When a Harvard Alum Drives Diversity and Inclusion in Angel Investments with Jill Johnson

Jill Johnson is the Co-founder/CEO of the Institute for Entrepreneurial Leadership (IFEL). Most recently, Jill conceived and launched the Women of Color Connecting initiative to change the way we think about building the capacity of Women of Color entrepreneurs for the grow-scale-exit trajectory. She is also spearheading The Making of Black Angels movement to drive diversity and inclusion within the angel investing sector. She has over 30 years of experience as a business strategist. She is a small business champion with extensive experience in program development, business plan writing, and pitch coaching. In her capacity as CEO of the Institute for Entrepreneurial Leadership, Ms. Johnson is responsible for the strategic direction of the organization and capacity building. She is especially focused on creating earned revenue opportunities and strategic partnerships. She has led the organization in successfully winning contracts with the New Jersey Department of Labor, the Newark Urban Enterprise Zone, Rutgers Center for Urban Entrepreneurship and Economic Development, and Greater Newark LISC to provide entrepreneurial training and support services.  Ms. Johnson is a member of the National Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation (NCEI) Entrepreneurship Council and the Excelsior Growth Fund Advisory Board. In the past, she served on the Red Tape Commission created by New York City Comptroller Scott Stringer and was an appointee of Mayor Cory Booker to the Board of Trustees of the Newark Public Library. She was also a co-chair of the South Orange Main Street Economic Development Committee.  Ms. Johnson has a B.A. in economics from Harvard University and is married with four amazing sons. In this episode: Jill Johnson is the daughter of entrepreneurial parents who devoted their energy to running a successful small business, but, as people of color, lacked  access to the networks that lead to capital.  Jill's perspectives changed when she went to Harvard and on to Goldman Sachs and began to see the networks in action. Skills alone were insufficient without the right contacts. As co-founder and CEO of the Institute for Entrepreneurial Leadership (IFEL), Jill fosters environments that connect minority and women small business owners with the investors and opportunities that were not previously accessible to them.