10BB AN INDEPENDENT SUPPLEMENT BY MIA MEDIA & COMMUNICATIONS GROUP TO THE MIAMI HERALD MONDAY , MAY 14 , 2018
COVER STORY
Faith , Teamwork , Vision Lead 3 Miami Power Players to Success
By Isheka N . Harrison
Ira Hall knows what it means to be a power player . The retired businessman who has had a decorated career is now the first black chairman to lead the Adrienne Arsht ’ s Performing Arts Center Trust .
No stranger to breaking barriers , Hall was the first Black and the youngest corporate officer at IBM as well as a young presidential appointee .
Hall represents an impressive list of Legacy Miami ' s “ 50 Most Powerful and Influential Black Professionals of 2018 .” The list includes Nigerian-born actress and speaker Sope Aluko , and Beacon Council President Michael Finney , who , like Hall , both strive to use their talents to make Miami a better place .
Hall attributes his philosophy of teamwork as a key factor to his professional advancement .
“ I try to get teams focused on objectives and to have a shared vision of the goal and mission ,” said Hall , a champion of diversity and inclusion .“ Then I work to reinforce that the team is performing , rather than me single-handedly saying I did this or I did that .”
Although Hall boasts many stellar career accomplishments , he said he always approaches new positions with a humble mindset .
“ My view is what am I going to get done in a role ,” said Hall . “ I ’ ve had that view throughout my career … I just want to do a good job .”
Taking a leap of faith Aluko is an example of how operating at your peak potential and trusting one ’ s skills to take risks can lead to unexpected opportunities . The Miami actress , who played the role of Shaman in Marvel ’ s record-breaking movie “ Black Panther ,” said her energy was so compelling that director Ryan Coogler created a role just for
Michael Finney , Sope Aluko , and Ira Hall stand in the lobby of the Adrienne Arsht Center , where Hall serves as chairman of the center ’ s trust .
her in the film that has now grossed more than $ 1 billion internationally . Now Aluko has parlayed her portrayal of Wakanda ’ s Shaman into months of speaking engagements , including an appearance at Harvard University .
All of this may not have happened had Aluko not taken a bold leap of faith almost a decade ago , leaving her lucrative corporate job as a marketing executive to pursue her passion of acting . Aluko ’ s secret to success : having faith in God and “ following His instructions .”
“ I am a woman of faith ,” said Aluko , who specialized in brand marketing for Fortune 500 companies such as Pepsi , Diageo , and Burger King for more than 15 years before leaving to ardently pursue acting . “ In everything , I give glory to God and give Him glory even for the work . In all my interviews , I have been very open about my faith and how I prayed for this role and how it manifested itself based on my ‘ vision board ’ and my prayers to the Lord .”
Aluko said while working in corporate America , she secretly took acting classes , slept in airports , and self-financed trips for auditions because acting was her calling .
“ Everybody ’ s journey is different ,” she said . “ God knows what His plan is , but the important thing is to trust and know that you have to hang on .”
Aluko is committed to using her new platform to encourage and mentor Black youth and adults , so they will realize that their dreams are possible .
“ Listen , it didn ’ t happen to me overnight ,” Aluko emphasized . “ It took me 10 years to get to ‘ Black Panther .’ I walked away from a wonderfully paying corporate job with no parachute . My speech to everyone is , if I could do it – and I changed my career at a time in my life when people said I could never have done it – I know you can .”
Changing Miami ’ s Economic Landscape
Finney shares Hall and Aluko ’ s affinity for uplifting others . A newcomer to Miami , he moved to South Florida last year to help change the community ’ s economic landscape .
“ Our primary focus is helping businesses grow and prosper here , which , in turn , produces economic prosperity for the community ,” said Finney , who has a more than 30-year track record of scaling organizations . “ It ’ s what we call the multiplier effect and it produces opportunities for our citizenry to grow and prosper as well .”
Finney recently helped write the proposal that led to Miami ’ s selection as one of 20 finalists , in a pool of more than 230 applicants , to be Amazon ’ s second headquarters .
“ It ’ s always exciting to know that you have a chance … To be in consideration for that is really very important for us as a community because it really helps tell the story of just how capable this community is of being attractive to businesses of all types ,” explained Finney .
Like his colleagues , Finney counts giving people a hand-up among his proudest moments as an industry leader .
“ It ’ s the opportunity that I ’ ve had to help individuals over my career that I ’ m most proud of because that gets it down to a very granular level where you can actually see and touch someone who ’ s been directly impacted by your efforts ,” Finney shared . “ That is extremely fulfilling to me personally as much as the broader work that we do trying to help the community at-large .”
Although Finney , Hall , and Aluko work in different sectors , they agree it takes team support , hard work and continual learning in order to make power moves .
“ I ’ m one person and I work with a team of people ,” said Hall . “ If they can get inspired and make it their goal rather than just Ira ’ s goal , then it ’ s going to be a much more powerful implementation .”
Aluko added , “ You need mentors . You ’ ve got to know the industry that you ’ re working in . You train until the day you die .”