Fostering urban entrepreneurship: accelerating business opportunity
In today’s chaotic climate of lagging economic growth, downsizing and high unemployment, the role of AfricanAmerican and other minority-owned businesses becomes increasingly more important in supplying the necessary employment and consumer spending opportunities that fuel this economy. Minorityowned businesses outpace others in terms of growth and represent a wide range of industries.
Prior to integration, African Americans owned many businesses that not only turned a profit, but also provided social outlets, a neighborhood focal point and community support to the consumers they served. As blacks enjoyed the freedom of being able to shop, eat and socialize where they wanted, their traditional means of support – African-Americanowned businesses – suffered. And many who survived this became victims of urban renewal.
Despite these new challenges, AfricanAmerican-owned firms are once again making their mark.
Here at home, the future success and competitiveness of St. Louis metro area businesses depends on recruiting, developing and retaining minority talent and promoting minority economic entrepreneurship. Carnegie Mellon professor and author Richard Florida has documented the links between a region’s diversity and its economic competitiveness. Achieving diversity in the workplace requires a strong commitment and resources.
In another key initiative to strengthen and focus the region’s commitment to building minority-owned businesses and enhancing diversity in the workplace, the St. Louis Business Diversity Initiative was launched in Spring of 2001 by the RCGA, Civic Progress, the RBC, the St. Louis Minority Business Council, FOCUS St. Louis, St. Louis 2004 and the Leadership Council Southwestern Illinois.
Funded by Civic Progress and the RCGA, and housed at the RCGA, the Diversity Initiative continues to help regional businesses compete more effectively in the New Economy through strengthened workforce diversity and stronger relationships with minority suppliers. To date, more than 130 mid-to-large firms, representing more than 200,000 employees, support this collaborative regional program. The remarkable success of the annual Salute to Excellence in Business Luncheon, a joint venture between the Regional Chamber and Growth Association, the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis and the St. Louis American Foundation, reflects a growing broad acceptance in both the public and private sectors that increasing substantial opportunities forAfricanAmericans in the St. Louis area is a business imperative. This annual recognition luncheon helps as
a bridge to greater understanding and appreciation of shared interests, between African Americans and the business community.
Thomas W. Jones, former chairman of Citi’s asset-management, global-investment and public-banking operations and a trustee at Harvard University, says, “One of the new frontiers for African Americans could be business. Clearly, if America is going to be a more open society, than one of the testing grounds would have to be where the dollar is made, where significant wealth and services are at stake.”
It would be shortsighted if enlightened business and political leaders were to fail to embrace and nurture fledging AfricanAmerican entrepreneurs. Moreover, wellintended executives must move beyond the common lament, “I’d hire more women and minorities, but I can’t find qualified people.”
Sometimes, it’s just an excuse, but some managers are sincere. If organizations are really serious about attracting and retaining African Americans, then inclusion must become a priority. Moreover, if African Americans are not welcomed in greater numbers into the mainstream of business, prospects for improving the area’s competitive position are diminished.
There is a high correlation between high diversity levels and regions that are leaders in the “new economy.” The St. Louis region needs a comprehensive diversity strategy based on broad acceptance in the business community. Awell thought out diversity plan can help defray much of the historic negative feeling in the African-American community about business. This annual luncheon serves as a report card and promotes some of the good news about the successes of individual African Americans in business.
Although progress has been too slow, African-American entrepreneurs and corporate executives have begun to make their presence felt here in St. Louis and many are making a significant contribution to the region’s bottom line.
We are delighted that the list of top African-American businesses again goes beyond the usual visible successes to include a host of less familiar, but noteworthy achievers.
Yes, these are selected individual achievers and you may debate our choices. And, yes, too few black faces are found in most St. Louis companies. But, these awardees are solid evidence that there are promising signs that things are changing. The future of St. Louis depends on more and more positive change in this area, more and more minority entrepreneurship and participation in the local economy at every level, but in particular in leadership positions.
This Year's Salute to Excellence in Business Awardees:
Tim Slater Entrepreneur of the Year
Pamela Wall-Dover Corporate Executive of the Year
Barbara A. Washington Non-Profit Executive of the Year
Nestle Purina PetCare Co. Corporate Diversity Award
Excellence in Business Performance Awardees:
Patricia R. Coleman Darron L. Lowe Wendy Richardson Chris Tabourne
The Area’s Top 25 African-American Businesses for 2012
ï Ability Building & Restoration LLC
ï ABNAEngineering Inc.
ï Afram Corp.
ï AfroWorld International
ï Andy’s Seasoning, Inc.
