Massachusetts and San Francisco Business Leaders Discuss Inclusiveness and Diversity
To celebrate Pride Month, the U.S. Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Massachusetts and San Francisco District Offices hosted a webinar last week to tout its resources and provide a platform for business leaders tell their stories. Two groups of panelists shared their successes and struggles and offered advice for the LGBTQIA+ community.
Business Resources Panelists
Grace Moreno
Be proud of who you are; it is your business advantage.
Organization/Title: Executive director of the Massachusetts LGBT Chamber of Commerce
Background: Moreno is an experienced executive, startup nurturer, and entrepreneur. She has over two decades of experience leading nonprofit organizations. Additionally, she has made contributions to politics, housing, health, and civic education. Moreno has also served as president of community programs at The Community Builders, Inc. and vice president of operations and finance at the Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the U.S. Senate.
How the Organization Helps the LGBTQIA+ Community: The Massachusetts LGBT Chamber of Commerce, which was established after former Gov. Charlie Baker signed Executive Order 565 to allow LGBT businesses to be in the Supplier Diversity Program, fosters relationships between LGBT-owned and ally-owned businesses in the Commonwealth. “According to national data, there are 30,000 LGBT-owned businesses in New England, and we are determined to find them,” Moreno said. She considers the Chamber to be unique because it is more of a community development organization that has an extensive network of entrepreneurs.
Advice for LGBT Entrepreneurs: She believes that being your authentic self is a business strength because it makes you better at what you do, which will drive others to your product or service. “Be proud of who you are; it is your business advantage, and leverage it to make an impact across the entire portfolio of your work.”
Paulette Piñero
I always encourage entrepreneurs from underestimated communities to ask the additional question(s): what is your equity statement? How do you embed equity in your programming?
Organization/Title: Business development consultant for the Center for Women & Enterprise in Massachusetts
Background: As a member of the LGBTQIA+ community, she is passionate about helping these individuals achieve their dreams. She is also a member of the Massachusetts LGBT Chamber of Commerce.
How the Organization Helps the LGBTQIA+ Community: The center is a microlending organization that has helped over 65,000 women-identifying entrepreneurs around New England. It offers one-on-one consultations, special events and partners with the entrepreneurial ecosystem in New England. All staff and consultants are trained in anti-racism business development, feminist business foundations, and equity-centered business practices.
Advice for LGBT Entrepreneurs: She urges LGBT entrepreneurs to work with organizations that prioritize equity. “I always encourage entrepreneurs from underestimated communities to ask the additional question(s): what is your equity statement? How do you embed equity in your programming?” Everyone they work with should be representative of their beliefs, in her view.
Brisia Rodriguez
By offering a safe and inclusive environment, we definitely aim to help the LGBTQ+ entrepreneurs thrive and succeed.
Organization/Title: Program manager at the Renaissance Entrepreneurship Center in the San Francisco Bay Area
Background: As a former entrepreneur, Rodriguez understands the struggles of getting a business off the ground.
How the Organization Helps the LGBTQIA+ Community: She knows that underserved communities still face barriers to entrepreneurship. “Renaissance sets out to bridge that gap and level the playing field by offering a wide range of programs and services,” she said. Renaissance offers networking opportunities and partners with The Transgender District, which has an entrepreneurship accelerator program for transgender and queer People of Color. “By offering a safe and inclusive environment, we definitely aim to help the LGBTQ+ entrepreneurs thrive and succeed.”
Advice for LGBT Entrepreneurs: Rodriguez believes that they should seek out mentors who understand their unique experiences, take advantage of SBA resources and more.
Small Business Panelists
Mayrena Guerrero
You want to include as many different identities as you can as part of your team and as part of the different groups providing services.
Title/Company: Founder and CEO of Colorful Resilience LLC
Founded: 2022; based in West Springfield, Mass.
Background: Guerrero is originally from Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. She moved to the U.S. in 2005 to pursue an advanced degree. The licensed mental health counselor has a BA in Psychology from Universidad Católica Santo Domingo and an MS in mental health counseling from Fitchburg State University.
Challenges and Successes: Colorful Resilience LLC is a certified LGBT-owned business and member of the Massachusetts LGBT Chamber of Commerce. Guerrero was invited to participate in the Chamber of Commerce’s Business Accelerator Program. She knows that the power of the networking that the Chamber can do can’t be underestimated. She never ran a business or managed others before, so she had to discover herself as an entrepreneur. Additionally, it was difficult to secure capital as a startup.
SBA Resources Utilized: One of the first ways that her company benefited from the SBA was by being put in contact with one of its lenders, Common Capital. She was able to get two loans: a microloan and a 7(a) loan, totaling $300,000. Not only did this help her start the business, but she was then introduced to a Massachusetts LGBTQ Chamber of Commerce representative.
How the Business Specifically Assists LGBTQIA+ Individuals: Colorful Resilience LLC offers outpatient mental health services in West Springfield, Mass., to primarily BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, first-generation, and immigrant individuals. All clinicians are fully licensed in the state of Massachusetts and are invested in the communities that they serve. Since opening for business, Guerrero is happy that the response has been positive.
Recommendations for Inclusivity: She believes in the importance of intersectionality. “You want to include as many different identities as you can as part of your team and as part of the different groups providing services.”
How the Pandemic Impacted Business: She noted that the Covid-19 pandemic and the killing of George Floyd had driven people to her business. While she doesn’t want to see others struggle, she’s excited to see the prioritization of mental health.
Helen Russell
I want to thank everybody who is part of the SBA because I can’t tell you how many resources that we have used over the past 28 years.
