The Powerlist is a list of the 100 most influential people of African or African Caribbean heritage in the United Kingdom. The list is updated annually and has been published in book format by Powerful Media since 2007. The Powerlist is not limited to British-born citizens and includes immigrants to the UK.

History and methodology

The list was first created in 2007 by Michael Eboda, then editor of the New Nation, a weekly newspaper published in the UK for the Black British community, as a way to profile and celebrate influential Black Britons, and inspire and influence the next generation.^[1] The first Powerlist was compiled after six months of research and debate where 400 people of influence were whittled down to 50 women and 50 men, then ranked into respective top tens with the results announced in August 2007.^[2] During the first few editions, separate top 10 rankings were produced for both Female and Male candidates and top ranking individuals could continue to be ranked the following year.^[3] From 2012 the 50 highest rated nominees, along with updates on the previous year's Powerlistees from rank 2-100, are then ranked by an independent panel in the summer, with the list being produced each autumn. Each year's highest-ranking individual is added to the Powerlist Hall of Fame^[4][5]

Hall of Fame

A list of every Powerlist highest ranking individual.

Year	Portrait	Name	Occupation	Category	Notability
2021		Sir Lewis Hamilton	Formula 1 Driver	Sports	Seven-time World Champion Formula One driver
2020		Ismail Ahmed	Businessperson	Business, Corporate, Financiers & Entrepreneurs	founder & chairman of WorldRemit
2019		Ric Lewis	Businessperson	Business, Corporate, Financiers & Entrepreneurs	Chief Exec & Chairman of Tristan Capital Partners
2018		Gina Miller	Businessperson & Activist	Business, Corporate, Financiers & Entrepreneurs	Activist known for her work challenging Brexit
2017		Tom Ilube	Businessperson	Business, Corporate, Financiers & Entrepreneurs	Founder of Crosssword Cyber Security, Africa Gifted Foundation
2016		Ken Olisa, OBE	Businessperson & Philanthropist	Business, Corporate, Financiers & Entrepreneurs	Lord-Lieutenant of Greater London
2015		Karen Blackett, OBE	Businessperson	Business, Corporate, Financiers & Entrepreneurs	CEO of MediaCom UK
2014		Malorie Blackman, OBE	Author	Media, Publishing & Entertainment	Writer of over 60 children's books and Children's Laureate
2013		David Adjaye, OBE	Architect	Arts, Fashion & Design	Designer of the National Museum of African American History in Washington, DC
2012		Tidjane Thiam	Businessperson	Business, Corporate, Financiers & Entrepreneurs	CEO of Prudential plc
2011		Tidjane Thiam	Businessperson	Business, Corporate, Financiers & Entrepreneurs	CEO of Prudential plc
2010		Baroness Scotland	Attorney General	Politics, Law and Religion	First Female & Black person to be Attorney General for England and Wales
2008 (Male)		Dr Mo Ibrahim	Businessperson & Philanthropist	Business, Corporate, Financiers & Entrepreneurs	Chairman & Founder of Mo Ibrahim Foundation
2008 (Female)		Baroness Scotland	Attorney General	Politics, Law and Religion	First Female & Black person to be Attorney General for England and Wales
2007 (Male)		Damon Buffini	Businessperson & Philanthropist	Business, Corporate, Financiers & Entrepreneurs	Private equity baron at Permira
2007 (Female)		Baroness Scotland	Attorney General	Politics, Law and Religion	First Female & Black person to be Attorney General for England and Wales

2020's

2021 Powerlist Rankings

The 2021 Powerlist came in a year in which public debate on racial injustice had increased, with the Black Lives Matter movement and global protests against police brutality. Therefore, chief executive Michael Eboda decided that the 14th Powerlist would honour those who have used their voice to advocate against racial injustice.^[6] Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the awards were held virtually on November 17, 2020 and hosted by Kwame Kwei-Armah, OBE.^[7] The event was held in partnership with J.P.Morgan who announced they would invest £2 million in support to London non-profit organisations headed by black and minority ethnic leaders; further sponsors included PricewaterhouseCoopers, Facebook, and Linklaters.^[8][9] The independent panel of judges named Sir Lewis Hamilton as the most influential due to both his sporting excellence and his advocacy in light of the BLM movement; additional highlights of the Top 10 included Prof. Kevin Fenton for and Dame Donna Kinnair for their work fighting against COVID-19.^[10]

Top 10

Also in the Top 100, by Category

Arts, Fashion and Design

• Chi-chi Nwanoku, OBE - Classical Musician & Founder of Chineke! Orchestra
• Duro Olowu - Fashion Designer
• Dr Shirley J Thompson, OBE - Composer, Conductor and Reader in Music, University of Westminster
• Pat McGrath, MBE - Make-up Artist & founder of Pat McGrath Labs
• Francesca Hayward - Principal Dancer, The Royal Ballet
• Grace Wales Bonner - Fashion Designer, Founder and Creative Director at Wales Bonner
• Kobna Holdbrook-Smith - Actor and Founding Member of 'Act for Change'
• John Boyega - Actor
• Idris Elba, OBE - Actor and Producer

