Matthew Daks

The Coffee Quality Institute is a non-profit organization, working internationally to improve the quality of coffee and the lives of the people who produce it.
Our vision is an education system that will pave the path to self-sufficient, thriving, sustainable coffee communities by supporting a common language of coffee and the best scientific practices throughout the value chain to improve quality.

Our Vision.
A dynamic coffee industry that achieves racial equity through the participation of a diverse group of professionals at all levels in all types of organizations.

Our Mission.
To empower Black American entrepreneurs and professionals in the coffee industry by using a holistic approach to dismantle barriers to entry, ensure access to education, mentorship and resources, and foster equity, respect, and belonging while honoring the legacy of Black contributions to coffee.

Advise and consult with the President as a member of the Executive Committee. In this role, I also Chaired the Nominating Committee, identifying and proposing new slates of Board Members who would help lead the organization for the next many years. This time was focussed on cementing the organizational structure put in place over the previous 5 years and ensuring the long term success of the Board of Directors.

As the President of the Board of Directors I sought out to strengthen the association and the functioning of the Board of Directors by emphasizing leadership, service and succession planning while managing to steer the organization through the stressful financial impacts created by the Covid pandemic.

Having previously worked to establish new committees aligned with the associations differentiating factors, I had the Executive Vice President take over management and guidance of the… Show more

As the President of the Board of Directors I sought out to strengthen the association and the functioning of the Board of Directors by emphasizing leadership, service and succession planning while managing to steer the organization through the stressful financial impacts created by the Covid pandemic.

Having previously worked to establish new committees aligned with the associations differentiating factors, I had the Executive Vice President take over management and guidance of the committees. Each committee would be Chaired by a returning Board Member with a new Board Member in a supporting role to ensure smooth transitions.

Meanwhile we navigated the murky waters of various pandemic isolation mandates, to launch web based tasting and educational seminars to help mitigate the financial loss from not being able to host our in person conventions and still drive value for our members. Show less

As the Executive Vice President of the Pacific Coast Coffee Association, I supported the Presidents efforts to revitalize the charter of the organization and implemented the creation of new committees that directly supported our unique offerings to the coffee community. Under my guidance and at the direction of the President, along with the membership body, we established the Friendship Committee, the Relationship Committee, the Mentorship Committee and the Heritage Committee.

The Pacific Coast Coffee Association was founded in 1932 under a charter to support all organizations in the coffee industry on the Pacific Coast of the United States and Canada. Since the PCCA's inception, the association has strived to encourage growth and prosperity in the coffee industry by continuing the founding fathers philosophy of unity and active participation to ensure support to all members of the association.