Author Profile
Biography
Kathryn Finney is the founder and Managing Director of didtechnology/digitalundivided (DID), a groundbreaking social enterprise focused on helping Black and Latinx women own their work using innovation and technology as a tool. She is a White House Champion of Change, a past member of the National Advisory Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship (NACIE) appointed by U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker and a General Partner in the Harriet Fund, the first impact venture fund focused on investing in high potential Black and Latina women-led startups.
An Echoing Green Global Fellow, Young American Fellow and Eisenhower Fellow, Kathryn started digitalundivided after selling her company, The Budget Fashionista, one of the first lifestyle online media companies. She later became Editor at Large at BlogHer, a global organization representing over 40 million social media influencers, where she built their fashion and beauty channels prior to the company’s purchase by SheKnows Media. She’s an active angel investor with over 10 investments, all with founders of color, including Taelur, Everist, Bloc, MentorMe, and Zuvaa.
A graduate of Yale and Rutgers Universities, Kathryn has received numerous honors and awards including, Grace Hopper ABIE award, Marie Claire’s 10 Women to Watch in 2016, Entrepreneurs Magazine’s “Woman to Watch in 2016,”, Ebony Power 100, Black Enterprise “40 under 40” list, and was inducted into Spelman College’s “Game Changers Academy.” On February 26, 2015, Kathryn was honored by Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer with the “Kathryn Finney Appreciation Day.”
In 2017, Kathryn received an Honorary Doctorate from Mount Holyoke College and has been nominated to the Rutgers African-American Alumni Alliance 2017 Hall of Fame Class. She currently serves on the board of Public Radio International.
Author's Essays
“Over-mentored, but under-sponsored.”
–BIG 2018 applicant response to the question “Why are you applying to BIG 2018 Incubator?”
Earlier this year, as I reviewed over 200 applications for our BIG 2018 Incubator, I noticed a theme that I could not ignore. When it comes…