THE NEW C-SUITE 2024

Progress. It’s a word that, in 2024, gets thrown around a lot. Especially when it comes to representation across all sorts of roles at all sorts of companies, including, crucially, at start-ups. Yet...people of color—and specifically women of color—still don’t often get the chance to even enter the conversation. Over the past few years, less than 1 percent of venture capital funding in this country has gone toward women of color entrepreneurs. (Making matters worse, funds that are geared toward supporting these women have become targets of anti-affirmative-action groups, forcing at least one to shut down entirely.)

- ANNABEL IWEGBUE

Given all this, what the women on the following pages—The New C-Suite Class of 2024—have achieved is nothing short of phenomenal. The honorees, which include tech stars, beauty mavericks, and even a start-up investor herself, serve as sheer inspo for anyone who’s ever come across professional hurdle after hurdle. Collectively, they’re helping redefine what success in America looks like, one hard-earned win at a time.

THE JUDGES

Jessica Giles Former editor-in-chief, Cosmopolitan

Leah Williams CEO, digitalundivided

Lisa Burton Vice president and investor, HearstLab

Patricia Mota President and CEO, Hispanic Alliance for Career Enhancement; digital-undivided board member

Last spring, more than 100 female entrepreneurs of color submitted applications for The New C-Suite's Class of 2024. Cosmopolitan and our partners at digital-undivided then dove into a monthslong vetting process, measuring quantitative and qualitative data around financial viability, originality, and creative business executions. From a narrowed-down list, our panel of judges then chose the final honorees.

KATIE DIASTI

Founder and CEO of Viv

HER MOTTO "BUT WHAT IF IT ALL WORKS OUT?"

HER BUSINESS

Viv is a line of eco-conscious period-care products.

HOW IT STARTED

Katie got involved in menstrual equity advocacy in college, while volunteering at a women's shelter. She took note of the toxins in many traditional menstrual products and the jarring environmental impact of their plastic waste-and launched Viv in 2021 as a better option.

HOW IT'S GOING