The past few weeks have revived conversations surrounding race, ethnicity and legacy of current discrimination and although Black Lives Matter (BLM) has gained traction in the wake of unjust killings of black men and women such as Trayvon Martin and Philando Castile, there was something about the murder of George Floyd – perhaps the graphicness of it, the inhumanity, or the blatant disregard for a human life – that the world could not ignore.
Chioma Onwutalobi, founder and CEO of SCO Group, helping brands reach a diverse audience using platforms such as Glam Africa, Diversity Forum Live, and Hayat Media has launched a knowledgeable and insightful essay directed at educated business owners on actionable steps they can take to be more inclusive. In Diversity Forum Live’s, “Beyond Buzzwords: Positive Steps Businesses Can Take To Promote Inclusivity”, Chioma lists initiatives such as the “fifteen percent pledge” as one of the ways business owners can commit to supporting black-owned businesses and black communities.
From marketing + communications to hiring policies, Chioma breaks down her top tips for making active and intentional changes to business operations that will contribute to the development of a more equal society, via a concise, yet informative five-step guide. While many businesses have begun to have these conversations in their board rooms with efforts to address shortcomings, attempts to support the BLM movement have eroded the business’ public confidence, for ignoring nuances or social cues, coming off as insincere or for being too simple. Chioma Onwutalobi hopes to provide businesses with the necessary tools to allow them to make positive contributions, without the restraining fear of a misstep or unintentional offense.
With a wealth of direct experience interacting with people from minority ethnic backgrounds, Onwutalobi’s essay is a must-read for anyone who is sincere about affecting positive change as a business owner or person of influence within the community.
To make it easy for people to support black-owned businesses and “pump millions into this community”, as suggested in the essay, Diversity Forum Live has launched Black Biz, a free directory for black business owners and service-providers that will allow thousands of people to easily find and patronize them. In her essay, Onwutalobi discusses the importance of these platforms and the role they will play for people looking to make active and intentional changes to their spending habits to support black business owners.
VISIT BLACK BIZ NOW TO SUPPORT BLACK OWNED
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