Author: Writer

Last week, Robert F. Smith joined actor Steve Harvey for a candid conversation as part of Beloved Benefit’s new series, which features national leaders to talk about race, economic mobility and building our communities in order to inspire deeper connections and spark action.  Across the conversation, there was a common thread: how can we come …

Building Capital and Hope: A Conversation Between Steve Harvey and Robert F. Smith Read More »

Prostate cancer is the third-leading cause of cancer death in the U.S., and African American men are 73 percent more likely to develop prostate cancer than any other race or ethnicity. Today, most genomic studies of prostate cancer focus on men of European ancestry. In order to better detect prostate cancer and end one of …

Robert F. Smith Partners with the Prostate Cancer Foundation Read More »

Robert F. Smith will be interviewed by radio personality Steve Harvey in the first episode of the “Beloved Benefit Conversation Series,” from the organizers of the annual “Beloved Benefit” gala.  The annual Beloved Benefit event raises millions of dollars for nonprofit organizations in the metro Atlanta area. To date, more than $5 million has been …

Robert F. Smith to be Interviewed for First Episode of the “Beloved Benefit Conversation Series” Read More »

Robert F. Smith remembers a very specific experience growing up: “One of my good friends, I remember one of the teachers in high school told him that he should actually go become a bricklayer. He should, you know—[become] either a bricklayer or a carpenter. Now, this guy now has a PhD in biology just to …

Robert F. Smith on Believing and Investing in Black Success Read More »

The global coronavirus pandemic highlighted racial disparities in both health and economic opportunities, and sparked a long-overdue conversation on how to address racial inequality in America. This included how the country’s largest corporations should step up and use their power, resources, and voices to enact change.  In June, Robert F. Smith called on large corporations …

The Growing Movement of Companies Allocating 2% of Profits to Help End The Racial Wealth Gap Read More »

As the coronavirus pandemic hit America, small businesses across the country were crippled. To respond to the financial crisis, Congress and the White House passed the $2 trillion Cares Act, which included $349 billion in loans for small businesses. That money was gone within 13 days as a result of the unprecedented demand for the …

Robert F. Smith Helped Thousands of Black Businesses Secure Pandemic Relief Read More »

Right now, while white men hold two-thirds of board seats in the Fortune 500, women of color account for just 4.6% of board seats in the Fortune 500 and the percentage of women on boards in the U.S. overall is around 11% and has barely risen in the last decade. To help address this disparity …

Vista Equity Partners to Create Additional Board Seats to Increase Company’s Board Diversity Read More »

The past few weeks have spurred important and long-overdue conversations about systemic racism and economic and social justice.  Robert F. Smith penned an op-ed for The Afro describing seven specific and scalable ways that together as a nation we can end system racism and ensure economic justice.  In particular, Smith says these solutions “should address …

Robert F. Smith on Ways We Can Eradicate Racism Read More »

As the coronavirus crisis gripped the country, Robert F. Smith recognized his unique ability to help coordinate a philanthropic response, at scale.  “In times like this you have to think about the assets that you can truly leverage,” Smith said. “I have the great fortune of having relationships with very smart people. I’ve been on …

How Robert F. Smith Employs Relationships to Coordinate a Philanthropic Response to COVID-19 Read More »

Student loan debt is one of the biggest challenges facing young people today, and it’s disproportionately impacting Black students who are not only more likely to have to take on student loans, but, on average, owe more than $7,000 more than their white peers after receiving a bachelor’s degree. This burden is hindering Black students’ …

Robert F. Smith Launches New Initiative to Tackle the Disproportionate Burden of Student Loan Debt for Black Graduates Read More »