Articulated Insight – “News, Race and Culture in the Information Age”

Black Leadership Institute Series: Chicago Chapter NBMBAA

In the heart of Chicago’s business community, I found myself surrounded by an extraordinary gathering of Black brilliance,  leaders, entrepreneurs, innovators, and visionaries from the National Black MBA Association and beyond. The air buzzed with possibility, as conversations flowed about reimagining systems, building generational wealth, and owning the future. This was more than an event; it was a living blueprint for how Black excellence can move from surviving within existing structures to boldly rebuilding them on our own terms.

At the NBMBAA Chicago Chapter’s Annual Business Leadership Institute, the Entrepreneurship Master Class took a bold turn—pushing the audience to rethink what it means to be an entrepreneur in a rapidly evolving digital economy. Moderated with precision and candor, the panel featured:

• Xavier Thompson, Founder & CEO, XNY LLC
• Sherard Jones, Founder & CEO, VYY ABLE
• Sandra Finley, President, League of Black Women
• J. Vincent Williams, Executive Director, Entrepreneurial Development & Leadership Institute (EDLI)

The conversation went beyond the usual strategies for growth and funding, centering instead on how technology, intellectual property, and cultural identity intersect to define the next era of Black entrepreneurship.

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Owning Your Future: IP, Data, and the AI Challenge

Panelists made it clear: the entrepreneurs who will thrive are the ones who own their intellectual property, control their databases, and protect their proprietary information. As one example, Apple’s Private Relay was cited as a model for safeguarding data.

Sherard Jones warned that dynamic pricing—already reshaping markets—can’t be stopped, but it can be leveraged if you control the assets that feed it. The takeaway: entrepreneurs must not only create value but also lock down the mechanisms that generate it.

Artificial intelligence was another flashpoint. The panel acknowledged its potential while raising alarms about its predetermined biases. AI systems, after all, reflect the data and perspectives they are trained on—meaning bias in, bias out. The challenge becomes twofold:

1. Mitigate bias at the input stage, ensuring diverse and accurate data.
2. Interrogate outputs to spot what’s missing as well as what’s misrepresented.

“AI still needs human connection and direction,” one panelist reminded the audience. In other words, technology can amplify your influence, but only if you remain in control of the narrative and the code behind it.

The Power of Voice and Cultural Identity

Referencing remarks from Dr. Michael Eric Dyson in an earlier panel, the discussion turned toward using digital platforms to amplify our collective voice. Dyson’s challenge was clear: technology is a tool, but it’s the culture behind it that shapes real influence. “We have to elevate a culture—not just ourselves,” he said.

Sandra Finley brought a deeply personal perspective as a mother of three sons and a wife of 52 years. She resists comparing the engagement levels of Black men and women, focusing instead on building unity across gender lines. But she also issued a cultural wake-up call:

“We named ourselves—Black Power—but now we are being told to put down our color. White America never changed its identity, and it has held firm in its power. Yet we’ve gone from Colored, to Negro, to Black. We need to decide—and declare—who we are.”

Her words landed heavily in the room, a reminder that entrepreneurship is not just economic—it is cultural, political, and generational.

Philanthropy Beyond the Check

J. Vincent Williams expanded the conversation beyond profit to the role of philanthropy in sustaining entrepreneurship. Too often, philanthropy is narrowly defined as money. But in his view, it is just as much about the contribution of time, expertise, and networks resources that can be even more valuable than cash for a growing business.

This broadened definition of giving aligns with the larger theme of the panel: building an ecosystem that supports entrepreneurs at every stage, from ideation to scale, while also reinforcing cultural identity and community wealth.

Redefining Entrepreneurship for a New Era

By the end of the session, one thing was clear: the next wave of Black entrepreneurship will not be defined by access alone, but by ownership, protection, and cultural intentionality. It’s not just about starting businesses, it’s about designing enterprises that cannot be easily dismantled, co-opted, or erased.

This means:

• Controlling your data and IP to maintain independence.
• Leveraging technology without losing human oversight.
• Embedding cultural clarity into your brand and business decisions.
• Investing in one another through both capital and time.

In this vision, entrepreneurship becomes more than an individual pursuit—it becomes a collective takeover, grounded in identity, fortified by technology, and sustained through mutual support.

Pam McElvane, CEO, Author & Publisher, P&L Group

CEO | Master Coach | Board Governance Expert | Data Scientist | Strategist | Publisher

Pamela McElvane, MBA, MA, MCPC, is the CEO and founder of P&L Group, Ltd which has 3 key brands: Diversity MBA Media, 3I Research Institute & Diversity Learning Solutions, headquartered in Chicago, IL. Ms. McElvane has spent more than 25 years working with large and midsize companies providing insights and best practices, leadership and executive coaching, strategy, and organizational management.

Contact for public speaking, coaching and leadership training opportunities:

833-362-2100 ext. 700 (Main)

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