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ActOne Group logo. Photo by The ActOne Group.

Top 10 Facts about Janice Bryant Howroyd

Janice Bryant was born on September 1, 1952, in Tarboro, North Carolina, as the fourth of eleven children. She was one of the first African American students to participate in the desegregation of her town’s high school as a teen. Howroyd attended North Carolina A&T State University, where she majored in English.

She is the founder and CEO of Act 1 Group, a staffing agency that also offers consulting and business services such as background checks and screening. According to Black Enterprise Magazine, she is the first African American woman to run a company with a yearly revenue of more than $1 billion. Act 1, which also owns Agile 1, A-Check Global, and AppleOne, has contracts with 17,000 customers in 19 countries.

1. She is the first black woman to own a billion-dollar company

Howroyd is a multimillionaire philanthropist and entrepreneur. She’s charted her own path through the business world as the CEO and founder of the largest woman-owned workforce management company, ACT-1 Group, and the first black woman to own a billion-dollar company.

Her company, which generates $1.1 billion in net sales, has made her one of the wealthiest self-made women in America, with a net worth of $420 million, according to Forbes.

2. She is CEO and founder of Act-1 Group

ActOne Group logo. Photo by The ActOne Group.

ActOne Group, Inc. provides employment, workforce management, and procurement solutions to Fortune 500 organizations, local and mid-market companies, and government agencies, according to Bloomberg L.P. AppleOne, All’s Well, AT-Tech, ACT-1 Personnel Services, Agile-1, ACT-1Govt, ACheck GLobal, and DSSI are ActOne Group companies that provide personnel and recruiting services to various industries, as well as DSSI, which provides document management services.

3. “ActOne” conveys a sense of urgency and initiative 

When she was starting her company, she came up with the name ActOne during a brainstorming session with her husband and friends. “ActOne” symbolizes taking action and seizing opportunities. Howroyd wanted the name to reflect the company’s commitment to delivering results and creating opportunities for its clients and employees.

The name also reflects Howroyd’s personal philosophy of taking action and making things happen, which has been a key factor in her entrepreneurial success.

4. Janice began her career as a secretary

Modern secretary. Photo by maselkoo99.

Bryant Howroyd saw an opportunity in the staffing industry after working as a secretary at Billboard Magazine and developing a network of contacts in various industries. Most staffing agencies at the time provided clients with only a picture of a potential employee and a price. Bryant Howroyd was eager to fill in the blanks. Potential employees, like the business, have goals and passions. She saw staffing as a sales opportunity for both the employee and the company.

5. She turned a $900 loan into a renowned empire 

After noticing an opportunity in the staffing industry, and knowing she already had a network of potential clients, she borrowed $900 from her mother to buy office space, a fax machine, and a phone. Bryant Howroyd began connecting clients with employees who shared qualities seen in the company’s culture, focusing her energy first on potential employees. Bryant Howroyd attributes the company’s initial growth to WOMB (“Word of Mouth, Brother!”) after receiving positive feedback and referrals from her initial clients.

Employee empowerment has proven to be ActOne’s competitive advantage since its inception, but Howroyd has had to keep a close eye on the evolution of technology for the company’s structure itself.

6. Bryant is a major advocate for diversity and inclusion

鈥淒iversity is what’s on the shelves. Inclusion is what’s in the basket when you’re at the register!鈥� Janice recently posted this metaphor on her social media platforms to highlight her opinion on the issue.

According to this metaphor, diversity is like the variety of products available on store shelves, whereas inclusion is about which products are actually purchased and taken home. It’s one thing to have a diverse range of products available; it’s quite another to select and value products from various backgrounds and perspectives.

Similarly, having a diverse workforce or community is important, but it is insufficient if people of different backgrounds do not feel included and valued. Inclusion entails creating a climate in which everyone feels welcomed and respected, and where differences are celebrated rather than ignored or excluded.

7. She sits on the board of numerous organizations

A boardroom. Photo by Benjamin Child.

Women’s Business Enterprise National Council, WeConnect, National Utilities Diversity Council, Harvard Women’s Leadership Board, California Science Center, Los Angeles Urban League, and a member of the Industry Trade Advisory Committee on Services and Finance Industries of the United States Trade Representative and the United States Department of Commerce are among these organizations. She is also a member of the North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University Board of Trustees.

8. Janice received a Presidential Appointment in 2016

President Barack Obama appointed Howroyd as a member of the President’s Board of Advisors on Historically Black Colleges and Universities in May 2016.

Historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) are higher education institutions in the United States that were founded prior to the Civil Rights Act of 1964 with the intention of serving primarily African Americans.

The majority of these institutions were established during Reconstruction and are concentrated in the Southern United States. During the period of racial segregation in the United States, the majority of American institutions of higher learning served predominantly white students, disqualifying or restricting black American enrollment.

Later, after expanding their inclusion of Black people and African Americans into their institutions or gaining the status of minority-serving institution, some universities became Predominantly Black Institutions (PBIs).

9. Janice Bryant is a philanthropist 

According to the National Association of Women Business Owners, Janice has made a significant contribution to the well-being of her community and has the foresight and generosity to recognize that her success is best enjoyed when she pays it forward. She supports universities, women’s support organizations, minority serving organizations, and is a mentor to others through personal work and media engagements through scholarship funding and personal service.

10. She is a published author

Howroyd has written for Forbes and Huffington Post, as well as recorded several audiobooks and written two books.

In July 2009, Howroyd published her first book, The Art of Work. The book provided advice on how to find and keep the right job.

In 2019, Howroyd published her second book, Acting Up. In Acting Up, Howroyd shares more of her personal life story as well as business advice.

Acting Up met positive reaction by critics and press upon its release from publications such as Fast Company and Black Enterprise. Inc. (magazine) included the book as one of their “8 Books For Entrepreneurs Who Insist On Doing Things Differently.”