These are the groundbreaking women of 2020

Mellody Hobson

Starbucks this month appointed Mellody Hobson to head its Board, making her the only African-American woman to chair the board of a Fortune 500 company. Hobson has served as the vice-president of the board, and her latest will take effect in March 2021.

Hobson first joined the board in 2005 and was appointed vice-chair in 2018. The finance executive is a powerhouse in the business environment in America.

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Besides serving on the board of Starbucks, she is also the co-CEO of Ariel Investments, a global value-based asset management firm. She also serves as Chairman of the Board of the company’s publicly traded mutual funds.

Hobson currently serves as a director of JPMorgan Chase and previously served as Board chair of Estée Lauder Companies and DreamWorks Animation.