UBR Spotlight: General Mills Baking Products President Anton Vincent

This week on The Urban Business Roundtable, UBR contributor Renita D. Young speaks with Anton Vincent, President of the Baking Products Division at General Mills. Vincent oversees a portfolio of some of America’s most storied brands, including Betty Crocker, BisQuick and Gold Medal Flower.

The career of the Jackson, Mississippi native spans leadership roles with brands such as Pop Secret Popcorn, Total cereal and Yoplait Yogurt. Over that time, Vincent has established himself as a top-performance business leader, responsible for generation more than $1 billion in retail sales for baking products division, and earning the General Mills Champions Award, the company’s highest honored. He was also named a “Top 50 Under 50” leader by Diversity MBA Magazine, and is the founding member of General Mills’ largest employee network group, the Black Champions Network. Vincent joins the Roundtable to share how he’s become General Mills’ “Billion-dollar Man.”

Also, UBR contributor Samantha Pass speaks with sales expert Michael L. Parker, owner and publisher of the bi-weekly electronic publication, the Black Sales Journal (BSJ). A former executive of Liberty Mutual Group, Parker launched BSJ to “increase the chances of success and prosperity for the Black sales professional.” Parker joins the Roundtable to share what it takes to build a dream sales team for your business.

In my “Alfred’s Notepad” segment, I remind entrepreneurs that classes for the Small Business University (SBU) are in session. SBU a free, eight-week online video course at BlackEnterprise.com offering expert advice to entrepreneurs looking to start and grow profitable small businesses.  Go to https://blackenterprise.com/sbu to register and learn more.

And finally, every week on UBR, you’ll get motivation and inspiration from author and entrepreneurial icon Farrah Gray, a weekly wrap-up of business news from USA Today business correspondent Charisse Jones, our Patient Investor Report from Ariel Investments and key economic intelligence for small business owners from our UBR economists Derrick Collins and Rasheed Carter.

If you have a question you want answered or a topic you want addressed on The Urban Business Roundtable, connect with me at BE Insider, the social media network for people who are serious about Black Enterprise. You can also find me on Twitter and Facebook.

Alfred Edmond Jr. is the senior VP/editor-at-large of Black Enterprise and the host of the Urban Business Roundtable, a weekly radio show, sponsored by Ariel Investments, airing CST Wednesdays at 8:30 a.m., Thursdays at 6:30 p.m. and Saturdays at 9:30 a.m. on WVON-AM 1690, the Talk of Chicago. You can also listen live online at WVON.com. Check back each week for UBR Spotlight, which features additional resources, advice and information from and about the topics, entrepreneurs and experts featured on the show.

SAVE THE DATE for the 2013 Black Enterprise Entrepreneurs Conference + Expo hosted by Nationwide, May 15-18, at Columbus Convention Center in Columbus, Ohio. Expect innovative sessions, high-powered speakers, and an early peek at the products, trends, and services you’ll need to stay ahead of the curve. To find out more, visit www.blackenterprise.com/ec/