The answer may be two-fold: if your business is banking on scoring government tenders to exist, never mind grow, you have a flawed business plan. Too many black businesses imo thinks that a tender is the answer to all their woes. In fact, doing business with the state is a nightmare. Unless you are connected. And then it's not business anyway.

Secondly, your example of the board meeting doesn't surprise. To have someone parachuted into essentially confidential discussions in a highly competitive area would unsettle anyone.

Your entire story seems to based on some kind of entitlement. Talent, skin color, even ability, has less to do with business than confidence. That's why it's good to start small, and build up a track record, and make sure people can see what you've done. Too many people jump into the deep end and end up sinking, and  then blame the world. Or white business.