ï BAM Contracting, LLC
ï BRK Electrical Contractors
ï Brown Kortkamp Realty
ï Capital International Communications
ï Centrex Electrical Supply Corp.
ï Davis Associates, CPAs
ï FUSE
ï Hicks-Carter-Hicks, LLC
ï Interface Construction Corp.
ï KAI Design & Build
ï Kwame Buildling Group Inc.
ï Mind Safety Management, LLC
ï Quest Management Consultants
ï Project Management Solutions Group
ï Real Estate Solutions
ï Riley Ready Mix & Materials Inc.
ï Sweetie Pie’s
ï VectorCommunications
ï William C. Harris Funeral Directors
ï World Wide Technology
James H.Buford President, Urban League of Metropolitan St.Louis
Donald M.Suggs President, St.Louis American Foundation
Joe Reagan President & CEO St.Louis RCGA
Salute to Excellence In Business
Special Awardee
Providing solutions with information
2012 Entrepreneur of the Year: Tim Slater
Entrepreneur of the Year
By Rebecca S.Rivas Of The St.Louis American
Tim Slater, president of Information Solutions Design, Inc. is an entrepreneur with a $12-million company and 125 employees.
“Growing up in this city and to be a success at what I do, that allows me to contribute back to the city I grew up in,” Slater said. “That’s a gratifying feeling.”
Slater will be recognized as 2012 Entrepreneur of the Year on Thursday, Nov. 15 at the 13th annual Salute to Excellence in Business Awards & Networking Luncheon at the RitzCarlton, St. Louis. The event is jointly hosted by the St. Louis American Foundation, St. Louis RCGAand the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis.
Aperson has to make calculated risks when starting a business, said Slater. When Slater calculates risk, it comes from 20 years of U.S. Air Force service in information technology.
After spending his life instructing and managing the U.S. Air Force’s computer training centers, he could have gotten a job with AT&T, he said. The company had openings in San Antonio, Texas, where he was stationed. He could have worked for an ITcompany and stayed in the South.
Or he could try to shoot for his dream. He always wanted to go into business, watch his own business grow and offer opportunities to other people to develop their skills as well.
“You just do it,” he said. “Or else you will always wonder, ‘What if?’”
In the fall of 1997, Slater moved back to St. Louis and became the project task leader for Dynamic Process Solutions Incorporated out of Scott Air Force Base. Five years later, he bought the business. DPSI largely provided information technology services to clients such as the Air Force, U.S. Army, and other Departments of Defense organizations.
Slater started with three employees,
and he grew it to 100 in four years.
This kind of success can only happen, he said, “when you’ve got a family unit that you can say, ‘Let’s circle the wagons, let’s make a run at it.’”
He gives much credit to his wife of 30 years, Sheila, his Normandy High School sweetheart. She is the human relations manager for Information Solutions Design and New Horizons. In the early stages, there was a lot of uncertainty.
“You’ve got this company in this building. There are employees on payroll, and you’re trying to find revenue streams,” he said.
Tim Slater, president of Information Solutions Design,Inc. is an entrepreneur with a $12million company and 125 employees.
Before New Horizons was able to get fully rolling, the economy took a downturn. It actually ended up being a blessing.
“While most businesses went down, ours went up,” Slater said.
New Horizons was able to partner with the state and federal government to provide workforce investment programs. The company received $1 million in the Workforce Investment Act funding to offer training classes as a free service for those in the local community who were impacted by layoffs.
“In our partnership with the state, we are focused on outcomes,” Slater said. “Can we make people employment ready?”
Students learned the functionality of Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn – all with the objective of connecting with potential employers. It provided training certifications in various technologies, including Microsoft technical training, Cisco, Project Management, ITILand Lean Six Sigma.
More than 200 unemployed area businesspeople have enlisted in New Horizons Computer Learning Center to learn how to leverage social media to land jobs. The training program has a 7080 percent job placement rate.
Equally significant, the federal and state partnership was able to bring in more diversity to the company’s training programs. Before the partnership, New Horizons center students were 90 percent white males, ages 25 to 45. As a result of the federal and state funding, now 35 percent of the students are African Americans, women and minorities.
Within the first two years, the business paid off its debt.
In 2005, Slater started Information Solutions Design, adding a consumer IT training sidekick to his government services business. Through Information Solutions, Slater opened a global franchise called New Horizons Computer Learning Center for St. Louis and Metro East. It’s the world’s largest ITtraining franchise with 300 centers in 60 countries.
