Accelerating Black Leadership and Entrepreneurship - African Diaspora Network

Accelerating Business Leadership and Entrepreneurship (ABLE)

overview

The Accelerating Business Leadership and Entrepreneurship (ABLE) program strategically addresses the pervasive opportunity gap facing Black entrepreneurs. Recognizing the critical need for ongoing technical support, mentorship, and improved access to capital, ABLE stands as a transformative initiative. Leveraging the Leavey Executive Center’s (LEC) proven global model, renowned for channeling capital to sustainable enterprises, and bolstered by leadership support and enduring mentorship support from the LEC and ADN’s distinguished network of Black leaders, ABLE is changing the narrative. This comprehensive approach forms a robust system of human capital development, empowering diasporan individuals and offering a comprehensive strategy to enhance their investment readiness for external funding. The program equips entrepreneurs with the knowledge to attract the right types of capital and leverage innovative funding vehicles, propelling early and mid-stage enterprises toward success. Armed with these tools, the selected Black-owned businesses are poised to become catalysts, driving the creation of new markets and innovative solutions to varied market issues, revitalizing local U.S. economies, and contributing to community impact and fiscal growth. ABLE is not just a program; it’s a transformative force ushering in positive change.

FUNDERS

Lead Funder

Funder

Funder

Academic Partner

Ecosystem Partners

center-for-african-studies-larger

santa-clara-university

Sanford-seed

silicon-valley-black-chamber-commerce

techtown-detroit

Enterprise-Innovation-institute

Get Involved

We are deeply appreciative for the unwavering support of our funders, partners, mentors and reviewers who make this work possible. We welcome you to join us in this important mission–your contributions will make a real difference.

Email Rose Essiem, Entrepreneurship Programs Manager, at rose@africandiasporanetwork.org for more information on how to get involved.

ABLE Provides

Program Goals

Provide a platform for the development and recognition of Black entrepreneurs and Black-owned businesses in the U.S.
Provide mentoring and networking with industry leaders and open doors to potential partnerships and funding opportunities
Improve the overall investment readiness of impact-driven Black founders
Showcase the ingenuity and innovation of Black-owned businesses
Build a thriving network of Black entrepreneurs
Promote business networking ties between U.S. Black entrepreneurs and African entrepreneurs

Enterprises emerging from this partnership will

Highlight the challenges faced by Black-owned businesses in the U.S.
Recognize ingenuity and innovation of Black-owned businesses.
Build a network of Black entrepreneurs.
Provide investment-ready solutions for investors interested in a curated pipeline of community-driven entrepreneurial solutions to local and global challenges.

ABLE Program Advisory Committee Members

Joyce Chung has over 10 years of operating experience in technology companies and 15 years of venture capital investing experience. She was a Managing Director at Garage Technology Ventures, a founding partner of Cardinal Venture Capital, and a Director at Adobe Ventures. Joyce also held operating roles at Adobe Systems, Sony Corporation, and Cambridge Technology Group. She is currently focused on philanthropic activities.

Nousheen Eslambolchi has more than 20 years of experience in the Tech and Medical Device industries. She joined Visby Medical earlier this year in the fight against Covid-19 and other infectious diseases. Prior Nousheen was Director of Innovation at eBay Inc. leading a 2500+ employee Innovation Program, an incubator for groundbreaking ideas, and the place where participants could shape the future of eBay with a project they believe in. Prior to that, she led the design, development, and manufacturing of Boston Scientific’s Endoscopic Vessel Harvesting device. Nousheen is passionate about inspiring youth to think about our planet’s most pressing needs and instill the belief that they can make a difference. She is involved with several organizations and programs that provide education and opportunities to youth to create a better world for their generation and beyond

Helen Kim is a Senior Operations Executive with expertise leading Product, Engineering and Program Management teams in high-tech, e-commerce and professional services. Successful track record with strategic planning, and proven ability to develop and inspire cross-functional teams to deliver bottom line business objectives while achieving customer success. She was an executive at multiple tech companies including Pinterest, BILL, eBay, Yahoo, McAfee and VeriSign.