Title/Company: Co-founder and executive chair for Equator Coffees
Founded: 1995; based in Northern California
Background: She is a passionate entrepreneur who supports underrepresented communities.
Challenges and Successes: Equator Coffees is the first LGBT-certified business in the history of the SBA program to win Small Business of the Year (2016) for the State of California. At one time, there were very few female coffee roasters, and Russell is proud to have been part of that change over the past two decades.
SBA Resources Utilized: Over the past two decades, she has taken full advantage of the SBA’s resources, including the 504 loan to purchase a roasting facility, which was recently paid off as part of her retirement plan. She has also had SCORE mentors.
How the Business Specifically Assists LGBTQIA+ Individuals: Her employees are encouraged to bring their whole selves to work, and gender identity and orientation are never assumed. There are also mandatory DEI courses and a library of extra resources that teams have a financial incentive to use.
Recommendations for Inclusivity: Authenticity is key. “When you bring your authentic self to your business and you have an amazing product, you’ll have people be successful with your product.”
How the Pandemic Impacted Business: In March 2020, Equator Coffees lost $7 million when all of its technology customers shut down. This caused the company to focus on a mobile app and begin selling individual bags of coffee to people’s homes. Grocery stores – and retail generally – also became a big priority.
Sarah Scala
Hire LGBTQ employees; hire businesses that are certified for supplier diversity; have policies that provide inclusion for insurance and benefits.
Title/Company: CEO, president, founder, and principal consultant of Sarah Scala Consulting, which provides leadership development, executive coaching, LGBTQIA+ leadership coaching, team development solutions, and more
Founded: 2012; based in Boston, Mass.
Background: As an openly bisexual woman, Scala is passionate about helping other LGBTQIA+ individuals.
Challenges and Successes: Sarah Scala Consulting is certified by the National LGBTQ Chamber of Commerce (NGLCC) as an LGBT Business Enterprise (LGBTBE) and a Women-Owned Small Business. The company focuses on working with businesses that support inclusion and belonging. When she started the business, Scala had a lot of questions like how to get an employer ID number and what kind of business she wanted it to become. Later on, it was a challenge if she wanted to come out as an LGBT company. Not only did Scala overcome these difficulties, but her business won the SBA’s 2023 Microenterprise of the Year for Massachusetts.
SBA Resources Utilized: Since the first day that Scala opened her business, she has reached out to SCORE. “SCORE provides mentors and counselors in all 50 states, and I’ve had over 10 mentors in the past decade,” she explained. Currently, Scala has four counselors: one legal, one sales, one accounting, and one for marketing.
How the Business Specifically Assists LGBTQIA+ Individuals: She does a lot of work in the diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB) space, teaching, coaching and speaking.
Recommendations for Inclusivity: “Hire LGBTQ employees; hire businesses that are certified for supplier diversity; have policies that provide inclusion for insurance and benefits,” Scala said. She added that businesses can also make bathrooms gender-neutral and include LGBT people on their boards. She also believes that supporting this community should go beyond Pride Month.
How the Pandemic Impacted Business: She was supported by the Massachusetts LGBTQ Chamber of Commerce when applying for – and ultimately receiving – two grants from the Massachusetts Growth Capital Corporation (MGCC). These credits helped her hire Tomo360, a Massachusetts-based LGBTQ-certified digital marketing company.
April Starlight
Make it clear that you welcome LGBT people, People of Color, and women.
Title/Company: Founder and CEO of Tangerine Search, a woman- and LGBT-owned recruiting firm
Founded: 2019; based in Oakland, Calif.
Background: Starlight has over a decade of technical recruiting experience and works with her team to deliver top, diverse candidates to clients. She and her wife are supportive of LGBT-owned businesses.
Challenges and Successes: Tangerine Search is LGBT-certified through the NGLCC. Like many business owners, she had questions about accounting, SEO, and more in the beginning.
SBA Resources Utilized: She has learned more about resources that she previously didn’t take advantage of and used the SBA website.
How the Business Specifically Assists LGBTQIA+ Individuals: She works with businesses looking to improve their DEI goals and assists LGBT-identified individuals in finding employment. “These are folks who, a lot of times, face discrimination in the workplace and in seeking new employment,” she added. “We’ve just had an absolute explosion of referrals of folks who are coming to us looking for jobs.”
Recommendations for Inclusivity: Starlight urges entrepreneurs to “make it clear that you welcome LGBT people, people of color, and women.”
How the Pandemic Impacted Business: The Covid-19 pandemic happened about four months after Starlight opened for business. While hiring slowed and the California unemployment system was crashing, she saw the largest hiring frenzy she had seen in her career a year later. Her marketing is mainly digital, and she has spent a lot of time on LinkedIn. An LGBT business helped with Tangerine Search’s website. She believes that having a solid digital footprint is essential, and she’s enjoyed networking in various associations as part of the NGLCC.
Resources for LGBTQIA+ Entrepreneurs
To contact the Massachusetts District Offices (Boston and Springfield) and learn more,
- Visit its website
- Follow on social media
- Email Caroline Williams, outreach and marketing specialist
Its resource partners include:
- Boston SCORE
- Massachusetts Small Business Development Center
- Veteran Business Outreach Center
- Mass Export Center
- Mass Procurement Technical Assistance Center
For more information about the San Francisco District Office,
- Visit its website
- Follow on social media
- Email Maria Pineda, outreach and marketing specialist
Resource partners to look at include:
- SCORE
- Small Business Development Centers
- Veterans Business Outreach Centers
- Renaissance’s Women’s Business Center (San Francisco)
- Women’s Business Centers
- NORCAL APEX ACCELERATOR
Lender and loan tools: