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Bostonchamber
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  • Events
        • Events

          • Overview
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          • Chamber Awards
          • New Chamber Event Series
        • ...
          Premier Event
          2025 Annual Meeting

          Join us for our highly anticipated Annual Meeting, Greater Boston's top business convening of the year.

          05/20/2025

          4:30pm - 8:00pm

          Omni Boston Hotel

          arrow-go
          Read More
        • ...
          Pacesetters
          Doing Business with Columbia Construction

          This virtual event gives small business owners the chance to hear directly from procurement officers about opportunities to work with them.

          05/29/2025

          12:00pm - 1:00pm

          Virtual

          arrow-go
          Read More
        • ...
          City Awake
          Art of Connection: An Evening at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

          Join us for an exclusive networking event at the Museum of Fine Arts and enjoy self-guided tours of John Wilson and Van Gogh, showcasing the deep bond of family, friendship, and community.

          06/05/2025

          5:30pm - 8:30pm

          Museum of Fine Arts

          arrow-go
          Read More
  • Learning & Development
        • Learning & Development

          • Overview
          • Call for Nominations
          • Insights
        • Transformational DEI Certificate

          This program is in redevelopment. Click this page for DEI resources.

          Read More
          Women’s Leadership Program

          Our Women’s Leadership Program enables you to take your leadership to the next level by arming you with the most in-demand leadership toolkit.

          Read More
          Boston’s Future Leaders

          Our Boston’s Future Leaders (BFL) program provides emerging leaders with a socially conscious and civically engaged leadership toolkit, as well as the opportunity to apply their knowledge through experiential assignments.

          Read More
          Authentic Professionalism for Early Career Professionals

          Join us on June 12 for a highly interactive virtual workshop with Strategic Career & Leadership Coach Carole-Ann Penney.

          Read More
  • Economic Inclusion
        • Economic Inclusion

          • Overview
          • Pacesetters
          • Resources
        • ...
          Economic Inclusion
          City Awake

          City Awake empowers young professionals in a variety of ways that encourages these rising leaders to stay invested in the region’s future success.

          arrow-go
          Read More
        • ...
          Economic Inclusion
          Pacesetters

          We are developing an ecosystem of corporations and partners with the influence and buying power to transform economic inclusion for minority business enterprises (MBEs).

          arrow-go
          Read More
        • ...
          Small Business
          Small Business

          Small businesses are the backbone of the Boston economy. Learn more about the resources available through the Chamber.

          arrow-go
          Read More
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        • GET INVOLVED IN OUR POLICY FOCUS AREAS

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          Read More
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          Read More
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          Read More
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          Read More
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          Read More
          Transportation
          Read More
  • Our Networks
        • GBCC’s Networks

          • Overview
        • OUR NETWORKS

          Small Business

          Small businesses are the backbone of the Boston economy. Learn more about the resources available through the Chamber.

          Read More
          City Awake

          City Awake empowers young professionals in a variety of ways that encourages these rising leaders to stay invested in the region’s future success.

          Read More
          BIMA

          BIMA (the Boston Interactive Media Association) serves a vibrant community of like-minded professionals from agencies, brands, publishers, and ad-tech companies with business interests in the New England market.

          Read More
          Women’s Network

          For over 30 years, the Chamber’s Women’s Network has connected female professionals of all background and career levels. Today, our Women’s Network is the largest in New England, strengthening the professional networks of women each year.

          Read More
          Massachusetts Apprentice Network

          The Massachusetts Apprentice Network convenes employers, training providers, and talent sources interested in developing and implementing apprenticeship programs in occupations across industries and statewide in fields such as tech, advanced manufacturing, healthcare, financial services, and more.

          Read More
          Pacesetters

          We are developing an ecosystem of corporations and partners with the influence and buying power to transform economic inclusion for minority business enterprises (MBEs).

          Read More
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Impact and Community: Bostons Black Women Leading Business Forward

August 17, 2021

Below we highlight some of the inspiring Black women and their successful businesses that are part of our Chamber community. Read on to learn more about them and join us in celebrating and supporting them!

 

Tracy Skelly is the Founder of The Little Cocoa Bean Company

,

a baby and toddler care and feeding company. Tracy’s company aims to provide food, recipes, tutorials and supplies to encourage all parents to increase their child’s consumption of healthy and diverse meals during the first few years of life. 

