Sophie Williams

Sophie Williams is a bestselling author, businesswoman working in marketing and advertising, and proud anti-racism advocate.

She first came to global prominence in June 2020 when the singer Justin Bieber shared her work during the Black Lives Matter wave following George Floyd’s death.

As of September 2022, she has published two books; her debut, Anti-Racist Ally (2020), was a small book introducing allyship in the workplace and the wider community. This was followed up in 2021 with Millennial Black, a women’s business book created for black women, after Sophie realised that most business books were aimed at supporting white women.

Sophie is a top-rated keynote speaker, inspiring audiences on diversity, inclusion, equality, racism, the race pay gap and allyship.

Contact Great British Speakers today to book businesswoman and anti-racism author Sophie Williams for your next event.

Type Of Talent

Black History MonthDiversityEquality, Diversity & InclusionFemale SpeakersInfluencerMediaPoliticsPolitics & Current AffairsSpeakerVirtual Speakers

More About Sophie Williams

Sophie Williams is an expert voice in diversity, inclusion and equality; she shares her voice with high-end businesses, schools, universities and charities, as well as in written publications and through panel discussions, conferences and workshops.

As well as her bestselling books, Sophie is a frequent contributor to national publications such as Bustle, Cosmopolitan, Elle, Glamour, Grazia, the Guardian, Marie Claire and Refinery29.

SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS

Sophie is a popular guest speaker, consultant, panelist, workshop facilitator and conference moderator, focusing on anti-racism, diversity and allyship. Through all her work, she encourages people to build on existing foundations to ensure there is equality in their personal and professional lives.

She has given keynote speeches, sat on panels and hosted a range of events, including at Afro Visibility, Cheltenham Literary Festival, Fortune Most Powerful Women Summit, Girls Talk London, Hay Literary Festival, Primadonna Festival, Stylist Live and Waterstones Live.

In 2021, she gave a TED talk entitled The Glass Cliff: The Rigged Test of Leadership. Sophie discussed her experiences as a black woman in the workplace, and it has since gained over 1.4 million views.

SPEAKING TOPICS

– Race and Racism

– Gender

– Allyship/Anti-Racism

– Building Anti-Racist Workplaces

– The Glass Cliff – what happens when you break through the glass ceiling?

– Building successful, diverse working environments

Clients include Amazon, Apple, Barclays, Bloom, BUPA, Cambridge University, City and Guilds, Coinbase, Crowd Cube, DAZN, Department for Housing, Department for International Trade, Department for Work and Pensions, the Dogs Trust, Essex Student Union, Estee Lauder, Feeld, Google, John Frieda, Meta, Netflix, the NHS, Primadonna, the Rio Ferdinand Foundation, Sky, Transport for London, UK Civil Service, Universal Music, University of Central Florida, University of the Arts London, Vevo, and York St Johns University.

MARKETING PRODUCTION SUPPORT

Before her career as an author and diversity speaker, Sophie worked primarily in marketing and advertising for a number of large companies. She held the role of Global Manager of Production Planning at Netflix from March 2021 to April 2022, and has also worked as a Project Manager, Creative Producer, Operations Director, Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer. She left her job at Netflix after they fired an Trans employee – Sophie was part of the European employee walkout, against Netflix in 2021 in solidarity with the LGBTQ+ community.

As well as holding full-time employment, Sophie set up Blanket Fort in 2019, a micro agency providing businesses bespoke marketing and production support. It is through this agency that she has worked on campaigns for Netflix’s Sex Education (2019-), Orange is the New Black (2013-2019) and the series of documentaries entitled Beneath the Crown (2020). She also produced work for Rimmel, IKEA and Legal and General.

Call +44 1753 439 289 or email Great British Speakers now to book anti-racism and diversity speaker Sophie Williams for your corporate event.

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Testimonials

By far the best presentation of the day – and indeed the conference. Very thought provoking and educational, in terms of understanding key concepts and indeed definitions.
NHS Providers Annual Conference

Excellent presentation challenging our thinking and giving really thought provoking ideas on how to be an activist, anti-racist and an ally.
NHS Providers Annual Conference

We really loved having Sophei at the conference, it was a highly relevant and insightful session and was incredibly well received by the audience who told us they found it impactful and thought provoking. We would highly recommend Sophie as a speaker and look forward to working with her in the future.
NHS Confederation’s Health and Care Women Leaders Network

We couldn’t have had better feedback on your session during our diversity week. It was the highest attended session with 150 colleagues and they are still talking about it today.
DWF Law

A fantastic session; impactful and thought-provoking, delivered engagingly and with wit, wisdom and empathy.
Department of International Trade

Sophie is a captivating speaker with great energy and enthusiasm. Her talk had a profound influence on them and each young person has personally contacted me to express how much they enjoyed the talk.
The Rio Ferdinand Foundation