Investors

Asked why their businesses survived when others didn’t, Sirbak credits her support system — her family.

“They are my strength. I’m not one to back down — I am a big fighter. In this pandemic for restaurants, especially when you tell a chef they can’t do what they are passionate about it switches something in your brain. Some can’t handle the switch. My mother doesn’t let me do anything but handle switches. In today’s day and age, people need to learn how to adapt quickly,” she said.

“For me, I was so determined to make things work. Giving up wasn’t a thought for me,” Trott said. “I tried to come up with specials to keep people coming in the doors. The specials turned into everyday items and that played a big part. We were giving something different that other businesses didn’t know how to offer. That helped us out tremendously.”

The attendees also heard from Sulaiman Rahman, CEO at DiverseForce, Philadelphia, a human capital solutions firm that specializes in recruitment, retention, and development of top diverse talent in the workplace as well as on governing boards.

Born and raised in Philadelphia, Rahman attended the University of Pennsylvania.

While in college, he launched a networking email list that ultimately had about 30,000 subscribers. Rahman worked with area organizations, “to target this niche community within Philadelphia, which was “educated

Black and brown professionals,” to make sure they had places they could socialize and connect with others.

He continued to evolve the idea, ultimately launching DiverseForce, which he said was the opportunity to “connect the dots between companies, organizations and talent.”

That was followed by DiverseForce for boards, a six-month board training program in partnership with the University of Pennsylvania. Since 2017 more than 120 board seats in the region have been filled.

“We need to make sure we encourage people to grow and develop themselves, but also make sure we’re creating an inclusive ecosystem that is nurturing, and growing a systematic approach to building a pipeline of talent into leadership positions, not just into meaningful jobs,” he added.

The Investors Conference also included updates from Hobart’s Run, PAID Inc. and Pottstown Borough Manger Justin Keller.

Before the program ended, Lee-Clark spoke about an “I Pick Pottstown” digital gift card, which can be purchased on the PAID Inc. website: https://app. yiftee.com/gift-card/pottstown. The cards can be used for purchases at participating Pottstown gift card merchants. Lee-Clark said the number of participating merchants continues to grow.

The Pottstown Investors Conference was first held in 2017, and has attracted about 200 participants each year. It was sponsored and organized this year by The Hill School, Hobart’s Run, PAID Inc. and the Borough of Pottstown.