Chief Digital Officer of Microsoft, Jacky Wright has been recognized as the most famous black person in the UK. Jacky has been given the top position on 14 October by the Powerlist 2022 which is the annual list of the UK’s most powerful people of African, African-Caribbean, and African American heritage.
Jacky believed that she would not be able to receive the most famous person title if she had stayed in Britain. She disclosed that her career may not have taken off in the UK because there are lesser opportunities and a lack of Black women role models at the top of the corporate ladder. Wright has hailed the accolade but stated that the UK had a long way to go before it become an equal society.
Wright was chosen by a panel of judges headed by the retired high court judge Dame Linda Dobbs, who disclosed that Wright took the top spot for the “sheer scale of the work she is doing”. Furthermore, Wright battled for diversity in government, including race and disability as the senior black leader in the government.
Microsoft officer was born in London but has spent much of her career in the US. Earlier, she has taken roles at BP and General Electric. In 2017 she became chief digital information officer at HM Revenue and Customs, before returning to Microsoft US in 2019. The Powerlist was introduced in 2007 to demonstrate black role models across industries including business, science, technology, and the arts.