In 2006, EADS North America Defense Security and Systems Solutions, Inc. bought DPSI. Slater put more focus on developing the training business.
“This funding is giving more minorities and opportunity to increase their technical and ITmanagement skills without out-of-pocket expenses,” he said.
The goal, of course, is to keep growing. Information Solutions recently closed a $2 million deal with Scott Air Force Base. They will be providing IT training to the people that are part of the Air Force Network Integration Center.
“We’ve been blessed to be where we are and that we can afford to make an opportunity for the others,” he said. “Our purpose is to continue mentoring others and grow an organization where people can achieve their objectives.”
Salute to Excellence In Business
Special Awardee
Diversifying Boeing’s suppliers
Pamela Wall-Dover: 2012 Corporate Executive of the Year
Corporate Executive of the Year
By Rebecca S.Rivas
Of the St.Louis American
In Boeing’s military aircraft division alone, the company subcontracts $7 billion annually in products and services. Because those aircrafts also need spare parts and maintenance, Boeing’s global services and support arm is responsible for an additional $4 billion in material annually.
Pamela Wall-Dover’s job for Boeing Defense, Space & Security, headquartered in St. Louis, is to help carve out opportunities for small and diverse subcontractors within those billions. She’s the senior manager of supplier diversity for Boeing military aircraft, global services & support and general procurement.
Among Boeing’s supply and operations employees in St. Louis, Wall-Dover also fosters professional growth by leading a career development program that she created two years ago.
“I see my role as a dual role from a diversity perspective,” she said. “One, of course, is the integration of diverse suppliers in our sourcing strategy. The other is working within the organization to create a pipeline of future talent. Part of succession planning is not just working with folks a level or two behind you, but it’s also preparing employees early in their career for their next level assignment.”
Wall-Dover will be recognized as 2012 Corporate Executive of the Year on Thursday, Nov. 15 at the 13th annual Salute to Excellence in Business Awards & Networking Luncheon at the RitzCarlton, St. Louis.
The event is jointly hosted by the St. Louis American Foundation, St. Louis RCGAand the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis.
From automotive and cosmetics to Boeing
Wall-Dover is a self-proclaimed “military brat.” Although originally from Franklin, Tennessee, she grew up all over
the country because her stepfather was in the U.S. Army. When he retired, her family returned home to Tennessee.In addition to completing junior high and high school in Tennessee, she graduated from the University of Tennessee in Knoxville with a bachelor’s degree in industrial engineering.
“I’ve been fortunate because my industrial engineering degree has translated into multiple career opportunities,” she said.
Wall-Dover began her career as an industrial engineer in the automotive and furniture industries, including Harvard Industries and Herman Miller. She rose to senior engineer status at Herman Miller. However, initially her long term plan was being a plant manager.
Mary Kay Cosmetics in Dallas gave her that opportunity in operations man-
Pamela
Wall-Dover is senior manager of supplier diversity for Boeing military aircraft,global services & support and global procurement.
sity have expanded significantly, and so has her leadership role at Boeing. Two years ago, she was asked to revamp a career development program. Leading a cross-functional team across the site, they decided to take it in a different direction.
“We didn’t want to recreate something that already existed,” she said.
Most career development programs at Boeing focus on senior level employees and mid-level managers. The program the team developed is unique.It focused on a group of employees who were not eligible for development programs previously, including entry-level and collective bargaining unit employees.
“In our first graduating class, 30 percent received promotions,” she said. “To us that’s great. The structure and relationship-building that the program provided helped those individuals document their career goals and achieve the next step.”
As much as she is concerned about closing the skill gap and preparing the next wave of leaders, she said, “Continuing to learn myself is also a priority.”
Since being at Boeing, she received her masters in management from Fontbonne University.
“Over the years, I’ve learned that career progression is as much about timing and preparation as it is about planning,” she said.
Wall-Dover is not only committed to her Boeing community but also to her St. Louis community. She was a graduate of the INROADS, Nashville program, where she learned the importance of community service, she said.
agement, and it also led her to working in global procurement and contract manufacturing. This role allowed her to use her manufacturing and operations leadership experiences to find companies globally that could manufacture products under the Mary Kay brand.
When she came to Boeing nine years ago, she started in supplier diversity for naval systems. She felt her experience in engineering, operations and procurement all came together at Boeing.
“They were looking for someone with a technical background,” she said. “It helps to have someone who can talk the talk – someone who understands manufacturing so you can facilitate the dialogue that needs to occur with engineering and supplier management to see if a supplier is a good fit.”