 

Cheryl Hanes is the Co-Founder of Culture Solutions, a DEI Consulting Firm that is committed to partnering with organizations to ensure their success in the areas of DEI recruitment and retention. Cheryl has over 25 plus years of experience in strategic leading, talent development and cultural initiatives. Cheryl’s professional passion is most closely aligned with her role as an accountability partner and trusted advisor to C-Suite leaders and high impact leadership talent.

 

 

Marianne Lancaster is the Founder of Lancaster Packaging, Inc., a wholesale distributor of packaging and industrial supplies. Marianne started the company from her home, and now the company resides in a 17,000 square foot facility located in Hudson, MA. Marianne is devoted to developing woman and minority owned businesses across the U.S, and seeking out diverse suppliers to work with.

 

 

Anna Foster is the Founder and CEO of A Maven’s World Lifestyle Brand and co-founder at Culture Solutions. She also created the annual A Maven’s World Women’s Conference, that features popular workshops like “Creating Your Brand” and “Mindfulness for Entrepreneurs” to develop successful brands for professionals. For her work, Anna has received many awards and recognitions, including the Ignatius Foundation Sapphire Award.  

JocCole JC Burton, LEED AP BD+C, is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Maven Construction, the full service general contracting firm under the Woodline Solutions umbrella. Maven Construction, a women-owned Boston, Massachusetts based company provides full service general construction management, energy solution and energy retrofits in the built environment. Over her 20+ year career, JocCole has acquired invaluable expertise from the most competitive general contractors where she has completed more than 65 projects with more than a billion dollars of construction.

 

 

Teresa Thompson Maynard is a self-taught baker. Her sculpting skills transferred over smoothly, from molding clay to molding cakes. Teresa left a position at Harvard University, in 2016, to pursue her passion for baking and decorating. Today, Teresa owns Sweet Teez Bakery and produces delicious cakes, cupcakes, brownies and pies for loyal customers and corporate accounts such as Whole Foods, Santander and Babson College.

 

 

Sheena Collier is a superconnector, convener, and strategic planner. As the Founder and CEO of The Collier Connection (TCC), Sheena is designing a portfolio of solutions that disrupt the ways that Black professionals seek information, access, and belonging in cities. Building community has also become a personal and professional mission for Sheena, and last year she founded Boston While Black, a membership network for Black professionals, entrepreneurs, and students who are seeking connection and community.

 

 

 

AJ Williams is a creative visionary with over 25 years of experience. She is the Founder, Creative Director and Event Designer of AJ Events.  She has been named in BizBash, “Top Event Producers of the Year”, The BizBash 500 Most Influential Event Professionals, Boston Business Journal’s “Areas Top Meeting and Event Planning Companies” list every year since 2003, and Boston Herald’s top 10 event planners. 

 

 

 

Donna Latson Gittens will give you MORE – advertising that is! Donna is an insightful leader who has been steering the ship at MORE Advertising Agency since 1997. MORE has designed over 300 campaigns to influence attitudes and change behaviors on topics such as smoking, substance abuse, HIV prevention and diversity in the workplace. Donna has received numerous awards and honors including the Pinnacle Award for Achievement in Entrepreneurship presented by the Women’s Network of the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce.  

 

 

Denise Kaigler is an award-winning digital marketer, former C-suite executive, and co-founder of Black Professionals Month. Denise is also the author of, “Forty Dollars and a Brand: How to Overcome Challenges, Defy the Odds and Live Your Awesomeness.” Today, Denise runs MDK Brand Management which specializes in communications and branding strategies. MDK has worked with multi-billion-dollar companies such as Reebok, adidas Group, Nintendo and Boston Scientific. 

 

 

Dr. Atyia Martin is the CEO and Founder of All Aces, Inc., an alternative to traditional diversity, equity, and inclusion consulting firms. The firm’s top mission is to disrupt oppression. Dr. Martin has over 20 years of experience applying the principles of racial equity and social justice during her career in resilience, emergency management, public health, and intelligence. Dr. Martin is published in scholarly journals and is the author of “We Are the Question + the Answer”.  

 

 

 

 

Colette Phillips has been a leader in diversity marketing for over 30 years and remains One of Boston’s top pioneers. Colette’s company, Colette Phillips Communications, helps clients enhance their brand awareness, build equity, and increase their bottom line through diversity marketing and communications, public relations, and inclusion and multicultural marketing.

 

 

 

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