum selling music producers who have composed hits for notable hip-hop artists such as Lil’ Wayne, Drake, Nicki Minaj, Ludacris, 50 Cent, and P. Diddy, as well as R&B and pop artists such as Usher, Justin Bieber, Chris Brown, Beyoncé, and Rihanna, to name a few. Music business executives, music production firms, independent…

Defining success is defining a goal and that goal looks different for everyone. Dr. Madeline Ann Lewis, President & CEO of Executive Women’s Success Institute (EXWSI), also says that the definition of success is different for everybody. “Whatever success means to you, getting in the right mindset and having the right attitude will help you to get there,” she asserts. Personally, for her being successful is the ability to be articulate. She expects her message to be compelling and she must be able to share with the people she serves or speaks to. After all, that is what Executive Women’s…

In the United States, family and domestic violence is a common problem. According to a report, nearly 10 million people get affected every year due to domestic violence; one in four women and one in nine men are victims of domestic violence. Lovern J. Gordon is the Founder of Love Life Now Foundation, Inc. (LLN), a non-profit organization that promotes year-round awareness around domestic violence (DV). Lovern says “this issue is near and dear to my heart”. She herself a two-time survivor of abuse: a child witness to it growing up on the island of Trinidad where her father brutally abused her mother and as a young adult…

It has been 50 years since the process known as “email” was developed. According to studies, email is still the preferred mode of communication for 74% of all internet adults, and 95% of email users check their inbox every day, with some checking up to 20 times per day. 58% of individuals surveyed said they check their email first thing in the morning. It’s exciting to see how long email has been around. It’s also worth noting that, after 50 years, regular email has stayed substantially unchanged. We’ve all experienced being swamped with email messages, when short attention spans reign…

Dr. LaTonia Collins Smith, Interim President of Harris-Stowe State University, is a renowned education leader with innovative leadership expertise in administration and program creation. She serves as the chief advocate and leader of Harris-Stowe State University’s mission. At the university, Dr. Collins Smith develops and maintains an appropriate administrative organization to ensure effective and efficient management of its resources. She has more than 20 years of progressive leadership experience with an extensive background in administration and program development that enables her to provide effective internal and external communications, including keeping the Board of Regents informed, being the university’s chief spokesperson,…

The Boys & Girls Clubs of St. Charles County (BGCSTC) has a 70-year history, and while much has changed throughout the years, its core values have stayed constant. The founders felt every child deserved a secure environment where they could grow into productive, compassionate, and responsible citizens with the help of helpful adult mentors. Two sites, an administrative office, a fleet of club vehicles for transportation, academic and preventative programs for children ages 6-18, daily meals, athletics, and mentorship are currently demonstrating the actual implementation of this idea. Karen Englert is the Chief Executive Officer at Boys & Girls Clubs…

Navlika Ratangee is the Managing Director at Lyra SA (formerly ICAS SA). A clinical psychologist with diverse experience in workplace wellbeing. She completed her MBA in 2016 as the top student of the program. With executive education from Harvard Business School, Navlika is a seasoned presenter, editor and chapter author on corporate mental health. Humble Beginnings Coming from humble beginnings, growing up in Port Elizabeth, Navlika worked in the family shoe making business from a young age. Later the family business extended to a convenience store, and Navlika worked to help her parents after school every day. She also held…

Belonging to a family of smallholder farmers, Rebecca Amukhoye, CEO of Micro Enterprise Support Programme Trust (MESPT), has always dreamed of making agriculture profitable, ensuring a quality life for smallholder farmers. Agriculture is not only her work, but her life! Influencing Others Positively As a student, Rebecca thought success was passing exams and advancing to the next grade; as an employee, success was achieving work targets and making the employer happy; as a senior manager, success was building and growing a team by delivering the organizational goals and positively impacting the community. Now, she defines success as the ability to…

Dr. Markie Idowu is a proponent of women’s empowerment and gender equality, particularly in the Fintech business. She is also a member of the Women in Technology in Nigeria advisory board (WITIN). The team at WITIN is dedicated to ensuring the empowerment of girls in the fields of science and technology. She believes that women’s empowerment is critical, particularly in the region of Africa, where women are often marginalized. Dr Idowu is the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Xpress Payment Solutions Ltd. She has also carried out several women’s empowerment programs as the MD of Xpress Payments through the…