Business, Corporate, Financiers and Entrepreneurs

• Femi Bamisaiye - CIO Homeserve
• Nadja Bellan-White - Global CMO at Vice Media Group
• Jason Black (J2K) - Co-founder of Crep Protect and Co-Owner of Crepe and Cones
• Eric Collins - CEO and Founding Member, Impact X Capital Partners
• Camille Drummond - Vice President, Global Business Services at BP
• Yemi Edun - Founder/CEO of Daniel Ford & Co.
• Emeka Emembolu - Senior VP-North Sea BP
• Dean Forbes - President, The Access Group
• Pamela Hutchinson - Global Head of Diversity and Inclusion, Bloomberg
• Yvonne Ike - Managing Director and Head of Sub Saharan Africa region, BofA Securities
• Adrian Joseph - Managing Director, Group AI & Data Solutions, BT Group
• Wol Kolade - Managing Partner, Livingbridge
• Lindelwe Lesley Ndlovu - CEO, AXA Africa Specialty Risks, Lloyd's of London
• Tara Lajumoke - Managing Director, Financial Times
• Netsai Mangwende - Head of Finance for Great Britain, Willis Towers Watson
• Tunde Olanrewaju - Senior Partner McKinsey & Company
• Paulette Rowe - CEO, Integrated and E-commerce Solutions, Paysafe Group
• Roni Savage - Managing Director, Founder of Jomas Associates
• Alan Smith - Global Head of Risk Strategy and Chief of Staff, Global Risk at HSBC
• Tevin Tobun - Founder and CEO, GV Group Gate Ventures
• Sandra Wallace - UK Managing Partner, DLA Piper
• Dame Sharon White - Chairman, John Lewis Partnership

Media, Publishing and Entertainment

• Kamal Ahmed - Editorial Director, BBC News
• Akala - Rapper, journalist, poet and activist
• Amma Asante, MBE - Writer, Director
• Lorna Clarke - BBC Controller of Pop Music
• Reni Eddo-Lodge - Journalist, author
• Bernardine Evaristo - Writer, Professor of Creative Writing at Brunel University London
• Sir Lenny Henry - Actor, writer, campaigner
• Vanessa Kingori, MBE - Publisher, British Vogue
• Dorothy Koomson - Author
• Anne Mensah - Vice-president of Content UK, Netflix
• Hugh Muir - Senior Assistant Editor, The Guardian
• Femi Oguns, MBE - Founder and CEO of Identity School of Acting
• Marcus Ryder - Executive Producer of Multimedia Caixin
• Paulette Simpson - Executive, Corporate Affairs and Public Policy, Jamaica National Group; Executive Director, The Voice Media Group
• Annette Thomas - CEO The Guardian Media Group
• Charlene White - ITN News Anchor
• Reggie Yates - Actor, broadcaster & DJ
• Gary Younge - Journalist and author; Prof. of Sociology University of Manchester

Politics, Law and Religion

• Stephanie Boyce - Deputy Vice-President Law Society of England and Wales
• Martin Forde, QC - Barrister
• Rev Rose Hudson-Wilkin - Bishop of Dover
• David Lammy, MP - Shadow Secretary of State for Justice, Member of Parliament for Tottenham
• Harry Matovu, QC - Barrister
• Dr Kathryn Nwajiaku - Director, Politics and Governance Overseas Development Institute
• Dr Sandie Okoro - Senior Vice President and Group General Counsel, World Bank
• Segun Osuntokun - Managing Partner, Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner LLP
• Joshua Siaw, MBE - Partner, White & Case
• Patrick Vernon, OBE - Political activist
• Marcia Willis Stewart, QC - Director, Birnberg Peirce & Partners

Public, Third Sector and Education

• Sonita Alleyne, OBE - Master, Jesus College, Cambridge
• Dr Margaret Casely-Hayford, CBE - Chair, Shakespeare's Globe, Chancellor of Coventry University, Non-Executive Director, Co-op Group
• Nira Chamberlain - President of Institute of Mathematics and its Applications
• Professor Patricia Daley - Vice Principle of Jesus College, Cambridge
• Dr Anne-Marie Imafidon, MBE - CEO and Co-Founder Stemettes
• Professor Funmi Olonisakin - Professor of Security, Leadership and Development at King's College London, Founding Director of African Leadership Centre
• Marvin Rees - Mayor of Bristol
• Lord Woolley - Co-founder/Director, Operation Black Vote

