Kenneth Ebie heads Black Entrepreneurs NYC
By Nelson A. King
NYC Department of Small
Business Services (SBS) Commissioner,
Jonnel Doris has
announced the appointment of
Kenneth Ebie as the inaugural
executive director and chief
development officer of Black
Entrepreneurs NYC (BE NYC).
In this role, Doris said Ebie
will work to advance Black
entrepreneurship by increasing
the number of Black-owned
businesses in New York City
and supporting their growth
through development, management
and fundraising of key
BE NYC programs and partnerships.
“Ebie’s role will also ensure
Black businesses mitigate the
impacts of COVID-19 as they
recover from the pandemic,”
Doris said.
An entrepreneur himself,
Ebie is the founder and principal
of Ebie Strategies LLC,
a boutique social impact and
public affairs firm that advises
corporate, non-profit and individual
clients on human capital,
social impact and publicprivate
partnerships.
With prior experience in law,
politics, city government and
public affairs, Doris said Ebie
brings a track record of success
in driving innovative social
impact initiatives at the highest
levels of government, entertainment,
and philanthropy.
“Black and minority-owned
businesses are the backbone of
NYC’s economy and are the
future of this nation’s economic
landscape,” said Doris. “Ensuring
that these business owners
have a constant support
mechanism is my highest priority.
Having Ken join our team
will not only give NYC’s Blackowned
businesses the resources
they need, but it will also allow
us to think more creatively and
uniquely to address their concerns.”
“This crisis has revealed the
need for a new vision to address
the broader struggle for racial
justice,” said J. Phillip Thompson,
deputy mayor for Strategic
Policy Initiatives and co-chair
of the Racial Inclusion and
Equity Taskforce. “We look forward
to Ken’s leadership at BE
NYC, as he begins the critical
work of ensuring that the Black
business community receives
the relief they need to grow and
thrive.”
Caribbean Life, D 28 ECEMBER 18-24, 2020 BQ
Ebie said he was “excited
to return to city government
under the leadership of Commissioner
Doris to connect
entrepreneurs with the information
and resources they need
to survive and thrive.
“By supporting economic
mobility and self-sufficiency in
the Black community, we will
help drive the economic recovery
of our great city,” he added.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic,
SBS said Black-owned
businesses closed twice as frequently
as their white counterparts.
To help address these concerns,
the city announced new
commitments in August, which
aim to increase the number of
Black-owned businesses in all
five boroughs.
The commitments were
released in conjunction with
SBS’ landmark report, Advancing
Black Entrepreneurship in
New York City, which acts as a
blueprint for advancing Black
entrepreneurship and highlights
the challenges this community
faces when starting and
growing their businesses.
Ebie previously worked as a
director at The Raben Group, a
national strategic communications
and public affairs firm.
Prior to that, he served in
New York city government as
deputy general counsel and
director of External Affairs at
the NYC Mayor’s Office of Media
and Entertainment (MOME),
directing legislative affairs and
establishing strategic partnerships,
and previously as special
counsel at the NYC Department
of Consumer and Worker Protection.
Kenneth Ebie, executive director of Black Entrepreneurs
NYC. James Kegley
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