9 Conscious-Business Visionaries You Need to Know, July 2020

From reinventing the banking system to creating great places to work for all, these leaders are changing the future of business-as-we-know-it.

Rodney Foxworth

After founding and leading Conscious Company Media, I get asked all the time about who is pushing the envelope in conscious business — who are the people at the forefront of thought leadership, taking a stand, setting new standards, or creating new business models that the rest of us can follow?

Here I bring you the first of many lists of conscious-business visionaries who are leading the pack — innovators who are ahead of their time, devising a powerful plan for change for the future of business-as-we-know-it.

Rodney Foxworth
CEO of Common Future

Rodney Foxworth is a nonprofit executive, social entrepreneur, impact investing advisor, and philanthropy consultant who has founded, led, and advised numerous social impact and economic development ventures. Most recently, he founded Invested Impact, a nonprofit consulting firm and intermediary that connected philanthropic and impact investment capital to underrepresented social entrepreneurs. As CEO of Common Future, Rodney drives the company’s mission to build a network of leaders rebuilding an economy that includes everyone.

Alfa Demmellash
Co-founder & CEO of Rising Tide Capital 

Not only is Alfa Demmellash running an organization that provides training, mentorship, and investment connections for entrepreneurs — most specifically entrepreneurs of color — but she is also at the forefront of thought leadership when it comes to the future of work. Alfa is one of the most heart-centered, authentic conscious leaders I’ve ever had the pleasure of knowing and openly models this leadership to everyone around her. 

Dan Price
CEO of Gravity Payments

Have you heard that one about the CEO who slashed his million-dollar salary to $70,000 so that all of his employees could make the same salary? Yeah, that’s Dan Price. As the CEO of Gravity Payments, Dan had the “insane” idea that providing his employees with a living wage — so that they could have their basic needs met without stress — was how businesses should operate. And then he walked the talk. Not only did he cut his own salary, but he has been at the forefront of publicly calling out other CEOs and documenting his journey transparently so that other CEOs can follow. 

Jane Wurwand
Co-founder & Chief Visionary of Dermalogica

Jane Wurwand has a strong track record for using business as a force for good and showing up as her true authentic self (I’ve had the pleasure of getting to know her on many occasions and have seen her authenticity first-hand). She has created thousands of jobs for women, continues her work as Chief Visionary of Dermalogica, and supports small businesses and female entrepreneurs through FOUND/LA, an initiative of her foundation, the Wurwand Foundation.

Kat Taylor
Co-founder, Former Co-CEO, & Chairman of The Board of Directors of Beneficial State Bank

Kat Taylor is the creative force behind Beneficial State Bank, a community development financial institution (CDFI) and certified B Corporation whose mission is to bring beneficial banking to low-income communities in an economically and environmentally sustainable manner. In addition to serving as the institution’s Chairman of The Board of Directors, Kat is also passionately involved in activism, social enterprise, and projects dedicated to restoring social justice and environmental wellbeing. 

Lynn Jurich
Co-founder & CEO of Sunrun

In her role as CEO of Sunrun, Lynn Jurich stays consistent with her values while pursuing her mission to create a planet run by the sun. In addition to being at the helm of a multi-billion dollar solar company (the largest residential solar installer in the US), Lynn takes the time to constantly grow as a truly conscious leader with her work with the Conscious Leadership Group. 

Michael Bush
CEO of Great Place to Work®

Michael Bush is a former member of President Obama’s White House Business Council and a founding board member of the private equity seed-fund, Fund Good Jobs, which invests in small inner-city businesses. In 2015, he joined Great Place to Work, “the global authority on workplace culture,” as CEO, where he has developed a higher standard of excellence that accounts for fair and equitable treatment of employees across demographic groups, as well as executive leader effectiveness, innovation, and financial sustainability.

Natalia Oberti Noguera
Founder & CEO of Pipeline Angels

As CEO of Pipeline Angels, Natalia Oberti Noguera is changing the face of angel investing by creating capital for women and non-binary social entrepreneurs, and training both investors and entrepreneurs. Natalia is also the creator and host of Pitch Makeover, a podcast that focuses on pitching and investing, and spotlights startups launched by women, non-binary people, and men of color. 

Raj Sisodia
Co-founder & Co-chairman of Conscious Capitalism

A true thought leader of the Conscious Capitalism movement, Raj Sisodia is the guy who literally writes the book on this conscious-business stuff. His most recent read, “The Healing Organization: Awakening the Conscience of Business to Help Save the World,” continues to advance the entire field forward in terms of thinking about the purpose of business.