James Norman, Sean Green

Antonia Dean

Black Operator Ventures

James Norman, Managing Partner
James Norman is the managing partner at Black Operator Ventures, a $20M seed fund focused exclusively on investing in top Black founders. Celebrated for authoring the Harvard Business Review’s guide to investing in Black founders, James’s direct experience as a successful startup founder equips him to lead the fund toward catalyzing the most multi-billion dollar companies led by Black founders.

Sean Green, General Partner
Born in Jamaica and raised in Toronto, Sean Green has always been
the consummate entrepreneur following his instincts, which eventually
lead him to the business of art. Based in Los Angeles, Sean oversees all
aspects of ARTERNAL’s evolution, in partnership with his co-founders.
ARTERNALprovides aunified resource that allows the artprofessionalto
focus on what they do best - sell art and deepen relationships with their
clients. ARTERNAL understands that driving sales, while simultaneously
nurturing relationships, is the top priority.
ARTERNAL’s clients range from small to blue-chip and localized galleries,
including Hauser & Wirth, David Kordansky, PHILLIPS Auction House,
Bruce Silverstein, Moskowitz Bayse, Bryce Wolkowitz, Shulamit
Nazarian, and others.

Antonia Dean, Principal
Antonia is a startup strategist & investor who specializes in turning
good ideas into great businesses. A lawyer by training and a risk-taker
by birth, Antonia turned down a career in corporate law after
graduating from Harvard Law School to work in the cosmetics
industry. She helped build some of today’s most well-known and
profitable brands, including Calvin Klein Fragrances, Michael Kors,
Vera Wang, and Le Labo. After building internally, she transitioned
into corporate innovation which led her on a path to venture.
Most recently, Antonia led pipeline strategy for Comcast’s Startup
Engagement team where she oversaw LP investments in venture
funds and led direct investing in underrepresented founders. Prior to
joining Comcast, Antonia helped recent college graduates build their
own businesses at Venture For America and led engagements at
Archetype Solutions Group, a venture fund, and consultancy.
Antonia has been recognized as one of The Network Journal’s Top
Forty Under 40 and received the 2022 VentureFuel Visionary of the
Year Award. She’s been a featured speaker at the Consumer
Electronic Show and Culture Shifting Weekend. She also serves on the
Board of Directors for Philly Startup Leaders. Antonia lives in the
Philadelphia area with her husband, two sons, and four-pound
Yorkshire Terrier named Furious who in no way lives up to his name.
In addition to his role at Black Ops, James is the CEO of Pilotly, the pioneering market research platform tailored for creative content. This platform has revolutionized how research teams gather consumer feedback globally, delivering crucial insights to industry giants like Amazon and Netflix.

As a serial entrepreneur, James launched his first online company, MJH Sound.com in 1995. His career trajectory has taken him from a visionary in automotive product planning to a thought leader in media entertainment.

James earned his BSE in Electrical Engineering from the University of Michigan. He is a respected member of the 500 Startups family and serves as a partner at Transparent Collective. James has been recognized for his excellence in special projects by Mazda Design NA and Sony Gran Turismo, among other accolades and affiliations.