Chicago United Presents 2023 Business Leaders of Color
Corporate membership and advocacy organization highlights accomplished executives as candidates for corporate board directorships.
CHICAGO - July 17, 2023 – Chicago United presents the 2023 Business Leaders of Color, a cohort of 45 accomplished individuals ready for corporate board directorships. Chosen from an illustrious field of nominees, the selected honorees in lude a diverse array of accomplished Chicago-area business executives.
Biennially, Chicago United bestows the Business Leaders of Color (BLC) honor to showcase and support the diverse professional talent available in Chicago. Since its inception in 2003, the BLC honor has identified 470 board-ready candidates, all dispelling the myth that there are not enough qualified, visionary and talented executives of color prepared to step into corporate board directorships.
Prior Business Leaders of Color honorees include former First Lady Michelle Obama (2005); U.S. Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi (2015); Stephen Harris, President, Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Illinois (2021); Suzanne Yoon, Founder and Managing Partner of Kinzie Capital Partners (2021); Mellody Hobson, Co-CEO and President of Ariel Investments (2003); and Manuel Cuevas-Trisán, Vice President, Human Resources, Harvard University (2019).
“This year marks the 20th Anniversary of Chicago United’s Business Leaders of Color honor,” said Tiffany Hamel Johnson, Chicago United’s President and CEO. “Chicago United’s mission is to advance multiracial leadership. Our Business Leaders of Color distinction has proven that identifying and highlighting talented executives of color has a positive impact on board diversity. This recognition ensures that the pipeline remains full of future leaders so no one will ever say ‘we can’t find any.’ We are thrilled to honor these trailblazing individuals.”
Chicago United’s 2023 Business Leaders of Color
Dorothy Abreu, Senior Vice President, Public Finance, PNC
Jimmy Akintonde, President & CEO, Ujamaa Construction, Inc.
Melissa Ballate, President & Founder, Blue Daring
Kimbra Bell, MD, FACP, Medical Director, Attending Physician and Assistant Professor, Northwestern Medicine
Hardik Bhatt, CEO, SDI Presence LLC
Robert Blackwell, Jr., Founder & Chairman, Killerspin & EKI-Digital
Rosa Botello, Director, Supplier Diversity & Sustainability, Beam Suntory
Enrique Carrillo, Senior Vice President, Strategic Growth, Diversified Manufacturing, Consumer Products, Retail, and Telecom, WNS
Marta Cerda, CEO, ASI, Inc.
Amirh Collis, Trust Solutions Partner, PwC LLP
Wendell Dallas, President and CEO, Nicor Gas
Rodrigo Garcia, Global Chief Financial Officer & U.S. President, Talipot*Holdings
Corliss V. Garner, Chief Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer, Old National Bank
Kimberley Goode, Chief Communications & Social Impact Officer, BMO
Donna Grant Dorsey, Executive Vice President, Chief People & Culture Officer, Navistar, Inc.
Cheryl F. Green, Ph.D., President, Governors State University
Michael T. Harris II, President, Beverly Bank & Trust Company N.A. (Wintrust)
Sheri B. Hawkins, Executive Vice President & Global Head of Product, Northern Trust Asset Management
Darrell Higueros, CEO, Next Generation, Inc.
Torrence Hinton, President, Peoples Gas and North Shore Gas
Sharon A. Hwang, Shareholder, McAndrews, Held & Malloy, Ltd.
Valarie King-Bailey, Founder & CEO, OnShore Technology Group, Inc.
Laritza Lopez, President, Purple Group
Talvis Love, Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer, Baxter International Inc.
Erica Marquez Avitia, COO, Old Mission Holdings LLC
Robert McGhee, Senior Vice President, Community Impact Territory Manager, Fifth Third Bank
Kimberly D. Moore, President & Founder, KDM Engineering, LLC
Sandeep Nain, President, SNtial Technologies, Inc.
Clemente Nicado, Publisher & Founder, Negocios Now
Brian Ortiz, Founder & CEO, Trinidad Construction, LLC
Sam Pambah, Principal, Economic & Valuation Services, KPMG LLP
David Perez, Senior Vice President-Operations, ComEd, an Exelon Company
Debra Ponce de Leon, Small Business Credit Risk Executive, Bank of America
Arun Prasad, Chief Strategy Officer, HCSC and President, Diversified Businesses
Gil Quiniones, CEO, ComEd, an Exelon Company
Ramkumar Ramanan, Partner, EY Audit Growth Leader for Illinois & EY Entrepreneur Of The Year Midwest Program Director, EY
Andrea Sáenz, President & CEO, Chicago Community Trust
Mary Smith, Vice Chair, VENG Group
Sreelatha Surendranathan, Senior Vice President, Chief Digital Officer, UL Solutions
Byron F. Taylor, Partner, Member of the Executive Committee, Co-Leader of Sidley’s Environmental Practice, Sidley Austin LLP
Renee Togher, CEO & President, Azteca Foods, Inc.
Harry E. Wilkins, III, MD, President & CEO, Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network
Maria Elvira Wynne, Independent Director, Federal Home Loan Bank of Chicago
Doyoung “Do” Yong, Global Employer Service Tax Leader, Deloitte
Arthur Zayas Miller, CEO & President, MZI Group, Inc.
The 2023 Business Leaders of Color will be presented during Chicago United’s Bridge Awards Celebration: Elevating Equity, taking place Thursday, November 16, from 5:30-9:00 PM at the Marriott Marquis Chicago. For additional information, visit https://www.chicago-united.org/bridgeawards.
About Chicago United
Chicago United is a corporate membership organization, advocate, and thought leader committed to advancing multiracial leadership in corporate governance, executive level management and in minority business partnerships. Our vision is to transform the Chicago region into the most inclusive business ecosystem in the nation. Founded in 1968, the organization engages the top publicly and privately held corporations in leading talent management and inclusive diversity practices. Chicago United’s signature programs include the Business Leaders of Color honor and publication, showcasing a diverse pool of corporate board of director candidates; the Minority Business Partnership Program featuring the Five Forward Initiative™, designed to invigorate job creation in communities of color by increasing the scale of Minority Business Enterprises in the Chicago region; Inside Inclusion featuring the Corporate Diversity Profile; and the Corporate Inclusion Institute (CII), the first-ever citywide business talent development program. For more information, visit www.chicago-united.org.