Title: Founder & CEO, The Sister Accord Foundation & The Sister Accord LLC dba The Accord Group LLC
Current / Past Place of Employment: The Sister Accord LLC dba The Accord Group LLC; Prior to launching my entrepreneurial career, I worked for Procter & Gamble.
How many years have you been in the region? I moved from Boston, MA to Cincinnati in 2006.
Where are you originally from? I am originally from Saginaw, MI.
Age: 53, but I think I’m 25! :-)
Sonia Jackson Myles has over 20 years of experience (managing $20 Billion) in Corporate America, working for top Fortune 500 companies such as Ford Motor Company, The Gillette Company and Procter & Gamble. Her last role at Procter & Gamble was Director Global Packaging for the company with a responsibility of $6 Billion. She is the Founder, President & CEO of The Sister Accord LLC dba The Accord Group LLC. She is also the Founder & CEO of The Sister Accord Foundation. Her global movement, titled The Sister Accord, has 3 areas of focus: Educating girls and women, Enlightening girls and women of the Power of Sisterhood and Eradicating bullying and violence against girls and women. She is on a mission to have 1 Billion girls and women learn how to love themselves and each other. Sonia is the author of The Sister Accord: 51 Ways To LOVE Your Sister, which was nominated for a 2013 NAACP Image Award. Her 2nd book, 51 Ways To LOVE Your Children, focuses on building strong families via loving relationships.
Sonia has numerous media appearances and mentions from local TV & radio networks across the country to national/international platforms such as Disney, Fortune Magazine, CNN.com, New York Times, Essence Magazine, Black Enterprise Magazine, Today Show, Good Morning America, Bloomberg, Businessweek and The Huffington Post. Sonia is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. Her mantra is “There is always a seat at the table for excellence—focus on being excellent.”
What made you decide to make Cincinnati home? When Procter & Gamble acquired Gillette, I decided to accept the role of Director, Global Media Purchases, along with helping to lead the integration of Gillette Purchases into P&G. This required me to relocate to Cincinnati. To be honest, I was told by many people to not move to Cincinnati…that it wouldn’t be good for my sons. That was not true. My sons love living in Cincinnati and are now 23 and 24 years old.
What is your most proud moment in recent history? My mother transitioned to Heaven on June 10, 2019. The thought of living without her was heartbreaking. The reality of living without her is heart aching. One of the most important things to my mother was Education. As a matter of fact, she had dreams of going back to college and obtaining her degree. My most proud moment was awarding $5000 to Kayla Hill (a UC student) in 2019 and awarding $5000 to Sharon Smith (a UC student) in 2020 with the Nella D. Jackson Memorial Scholarship Fund through The Sister Accord Foundation.
What legacy do you hope to leave behind? The legacy I hope to leave behind is one of LOVE. I have literally built a company that has a foundation of LOVE! I’m hopeful that my Sisterhood & Brotherhood In The Workplace Platform, and the work I’m doing with schools, help establish cultures and environments where EVERYONE has the opportunity to win. This is so important and I’m very passionate about it. Toxic school and work environments have long-lasting negative impacts on individuals, families and communities. Bullying must be eradicated from every aspect of our lives.
How do you define success? Success = Dreaming BIG & Delivering BIG; I’m a solutions girl at heart, so defining a problem and finding a solution for it makes me really excited and gives me so much joy. I have very little patience for sitting around talking about problems without an action plan for resolution.
What piece of advice have you received along the way in your career or life journey that has stuck with you? Faith and Fear cannot coexist. Have courage to do what has not been done, to solve what needs to be solved. Courage doesn’t mean that you do not have some level of fear or apprehension…you just can’t allow the fear to paralyze you. Perseverance is key!
