Research shows that women are interrupted twice as much as men in meetings. But when you're working in a professional, business environment, meetings are critical. So here's how you make sure your voice gets heard in corporate settings. (Inc.)

Mellody Hobson has been named the new vice chair at Starbucks, a position she will take over at the end of the month. The move comes one month after the company came under fire when one of its franchises in Philadelphia was accused of racial profiling and discrimination after an employee called police on two black men for sitting in the restaurant without placing an order. Hobson is currently president of Chicago-based Ariel Investments. (InvestmentNews)

In a survey of 1,583 white-collar professionals, 96 percent said they require flexibility to do their jobs well, but only 47 percent said they have the flexibility they need. (Harvard Business Review)

With Summer on the horizon, now is the time to take the opportunity to step away from the everyday grind and find time to reflect and rejuvenate - even if you can't take a long vacation. (Fast Company)

A new survey conducted by the website Comparably has concluded that T-Mobile CEO John Legere, Brian Halligan of HubSpot and Brad Smith of Intuit are among the best CEOs when it comes to cultivating diversity in the workplace. (USA TODAY)

Earlier this week a group of influential black women in Philadelphia gathered at the "Women's Leadership and Breaking the Glass Ceiling" symposium to engage in a conversation about how black women can excel in their careers, including breaking the glass ceiling. The event was sponsored by the Chamber of Commerce. (Philadelphia Tribune)

The European Union has announced its plans to retaliate against the United States for tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump. The EU will impose approximately $3.3 billion worth of tariffs on American goods, a punitive measure that will go into effect in July. (CNN Money)

Atima Lui has earned a spot on the FedEx Young Innovators List. Lui is the young woman who won the National Black MBA Association^® Scale-Up Pitch Challenge last year after creating the company Nudest, designed to boost the confidence of dark-skinned girls and women.

Hands-free driving is coming to Cadillac. General Motors has announced plans to include hands-free highway driving in all of its luxury-line Cadillac models beginning in 2020. Currently, that technology is only available in the CT6 luxury sedan. (Fortune)

Google has announced that over the next few months, it will be requiring all users to utilize its new update to the highly-successful email platform. The new Gmail will become available to the general public in July. (Business Insider)

Securing funding remains a difficult task for black entrepreneurs. According to a 2015 CB Insights analysis, black startup founders received only one percent of the U.S. venture capital funding in 2015, although they comprised about 11 percent of the population. (ChicagoInno)

Many companies, particularly those led by entrepreneurs who are just getting started, rely on lavish perks to lure qualified employees. But here is another suggestion: you might want to skip the superficial perks and provide employees with something to nourish their minds. Books. (Inc.)

Two growing chains - Ollie's Bargain Outlet and Five Below - are showing market signs of growth while shares of the dollar-stores have fallen as American shoppers have turned their focus to a different style of bargain shopping. (Reuters)

The U.S. trade deficit narrowed to the lowest level since September as exports rose to a record amid Trump administration tariffs and trade threats that could damage global commerce. (Bloomberg)

Last week, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency proposed an alternative to the trap that is snaring some of the 40 percent of Americans who don't have the cash reserves to cover a $400 emergency expense: help from the nation's banks and federal savings associations. (Fortune)