Why are "Big 3" Gatekeepers Still Narrating the Story of Big Tech and Big Business?
Image from Unsplash by Christina Wocintechchat
A recent LinkedIn post by Daniel Smith, MBA, founder of Keepingly.io inspired me to share more of the research I do. In this article “Why are "Big 3" Gatekeepers Still Narrating the Story of Big Tech and Big Business?” I explore Pitchbook’s list of 66 Black Founders and poke holes in the “win.”
Still, Pitchbook is right. The wins are great—highlighting these 66 trailblazers. And, the study on DEI in VCs is awful (only 3% of investments going to Black founders).
This dichotomy is always present in workplace and economic data: good news and progress is too slow.
And yet, that’s not what I get hung up on. For me it’s hard to get around those who are telling these stories—who gets to craft the story of The Economy?
Every big industry diversity audit is the same. Same biased methodology, same biased surveys, same empty solves and targets with zero accountability. The same 1% white men being given more money to white wash, green wash, and control the narrative, while continuing to control 99% of the wealth in the U.S.
I firmly believe if we want to shift wealth in America and have more diverse founders we cannot have the same people writing about and researching the economy, business, and the “Future of Work.” This is what fuels me to want to change management consulting and why I started Collective Consulting.
The same old (white men) business leaders are writing our future. If we keep listening to them, well...as my dad's business card once said:
"If you always do what you always did, you'll always get what you always got."
There are plenty of Black founders for VCs to fund. There are plenty of "diverse" led startups outside of Silicon Valley. There are more than enough business experts outside of Wall Street to hire and publish.
New voices will lead to new ventures grounded in authenticity, ethical policies and processes, and accepting cultures intentionally building diverse teams.
Pass the mic and pay up.
Read the full LinkedIn article here.