Science, Medicine and Engineering

• Dr Sylvia Bartley - Senior Global Director, Medtronic Foundation
• Professor Jacqueline Dunkley-Bent, OBE - Chief Midwifery Officer, NHS England
• Dr Jacqui Dyer, MBE - President of Mental Health Foundation
• Dr Paula Franklin - Chief Medical Officer at Bupa
• Dr Martin Griffiths - Lead trauma surgeon, Royal London Hospital & Clinical Director for Violence Reduction, NHS
• Dr Ian Nnatu - Consultant psychiatrist
• Dr Joy Odili - Consultant plastic surgeon
• Dr Emeka Okaro - Consultant Obstetrician and Gynaecologist
• Prof. Laura Serrant, OBE - Head of Department and Professor of Community and Public Health Nursing at Manchester Metropolitan University
• Dr Samantha Tross - Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon

Sports

• Dina Asher Smith - British record-holding sprinter
• Anthony Joshua, OBE - Boxer
• Marcus Rashford - Footballer and campaigner against child poverty
• Raheem Sterling - Footballer

Technology

• Nneka Abulokwe, OBE - Founder and CEO, MicroMax Consulting
• Ije Nwokorie - Senior Director, Apple Inc.
• Ebele Okobi - Public policy director, Africa, the Middle East and Turkey for Facebook
• Jacky Wright - Chief digital officer & Corporate VP at Microsoft

2020 Powerlist

The 13th annual Powerlist was judged by a panel chaired by Dame Linda Dobbs and published in October 2019; sponsored by J.P. Morgan & Co., pwc, linklaters and The Executive Leadership Council.^{[11][12][13][14]}

2010's

2019 Rankings

The 2019 Rankings were released in October 2018 and saw Meghan, Duchess of Sussex included in the list for the first time and named Ric Lewis as the most influential individual.^[15][16][17] For the full list see: Powerlist 2019

2018 Rankings

The 2018 Rankings were released in October 2017 and saw Gina Miller named as the most influential black person in the UK. The list was compiled by a panel that included Dame Linda Dobbs and Tim Campbell and over half of the 100 people on the years list were women.^[18][19]

2017 Rankings

The 2017 Powerlist marked the 10th anniversary of the event, with a keynote speech made by Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan were released in October 2016 and named as the most influential black person in the UK. The list was decided by an independent panel led by former high court judge Dame Linda Dobbs.^[20][21][22]

2016 Rankings

The 2016 Powerlist named Ken Olisa, OBE at the most influential Black Briton for his charitable work and his achievement becoming the first black Lord-Lieutenant of Greater London.^[23][24][25]

2015 Rankings

The 2015 Powerlist was announced in November 2014 and took place in the Lord Mayor of London's residence, with a keynote speech given by then Home Secretary, Theresa May.^[26] The list named Karen Blackett, OBE as the most influential Black Briton, marking her as the first Black businesswoman to be awarded the accolade and also saw two people ranked in both third & eighth position.^[27]

2014 Rankings

An independent panel of five judges, headed by management consultant Vivian Hunt and including business executive Olakunle Babarinde, ranked the 100 most influential Black Britons on merit with children's author Malorie Blackman, OBE first in the yearly ranking.^[28][29]

2013 Rankings

The sixth annual Powerlist edition was announced in October 2012, ranking Britons who have "the ability to alter events and change lives in a positive way" and 20,000 hard copies were distributed to schools across the UK.^[30]

2012 Rankings

The 2012 Powerlist edition was announced in November 2011, and the judging panel was chaired by Baroness Amos ranking Tidjane Thiam, CEO of FTSE 100 company Prudential plc.^[31]

2011 Powerlist

The 2011 Powerlist had a panel including Baroness Amos and Kwame Kwei-Armah who ranked Tidjane Thiam, CEO of FTSE 100 company Prudential plc first, with Diane Abbott MP ranking ninth.^[32]

2010 Powerlist

The 2010 Powerlist was released in September 2009 and marked the beginning of the annual list being published in the Autumn prior. The launch took place in the Cabinet room at 10 Downing Street and now included men & women in a single table.^{[33][34][35][36]}

2000's

Prior to 2010, the Powerlist had a different format and was published in conjunction with newspaper The New Nation. During its first few years, separate top 10 rankings were produced for both female and male candidates. In addition, top-ranking individuals were not promoted to the 'Hall of Fame', meaning they could continue to be ranked the following year.^[37]

2008 Powerlist

The 2008 Powerlist was compiled of 50 men and 50 women by a judging panel that included Baroness Amos and Kwame Kwei-Armah. It was published in October 2008 by Powerful Media sponsored by JP Morgan, and was the first annual powerlist report. Copies were sold in store and sent to the UK's 1000 largest companies with a reception held at the Foreign Office to celebrate those on the list. To qualify, entrants had to be a British citizen or based in Britain.^[38]

Top 10 Men

Top 10 Women

2007 Powerlist

The first edition of the Powerlist was compiled after six months of research and debate where 400 people of influence were whittled down to 50 women and 50 men, then ranked into respective top tens and announced in August 2007.^[39]

Top 10 Men

Top 10 Women

See also

• Black British people

References

External links

• Powerlist