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In 2018, Ryann Richardson made history, becoming the 50th Anniversary Miss Black America. Before that, the tech marketer-turned-founder and Diversity & Inclusion advocate spent 10 years building brands and culture for companies spanning early-stage start-ups (Victor) to billion-dollar "unicorns" (Uber) to the Fortune 500 (T-Mobile/Deutsche Telekom). Her work earned her a spot as the youngest honoree on Savoy Magazine’s list of Most Influential Black Executives in Corporate America and set her on the path to discovering her unique purpose as a champion for underrepresented voices. Now, in her second act as a founder, her company Ellington Lafayette Co. is building a new type of tech incubator, focusing exclusively on start-ups that drive social equity for women and communities of color. Ryann travels the US as a Keynote Speaker giving talks “Authenticity and Assimilation”, “Taking Up Space as Women and POC” and “The Politics of Race, Beauty, and Power.”
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In her closing keynote at RubyConf 2020, Ryann Richardson, the 50th Anniversary Miss Black America, discussed the role of technology in innovation and its potential to drive social equity. With a background in tech marketing and entrepreneurship, she advocates for developing products that not only serve the privileged but also address the needs of marginalized communities. Key points she discussed include: - **Importance of Innovation:** Ryann emphasizes that the products of innovation should focus on their real-world impact rather than merely the technological advancements themselves. She references the Model T as a historical example of innovation that fundamentally changed American society. - **Tech Ecosystem Dynamics:** She highlights that the tech industry is incredibly powerful but has failed to sufficiently include and address marginalized communities in its innovations. - **Responsibility of Tech Leaders:** Ryann asserts that leaders in the tech industry must use their platforms and power responsibly to drive social change, stating that corporate culture often perpetuates marginalization. - **Challenges and Opportunities in 2020:** She notes that the disparities highlighted during the pandemic create opportunities for tech innovators to design solutions for systemic inequities that affect communities of color. - **Engaging Community Perspectives:** Ryann urges developers to engage diverse perspectives when creating products to avoid blind spots that arise from homogenous teams. Throughout the talk, she calls for actionable change in tech, encouraging attendees to build solutions focused on social, economic, and political equity. As a takeaway, she challenges the audience to recognize their role in shaping the tech landscape to facilitate an equitable future, likening their potential impact to that of historical innovations like the Model T.
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