Harris joined the IBM board, becoming the first Black woman on a Fortune 500 board.
In 1971, Patricia Roberts Harris was appointed to the board of directors of IBM, setting another precedent as the first Black woman to serve on the board of a Fortune 500 company. This achievement reflected her expanding influence beyond academia and diplomacy into corporate governance, an area traditionally dominated by white men.
Harris's role on the board was pioneering, offering a new narrative for African American women in leadership positions within major corporations. Her involvement with IBM helped begin the process of diversifying boardrooms, inspiring policy changes regarding corporate diversity in future decades.