Her responsibilities in supplier diver-
For seven years, Wall-Dover has been on the board of Safe Connections, an organization that helps survivors of domestic violence. For the last four years she’s also been on the board at the Youth and Family Center, an organization that provides life skills, education and recreation and after school programs for the client families they serve. Both organizations are members of United Way.
Although she did not grow up in St. Louis, she and her son feel they have found a strong foundation through their faith family at The First Baptist Church of Chesterfield.
“The church has been the source of strength for us,” she said. “Some people ask, ‘How do you go from automotive to office furniture to cosmetics to Boeing?’ I just say, ‘It’s the grace of God.’”
Salute to Excellence In
Special Awardee
Helping youth help themselves
Barbara Washington: 2012 Non-Profit Executive of the Year
Non-Profit Executive of the Year
By Rebecca S.Rivas
Of the St.Louis American
Barbara Washington, vice president of public relations and special events at Mathews-Dickey Boys’& Girls’Club, sings gospel music everywhere she can.
One of her favorite gospel songs is “Wade in the Water,” which makes a biblical reference to a healing pool that an angel touched to cure physical and emotional illness.
With the turbulent childhood she experienced growing up, she deeply understands why “healing pools” in the St. Louis community are so necessary for children. The St. Louis-area club provides this for more than 40,000 young men and women annually.
“I’ve used singing to raise money for scholarships and help young women and men succeed in school,” Washington said. “I’m concerned about today’s youth. We have to have leaders for them. Working for a man like Martin Luther Mathews is an honor. He is a child at heart and motivating person who has allowed me the opportunity to utilize every skill I have to make things happen, including raising millions of dollars to help thousands of children turn their lives around.”
Washington will be recognized as 2012 Non-Profit Executive of the Year on Thursday, Nov. 15 at the 13th annual Salute to Excellence in Business Awards & Networking Luncheon at the RitzCarlton, St. Louis. The event is jointly hosted by the St. Louis American Foundation, St. Louis RCGAand the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis. Washington has quite a story to tell, many parts of which are tragic. Yet she feels her story reflects how tragedy can be turned into triumph, and that is the message she passes along to the youth.
“My mother didn’t get a chance to raise me because she suffered depression,” Washington said. “She was married to a military man at the age of 13.”
Her mother moved in and out of many
Barbara Washington is vice president of public relations and special events at Mathews-Dickey Boys’& Girls’Club.
difficult relationships and homes, and so did Washington and her siblings. After enduring several abusive foster-home situations, Washington and her sister Jackie eventually went to live their step-grandmother, who basically brought them on as farm hands rather than relatives. However, that’s where she fell in love with hard work and with school.
Washington was living in Germany when she found out her mother died.
After burying her mother in Mississippi, Washington relocated to St. Louis to be with her sister and raise her two sons.
“I knew when I got here I needed to make some quick moves to get on my
feet,” Washington said. “I worked three jobs and some days would catch three to five buses to get to them.”
She advanced in corporate America as a single mother raising her two sons, Jay and Jamie.
Volunteering for Mathews-Dickey
She began volunteering for MathewsDickey about 30 years ago and became so involved that the organization tapped her to be the head of public relations.
“I learned from Mr. Mathews that if you can get a team involved, then you can be successful,” she said. “Everyone
“I learned from Mr.Mathews that if you can get a team involved, then you can be successful.”
– Barbara Washington
has a talent. You have to be able to motivate people and get from them their strengths. You also have to know where their weaknesses lie and help them overcome these areas to become a contributing part of the team.”
Washington’s specialty for non-profit fund-raising is spinning a shoestring budget into a profitable event that promotes the goodwill of the organization. And in the early years of building the PR & special events department, Washington developed a knack for forging partnerships with corporate communications professionals and PR firms to spread positive messages about the organization. She also engaged a total community effort of business, clergy, law enforcement, schools and parents in order to realize successful results for her organization.
She established and annually oversees three prominent community-wide fundraisers and utilizes her grant-writing skills to generate nearly $1 million for the club’s programs.These events are the Clifton Davis “Say Amen” Gala benefiting literacy programs; the Sheer Elegance Fashion Show, a holiday fundraiser for the Club’s Girls’Program; and “Jack Buck Celebrity Night with the Stars & Tony La Russa,” benefiting the Reviving Baseball in the Inner-city Program.
Washington also administers education programs with a dedicated staff and 250-plus professional volunteers.
“Our lifeblood is volunteerism,” she said. “My proudest achievement is being able to see so many young people who have gotten involved in programs who come back and say, ‘I want to get involved.’If you receive, you must be able to return the blessing.”
