The most recent Census Bureau data cited new businesses owned by Latinos accounted for 36% of launches in 2023. Despite the impact these businesses have, they are more likely to experience financial hardship than white-owned businesses and much less likely to receive more than $100,000 in funding from banks.
This disparity isn’t new; Hispanic business owners have been facing systemic roadblocks for decades. It’s complex to address and requires a holistic, national approach that takes a lot of coordination, resource allocation, and communication. Many leaders—in government and the private sector alike—stay away from the issue simply because they don’t have the skills or determination to properly solve it.
That’s not the case for Jackie Puente, chair of the Board of Directors at the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (USHCC). Her dedication to addressing the resource gap for Hispanic-owned businesses is personal. During her career, she has seen how economic policy issues make a difference, has worked to expand digital equity and internet access, helped usher in a new digital age at one of the biggest telecommunications companies in the world, and has connected investment funds to Hispanic-owned businesses.
“We’re not going to solve all the problems of Hispanic entrepreneurs and business leaders with one solution,” Puente says.
She is an expert at bringing together the power of media, funding, and government. Supported by her unique expertise, the USHCC is helping nearly 5 million business owners take their rightful place as influential economic leaders.
Puente speaking at an event for the USHCC
LANGUAGE: THE GREAT CONNECTOR
Puente grew up in a bilingual household and from early age had a deep appreciation for the ways language connects people. Growing up in Hartford, Connecticut, Puente and her family were surrounded by a large Spanish-speaking population from Puerto Rico, and because of the common language she was able to connect with other Hispanic Americans.
Aiming to become trilingual, Puente began learning Russian in middle school, and continued to pursue it into college. Telling her parents that she was going to study Russian literature at American University didn’t exactly get the response she hoped for. As businesspeople, Puente’s parents were wary of the career options she’d have with that major. “What could be worse than your daughter being a literature major, right?” she jokes. They encouraged her to study business as well, hoping it would give her a few more options at graduation time.
She obliged, graduating with degrees in literature and economics. After graduation, Puente was awarded the Boren Fellowship, a national security fellowship sponsored by the U.S. government. She moved to Russia, furthering her studies in Russian language and literature before moving back to Washington, D.C., and getting exposure to the world of policy.
POLICY: THE CHANGE DRIVER
All Boren Fellowship recipients are required to serve an equal amount of time in the federal government once they return from abroad.
“I worked at the Treasury Department in the Office of Economic Policy,” Puente says. “I planned to do international economics work and keep up on my language skills.”
However, Puente’s outgoing personality and ability to connect with people caught the eye of her boss at the time, who steered her toward the people-interfacing side of policy.
“He told me that I was too outgoing to be doing behind-the-scenes work,” she says. “Instead, he recommended that I should be in an outward-facing role where I was explaining policy and interacting with the community that the initiatives impacted.”
It was then that Puente joined the Congressional Hispanic Leadership Institute and began working on economic policy. As she got more into the work, centered on international issues, free trade, and free people, she fell in love with the community affairs component.
Learning how to work with decision-makers on Capitol Hill, Puente uncovered just how much change is possible when you can connect with people. “Policy is messy, and it’s complicated,” she says. “But if you can communicate what’s happening and build coalitions, you can solve some of the challenges that seem to never get solved.”
MOVING INTO MEDIA
Puente thrived working in the public sector, and without that background, she wouldn’t have had the foundation to drive change. But it didn’t take long before she realized how much opportunity for impact exists in the private sector. Working at a technology consulting firm, she focused on telecommunications and tech issues that were impacting different communities. Much of her work centered on digital equity and increasing access to the internet at a time when it was becoming an integral part of society.
Not long after her jump to the private sector, NBCUniversal started looking for someone who could help deliver on some of the organization’s philanthropy commitments. Puente joined the media giant 13 years ago, and today is Vice President of External Affairs. She spends each day working to improve the economic climate for people, provide better access to credit, and open up resources to business owners.
Her time in the world of media equipped Puente with the skills to communicate broadly, craft strategic outreach initiatives, and tailor solutions to the communities that need them most. “You can’t solve every problem,” she says. “So, I’ve always had a very clear focus: Economic justice is social justice.”
The world is the most connected it has ever been. But one thing hasn’t changed: The least connected people still have the most challenges. “I’ve spent the last two months working with farmworker communities,” Puente says. “Only now, as they’re reaching out for resources like storm preparation or FEMA-related disaster technology, are we able to talk to them about internet and technology access.”
Headshot of Puente
FINDING THE FUNDING
Educated as an economist, the importance of financial resources for business and prosperity has always been top of mind for Puente. When she joined the board of an impact investment fund, she got to see just how much of a difference access to funds had on small, Hispanic-owned businesses.
“We need to close the gap and give people the tools and resources they need to be successful,” Puente says. “That’s why I joined the USHCC. Solving these problems requires better relationships with the financial institutions that are making decisions for business leaders.” Once it was clear what Hispanic business owners needed in terms of capital, the economist in Puente was able to help bridge the gap.
U.S. HISPANIC CHAMBER OF COMMERCE: THE CULMINATION OF IT ALL
Stepping into a leadership role at the USHCC started as a passion project. But today, it’s one of the proudest accomplishments of Puente’s very seasoned career.
“The Hispanic market is a bellwether for how the economy performs,” she says. “It’s a young, highly entrepreneurial population, but if it doesn’t have the tools and resources it needs, it’s going to get left behind.”
With more than 250 chambers across the country, the USHCC reaches 5 million businesses, helping them advocate for themselves and access state and federal resources. The pandemic is a great example of how chambers become “emergency rooms” of sorts for small businesses.
“Chambers of commerce used to be old boys’ clubs,” Puente says. “The pandemic modernized what chambers are in the long term. They really jumped into action, helping business owners secure PPP grants and digitize their strategies.”
Looking forward, Puente is focused on continuing to modernize, incorporating more technology, and evolving the services offered by the USHCC as business needs evolve.
“We really need to diversify our media strategy, too,” she says. “Many Hispanic business owners are listening to Spanish-language radio, but there are also many English-dominant owners that are looking for insights and intel. We have to be everywhere.”
As the new Chair, Puente is looking to usher in a refreshed era. Together with the ongoing USHCC team, they’ll be able to best advocate for the interests of the Hispanic business community. When everyone comes together in this way, bringing media strategy, financial resources, and policy changes to Hispanic-owned businesses, it isn’t just that community that benefits. We all benefit as the economy is bolstered.
