Casey Gerald
Author of There Will Be No Miracles Here
Porter Braswell
Executive Chairman and co-founder of Jopwell and author of Let Them See You
“The power of diversity is that people can bring their perspectives and backgrounds to the table and drive innovation.”
Photo Credit: Jopwell
Porter Braswell is the co-founder and Executive Chairman of Jopwell, a leading HR tech platform helping diverse students and professionals unlock opportunities for career advancement. A diversity expert, Braswell advises hundreds of America’s leading companies on how to achieve a more representative workplace, while also creating professional opportunities for Jopwell’s community.
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About Porter Braswell
Porter Braswell is the Founder and CEO of 2045 Studio – a workforce development platform that supports companies in building inclusive leaders. In 2024, Fast Company recognized it on their “World Changing Ideas” list. 2045 Studio was also invited to be a Technology Pioneer and joined the World Economic Forum. Porter is also the Founder of JodieAI – a generative AI platform that combines AI with an Expert Network to support companies in their transition from making DEI a siloed experience to a distributed experience.
Braswell is also the co-founder and Executive Chairman of Jopwell (acquired by True Search, Spring ’23), an HR tech platform that helps diverse students and professionals unlock opportunities for career advancement. Under Braswell’s leadership, Jopwell has formed partnerships with more than 400 of America’s leading companies and has facilitated tens of thousands of connections between the Jopwell community members and its clients. The company has received many awards, including Entrepreneur Magazine‘s “100 Most Brilliant Ideas,” Fast Company‘s “World’s Most Innovative Companies,” and Business Insider‘s “One of The Hottest NYC Companies to Watch.” In 2021, Jopwell was invited to be a Technology Pioneer and joined the World Economic Forum.
A dynamic and engaging speaker, Porter Braswell takes diversity beyond a buzzword to show audiences of professionals, hiring managers, and corporations across all industries effective ways to nurture inclusivity and recognize and maximize the unique advantages of a diverse workforce. Braswell’s talks draw on his experiences as co-founder of Jopwell and JodieAI to inspire the next generation of entrepreneurs and help established organizations become champions for diversity.
Porter Braswell has received numerous awards for his thought leadership, including Fast Company‘s “100 Most Creative People In Business,” Inc. Magazine‘s “30 Under 30,” Crain’s “40 Under 40,” Vanity Fair‘s “Future Innovators Index,” Adweek‘s “Young Influentials,” Ernst & Young’s “Entrepreneur of the Year New York Winner and National Finalist,” LinkedIn’s “Next Wave, Top Professionals Under 35,” and LinkedIn’s “Top Voices.”
Porter is also the host of the Harvard Business Review podcast Race at Work with Porter Braswell, where he explores how to talk about race at work with senior executives, influencers, and academics. He is also the author of Let Them See You, published by Penguin Random House in 2019.
Beginning in 2021, Porter became a Trustee of the Lawrenceville School. Porter also sits on the board of DREAM Charter School. He started his career at Goldman Sachs on the foreign exchange desk after graduating from Yale in 2011, where he was a four-year member of the men’s varsity basketball team.
Download the Company Reads discussion guide for Let Them See You.
Contact us for more information about booking Porter Braswell for your next event.
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Speaking Topics
Leading the Change: A Proactive Approach to Building a More Diverse and Inclusive Workforce
Speaking to both professionals of color and champions of diversity more broadly, Porter Braswell discusses some of the common challenges faced by companies trying to diversify. Both informative and action-oriented, Braswell's presentation brims with tips for steps that both employers and employees can take to make their workplace more representative and inclusive.
The Business Case for Diversity
In this informative talk aimed at corporations committed to recruiting and nurturing a diverse workforce, Braswell explores best practices for making diverse talent feel welcome, included, and essential in a workplace. Building a workplace that is accommodating for diverse perspectives and identities goes well beyond the immediate benefit of enhancing employee wellbeing, but can significantly contribute to your company's bottom line.
Leveraging Your Diversity at Work
With a specific focus on empowering professionals of color and helping them advance in their careers, Braswell speaks to how individuals can leverage their diversity as an asset in corporate America. Drawing on the lessons in his book, Braswell breaks down empowering ideas like taking on an athlete’s mindset, building a powerful personal brand, and how to be your most authentic self in a professional setting.
Founding a Company While Being Diverse
Despite the lack of funding flowing to diverse entrepreneurs, Porter Braswell successfully raised $11.75mm from top VCs including Y Combinator, Magic Johnson Enterprises, Kapor Capital and Andreessen Horowitz, among others. In this inspiring talk, Braswell tells audiences his founding story, going from the process of raising capital to his approach to building a diverse team and the powerful lessons he learned along the way.
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Video
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Praise for Porter Braswell
Praise for Let Them See You
Malcolm Forbes once said that diversity is ‘the art of thinking independently together.’ This approach will become the norm in business as America continues to evolve into a country that does not have a single racial or ethnic majority. Let Them See You properly acknowledges that diversity is an invaluable asset.
— Jay Williams, ESPN analyst and former NBA playerLet Them See You is a must-read book for emerging and seasoned professionals who seek to bring their whole selves to work within a complex cultural landscape. Braswell’s hands-on guide brings the movement mantra ‘nothing about us, without us’ to life with practical advice, solution-driven wisdom, and a call to action to create a workforce that uplifts the strength and power of the multitudes instead of a select few.
— Jamia Wilson, executive director and publisher, Feminist Press -
Books by Porter Braswell
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Media About Porter Braswell
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Featured Title
Let Them See You
“Porter Braswell gives a unique, insightful perspective on why diversity and inclusion is not just a moment but a movement. Understanding, discussing, and furthering this movement is imperative for all of us—regardless of our backgrounds—and doing so will continue to change the world for the better. So, yes, bring your whole self to every aspect of your life, including work, and let them see you.” —R. Matt Davis, former president of North America and senior vice president of corporate affairs, Dow Chemical Company
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