A listening session to explore the challenges faced by the Black business community and aspiring entrepreneurs
About this Event
Are you a Black student, employee or business owner? Lloyds Banking Group’s Black Business Advisory Committee are inviting you to a Community Conversation listening session to explore the challenges faced by the Black business community and aspiring entrepreneurs. The Black Business Advisory Committee is comprised of 12 outstanding figures from the Black business community, with leading businesswoman and former Cabinet Office advisor Claudine Reid MBE as Chair. All 12 members bring with them a diverse set of experience and expertise, which will equip them to investigate in detail the barriers to growth for the Black business community. During the session, the Committee members will talk about the highs and lows of their personal journey into entrepreneurship and their role to help listen and provide recommendations to Lloyds Banking Group on ways forward for the Black business community. The Committee will also be taking part in live audience Q&A and talking about how you can have your voice heard via the Black Entrepreneurship survey.
Black Business Advisory Committee members:
Antonia Burrell: Owner of Antonia Burrell Holistic Skincare. Selected as a top 100 industry influencer by Professional Beauty UK, and appearing in global trend reports such as Mintel. A regular guest speaker on topics relating to women in business, both in the UK and abroad.
Cecil Adjalo: Director at award-winning social enterprise, Foundervine. Oversees the Business Intelligence department at rapidly growing Danish Tech Scale-Up, Dixa. Listed by the Financial Times as one of the 100 most influential BAME Leaders in UK Tech.
Claudine Reid MBE (Chair): Award winning Business Psychologist and Social Entrepreneur. Voted one of Britain’s top 100 women entrepreneurs by Real Business Magazine (2008) and listed by Keep the Faith magazine as one of Britain’s most influential Black women (2017 and 2019) as well as being listed as one of Britain’s top 100 most entrepreneurial women.
Evadney Campbell MBE: Award-winning lecturer, broadcast journalist, trainer and PR consultant with over 30 years’ experience in education, consultancy and media. Awarded an MBE in 1995 for her services to voluntary work, as a founding member of a ground-breaking charity.
Imelda FossuVisionary entrepreneur, innovator and public speaker who, at just 25, is inspiring a new generation. Leads the The Fossu Group, an innovation factory turning concepts into reality today, while building the most impactful and inclusive companies of tomorrow.
Izzy Obeng: Entrepreneur, business coach and professional speaker. Founder and Managing Director of Foundervine, a social enterprise specialising in start-up and scale-up acceleration programmes. Named by Tech Nation in 2019 as one of the 50 most influential Black voices in UK tech.
Khalia Ismain: Founder of Jamii, a discount and discovery platform for Black-owned business. Passionate about reducing the barriers faced by Black British founders, and about using business to affect positive social change. Occasionally gives talks about life as a social entrepreneur.
Margaret Ochieng: Organisational psychologist and founder of The Inclusive Village, an evidence-based consultancy that specialises in inclusive people, talent and culture. Has authored and co-authored various pieces of work on racism in UK organisations.
Michelle Raymond: HR consultant, visibility strategist and award-winning international TEDx speaker. Michelle and her team at The People’s Partner help businesses grow by transforming their people skills, developing peak performance and raising visibility through consultation, coaching and training.
Nathaniel Peat: Multi-award winning entrepreneur, listed on the 2017 Black Power List, EMPower Financial Times list (2017 and 2018) and 2016 Financial Times Upstanding 100 BME Executive List. Co-founder of renewable energy company Gennex Solar and founder of The Safety Box, helping to reduce youth violence. Chair Brunel Business School and Patron of EY Foundation.
Rodney Appiah: Former investment banker, NED and VC investor with nearly 15 years of financial services experience across UK and Europe. Currently the Chairman of Cornerstone Partners, a leading UK angel network focused on seed stage investments to support black and diverse founders.
Shari Leigh: Founder of Black Business Network, a corporate event and media company, designed to strengthen business connections and knowledge in the Black community. Launched the flagship event for Black Business Network, Black Investor 360.