Thane is a CEO, board member, and independent advisor with over 27 years leading systemic change to improve health and wellness for people and planet by creating strategy, driving innovation, and building successful enterprises. He is committed to diversity and inclusion, informing corporate purpose, ESG strategies, and high-performance teams. He currently serves on the Board of Conservation X Labs; is a founding member of the Silicon Valley Executive Center’s Advisory Board; and is co-founder of the Black Corporate Board Readiness program.

Michael is the founder of Periodic Element LLC, a consultancy focused on creating social impact and improving employee job satisfaction through purposeful support of social startups. In 2023, Michael retired from Johnson & Johnsen, after 28+ years in Research, Development & Engineering, both in North America and Germany. He is a business strategist with expertise in product development and implementation, technology transfer and adaptation as well as environmental sustainability and footprinting for the consumer healthcare sector. His last position was focused on social innovation, finding and incubating healthcare related startups in Africa. Michael is continuing to support startups in sub-Saharan Africa, and he is currently a member of the Executive Advisory Council of the African Diaspora Network. Michael holds a PhD in Chemistry from the University of Stuttgart, Germany.

Lyndon Mouton is an entrepreneurial leader in the alternative investments space, covering the spectrum of private equity assets across a range of industries. He currently works as an investor and COO at New Paradigm Technology Partners, a multi-family investment firm focusing on venture capital investments in the CPG and Tech sectors. Bachelors in Finance and Economics from Babson College and an MBA from Columbia University.

Cynthia Owyoung is VP of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at BILL, where she is focused on building diverse teams, inclusive leaders and a culture of belonging to support business growth. She is also the author of “All Are Welcome: How to Build a Real Workplace Culture of Inclusion that Delivers Results,” a playbook for driving progress in Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging (DEIB) inside organizations. Cynthia has established and led DEIB initiatives for 20 years as an executive at organizations across tech, media and financial services, including Robinhood, Charles Schwab and Yahoo!. In addition, Cynthia founded Breaking Glass Forums, a boutique agency developing strategies to accelerate diverse leadership and inclusive organizations. Entrepreneur Magazine recognized Cynthia on their 100 Women of Impact list in 2021.

Prior to her work in human resources, Cynthia built a decade-long career as a Brand Strategist for leading global brands and advertising agencies, developing campaigns for Microsoft, Levi Strauss, and Apple. She currently serves on the Board of Directors for AbilityPath, a nonprofit dedicated to empowering people with special needs to achieve their full potential. She earned an MBA in organizational behavior from UCLA’s Anderson School of Management, and Bachelor’s degrees in marketing, finance and psychology from UC Berkeley.

Guy Primus is a technology executive with over 20 years of experience operating at the intersection of media and innovation. Throughout his career, Guy has demonstrated the ability to combine technology and popular culture to create aggressive organic growth for companies from early-stage startups to Fortune 100. He is also lead inventor on two patents in the digital media/Ad Tech space. Guy currently serves as CEO and board member at Valence, a venture-backed company whose mission is to create new paths to success for Black professionals.

Ahmad Thomas is the CEO of the Silicon Leadership Valley Group, the region’s most dynamic business association. As a change agent and next generation business leader, Thomas partners with the organization’s 350+ member companies to promote entrepreneurial solutions to strengthen Silicon Valley business competitiveness, bolster its innovation ecosystem, and create shared economic value throughout the greater Bay Area. In his first two years as CEO, Thomas has catalyzed industry-leading initiatives to operationalize change around diversity, equity, and inclusion from the Boardroom to the C-suites and beyond.

ABLE Team Leads

Almaz Negash, a prominent trailblazer in Silicon Valley, has been recognized as one of the 12 inaugural members of President Biden’s Advisory Council on African Diaspora Engagement in the United States. Leveraging 25 plus years of experience in international trade, business management, and social innovation, Negash is able to build successful partnerships with a variety of stakeholders, including Fortune 500 companies, academic institutions, investors, and entrepreneurs based in the USA and around the world. In 2010, Almaz founded African Diaspora Network (ADN) to inform and engage Africans in the diaspora and facilitate direct collaboration with social entrepreneurs, innovators, and business leaders to invest and improve the lives of everyone on the continent.She has also been named as one of Silicon Valley 100 outstanding Women of Influence for her significant contributions to social innovation.

