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Strategies and Celebrations for LGBT Business Owners

A Panel Discussion

Hear from LGBT business owners on strategies for moving your business forward, recent successes, and get specifics about the benefits of becoming an LGBTBE certified business.

Hear from LGBT business owners in this virtual program on strategies for moving your business forward in the current business climate, recent successes, and to learn specifics about the benefits of becoming an LGBTBE certified business. For aspiring entrepreneurs and business owners alike. Presented on Zoom in partnership with the Washtenaw Community College Entrepreneurship Center.

PRESENTERS:

  Kirsten Ussery, Moderator

Kirsten Ussery started her career with the Charlotte Chamber of Commerce and Duke Energy. She then lived and worked for 20 years in Detroit, MI directing internal and external communication activities for C-Suite executives in statewide government and private global companies. She partnered with Erika Boyd to co-create the Detroit Vegan Soul restaurant brand in 2012 (www.detroitvegansoul.com). The pair own and operate two restaurants and have employed up to 40 people including second chance citizens, managers, and interns.

Ussery has been a speaker on various panels about entrepreneurship including the Small Giants Conference, Net Impact Food Panel and JPMorgan Chase’s CityLab Detroit Global Summit. She is a graduate of the  Goldman Sachs 10K Small Business Program. With over 20 years combined experience in both communication/public relations and the food industry, Ussery has a proven track record in research, management,  operations, communications, and marketing.

Kevin Terrell Heard, Presenter

Kevin Terrell Heard works for Gannett | USA Today Network as the Diversity & Engagement Program Manager where he oversees Gannett’s Inclusion, Diversity and Equity initiatives as it pertains to their Employee Resource Groups and social campaigns. He is a 2010 graduate of Clark Atlanta University (CAU), where he majored in Mass Media Arts with a concentration in Public Relations. In 2018, Heard received his MBA from Walsh College. Heard also founded the Detroit Regional LGBT Chamber of Commerce, and was honored as Crain’s Detroit Twenty in their 20’s as part of that work with the Chamber.  He leads the Pride Forward USA Today Network’s LGBTQ Employee Resource Group and planned the May 2021: COLOURS Conference and Pride Awards, the largest LGBT Business and Diversity conference in Michigan, which featured President of the Human Rights Campaign, Alphonso David, and Michigan’s Attorney General Dana Nessel.

Bill Calhoun, Presenter

Bill Calhoun is The Managing Director and Owner of iCode Innovation, an NGLCC (LGBT) Certified - Ann Arbor based - Technology and Talent Management company. He has been in the Technology and Recruiting industry for 5 years with a background in Architecture and Construction. Bill is a strong advocate for Diversity in the workforce and is on the Board of Directors for The Detroit Regional LGBT Chamber of Commerce - where he chairs the Small Business Development Committee.

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