Carla Vernón didn’t think she’d go into business.

She was inspired to do good in the world by a father who emigrated from Panama to become a college math professor and by her mother who was one of the real-life “Hidden Figures,” the Black women mathematicians who helped develop the U.S. space program.

After studying ecology and biology at Princeton, she worked for a nature conservation nonprofit organization and as a U.S. Senate staffer. Then, she decided she could have a bigger impact from within corporate America.

Today, she’s CEO of The Honest Company, which sells baby, skincare, bath and beauty products. And she’s one of the first Afro-Latina chief executives of a publicly traded company. Before that, she was a vice president at Amazon and spent more than two decades at General Mills, rising to division president of its natural and organic business.

MPR News host Angela Davis talks with Vernón about the experiences that shaped her and what it means to be a corporate leader while staying true to yourself.

Guest:

• Carla Vernón has been CEO of The Honest Company since January 2023. She previously spent two years as the vice president of Consumables Categories at Amazon. Before that, she spent more than two decades in various leadership positions at General Mills, most recently serving as the operating unit president of the Natural and Organic Division. She holds an undergraduate degree from Princeton and a master’s degree in business administration from the McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas.

This show was previously scheduled to air in July, but was rescheduled due to breaking news.

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Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.