Lead Academic Advisor - Leavey School of Business, Santa Clara University

Dennis Lanham is the Sr. Assistant Dean of Executive Education, and Executive Director of the Silicon Valley Executive Center at Santa Clara University. With more than 15+ years of experience in business education, nonprofit, and program management, Dennis has built numerous programs for businesses and working professionals across industries in leadership, innovation, entrepreneurship, marketing, sales, operations, and many other business-critical areas. He has worked with dozens of corporate clients and university partners and has built more than ten open enrollment programs from the ground up.

Program Director of DEI Initiatives

Heather Buffington-Anderson currently serves as the Program Director of DEI Initiatives at the Silicon Valley Executive Center at Santa Clara University. In this role, she works with our partners at the African Diaspora Network to manage the Accelerated Black Leadership and Entrepreneurship program. Additionally, Heather directs and manages the Women’s Corporate Board Readiness Program, the Black Corporate Board Readiness Program. Prior to her current role, Dr. Buffington-Anderson served as an Assistant Professor of Music History & Ethnomusicology at Claflin University and directed several grant initiatives aimed at closing opportunity gaps for HBCU students entering the workforce.

Omolayo is a multi-lingual strategist and researcher with over ten years experience in international development and has worked with or for African diaspora communities across the US, Europe and Africa to mobilise, impact and advocate for their needs and interests. Omolayo holds an MSc with Distinction in Migration, Mobility and Development from the School of Oriental and African Studies in London. Prior to joining ADN, Omolayo was a research manager and gender specialist at DMA Global where she oversaw key projects for organisations such as the World Bank, IOM and others.

ABLE Partner Testimonials

The Leavey School of Business and our Silicon Valley Executive Center are proud to partner with the African Diaspora Network. We look forward to launching this innovative program focused on racial equity in American entrepreneurship

We are so pleased to see African Diaspora Network’s mission to help Africans and the African Diaspora and Santa Clara University’s mission align around social justice. . They have worked together to develop a much needed entrepreneurship and leadership program for Black entrepreneurs, providing mentorship, community building and access to resources for Black entrepreneurs based in the United States. Congratulations to the inaugural ABLE cohort as we continue to explore ways to strengthen communities of color in the United States, Africa and other parts of the world.

We are proud to support the African Diaspora Network that is building power within the Black community, with a focus on entrepreneurs. Their work aligns with the California Black Freedom Fund’s efforts to invest in organizations that are transforming our communities and advancing equity for Black communities throughout the state,” said Anne Im, director of community investment at SVCF

The County of Santa Clara proudly supports the Accelerating Black Leadership and Entrepreneurship (ABLE) program," commented Supervisor Otto Lee of District 3. "Through our URJGENT Grants Program, we are able to fund this outstanding program. We are honored to be a part of the effort to address historical gaps and resources in funding for the Black community. Accelerating Black-led ventures is a significant step forward and provides a pathway for building bridges between communities of diverse backgrounds.

As a member of the ABLE program advisory committee, I was impressed by the quality, caliber, and uniqueness of the applicants,” said Guy Primus, CEO of Valence, and ABLE program advisory committee member. “It was very encouraging to see both old problems examined from a fresh perspective, and emerging challenges being tackled by some of the best and brightest. I look forward to how ABLE will boost their visibility and provide the resources and relationships to help them build.

ADN’s launch of the Accelerating Black Leadership and Entrepreneurship (ABLE) program is critical and it is a step toward creating economic and growth opportunities for Black entrepreneurs in the U.S. I had the privilege of serving on the program advisory committee and being a part of the selection process of the inaugural ABLE cohort. It was amazing to see the innovation across sectors from all of the applicants. I look forward to seeing these entrepreneurs and their businesses flourish and I’m thrilled to be on this journey together with ADN.