Chief Influencer is an initiative of Social Driver and The Communications Board. Some leaders stand above their peers due to their exceptional ability to inspire and influence others. We recognize these leaders as Chief Influencers and spotlight their stories through the Chief Influencer podcast.

Recently, we had the honor of honoring three guests all with different backgrounds who shared their unique perspectives with us about the importance of connecting and empathizing with our communities. Here are key takeaways from what each Chief Influencer had to say:

Jason Trimiew serves as the Director of Global Supplier Diversity at Meta and in his episode emphasizes the importance of diversity and inclusion. In this leading role, his strategy provides businesses with the connections that they need and eliminates hurdles to increase opportunities. A big takeaway is the importance of supporting minority-owned businesses by informing them that their services are being looked for, providing quick payments, and minimizing friction through technology. This creates equity in supply chains, which is crucial for all businesses and for reaching greater overall equity in the world.

Jean-Claude Brizard is the CEO of Digital Promise, an organization aiming to shape the future of education and create equitable education systems. He claims that in order to influence people, we must meet them where they are and allow people to talk, which includes taking unfiltered questions. He gives a great example of listening to students' complaints about their school lunch and joining their lunch to hear them. One tool to achieve this level of communication is social media, he notes LinkedIn Live and Twitter Live have been a great tool for reaching the right group of people, including educators, students, and parents. As an educator himself, he hopes to create further success within our education system.

Reverend Darrell Goodwin is the Executive Conference Minister of the Southern New England Conference of the United Church of Christ. As the first openly LGBTQ Black person in his position, he strives to be confident in who he is as a key strength in fostering inclusion. He notes that it’s not only important to evaluate who we are bringing to the table and collaborating with, but also support them in their ideas. Additionally, to put yourself in conversations that go against the norm to open up both new opportunities and collaborations. Due to his focus being on inclusion, he is able to find the positive in going virtual as it includes people who weren’t in the discussion before.

Despite their different career paths and fields, these incredible individuals have all made impressive efforts to better their communities, showing that you truly can make an impact in so many different ways.

Chief Influencer is a podcast hosted by Anthony Shop that explores business leaders’ efforts to inspire, influence, and connect with their communities. These episodes, and more, can be found at Chief Influencer.