As a testament to that, Washington’s favorite gospel number is Mahalia Jackson’s “If I Can Help Somebody As I Travel Along (Then My Living Shall Not Be In Vain).
Salute to Excellence In Business
Special Awardee
‘Leading the pack’in inclusion
Nestle Purina: 2012 Corporate Diversity awardee
Corporate Diversity Award of the Year
By Rebecca S.Rivas Of The St.Louis American
People love their pets.
Nestle Purina PetCare’s mission is to enrich the lives of pets and the people who love them. Yet the company can’t do that without a richly diverse and innovative workforce that reflects its consumer base, said Patrick McGinnis, CEO of Nestle Purina PetCare for all of North and South America.
“Diversity is very much a business imperative at Purina,” McGinnis said.
“Beyond that, we are working to prepare the next generation to continue our mission into the future. To get that done, we need to ensure all of our people processes, from talent acquisition through development and leadership succession, have diversity embedded into them.”
Nestle Purina will receive the 2012 Corporate Diversity award on Thursday, Nov. 15 at the 13th annual Salute to Excellence in Business Awards & Networking Luncheon at the Ritz-Carlton. The event is jointly hosted by the St. Louis American Foundation, St. Louis RCGAand the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis.
Diversity boom
When employees arrive at Purina, they tend to stay for a while. Presently, the company has a high average length of service and average age, with a high percentage eligible for retirement.
“We have a lot of people getting ready to leave, and we need every single source available to us to replenish our boomers,” said Steve Degnan, VP and head of human resources.
Company leaders realize that this is an opportunity to grow strong diverse leaders and to rethink their recruitment process, Degnan said. About six years ago, most college recruits would come from less than 10 universities. This
year’s class is coming from 72 universities.
“We’ve gone away from the traditional way of going to recruit,” Degnan said. “We’ve gone after everybody.”
Within the last three years, the company has increased the number of minorities among its new recruits from 15 percent to 25 percent.
Purina connected with the St. Louis Business Diversity Initiative’s Fellows Program, led by Valerie Patton.
“All of our people processes, from talent acquisition through development and leadership succession, have diversity embedded into them.”
– Patrick McGinnis,CEO of Nestle Purina PetCare
At the same time, the company has also embarked on a journey to strengthen and develop its minority leaders who have been with the company for many years. About five years ago,
The program is a leadership curriculum for mid- to senior-level multicultural talent. The vision is to create a more inclusive, welcoming and successful environment for multicultural talent at all levels of regional business.
“We take as many slots in the program as we can get,” Degnan said. “It ends up benefiting us in multiple ways.”
The program not only helps to build a network and community among minority
professionals in the city, he said, but it also helps to create stronger processes for inclusion within all areas of the company.
Crystal Hardiman, a team leader in the order revenue management department at Nestle Purina PetCare, went through the program in 2010.
“I feel privileged to have gone through the program,” she said. “It has helped me become a better leader and coach. I have also become a better employee to my boss. I’ve changed the way I interact with my boss to make sure she knows I am for her and with her, no matter what is going on.”
Hardiman has been with the company for 15 years, and when she first arrived, she was often the only AfricanAmerican woman in the room.
“For the past 10 years, we have taken a step into inclusion,” she said. “Inclusion means not only having representation, but also having those leaders feel comfortable.”
She said if representation were the only goal, company leaders could check that off their list when more minorities enter the workforce. But because inclusion is the end goal, the company strives to have conversations that make those employees feel welcome and empowered.
Every employee is also required to take a diversity course. The classes are challenging, Hardiman said, because they are not only about race but also about diversity of thought.
“It challenges our assumptions,” she said.
To further support this conversation, as well as professional development, the company has developed an online mentoring system (like an Eharmony for mentees), where mentees can select their mentors. The mentorships last for eight months.
In addition, the company also hosts a number of speakers during Black History Month, which have included gospel singer Wintley Phipps and local legend and civil rights attorney Frankie Freeman.
“When I walk the halls, there is a diverse mix of races, gender, ideas and ages,” Hardiman said. “Purina is leading the pack.”
“We see this as a journey that we have started and we are far from finished,” said CEO Patrick McGinnis.
Nestle Purina is the 2012 Corporate Diversity awardee.Left to right: Crystal Hardiman,Fontez Mark and Cathy Smalls of Nestle Purina.
Photo by Wiley Price
2012 Excellence in Business Performance awardee
Patricia R. Coleman:
‘Respect and appreciation fordifferences’
By American staff
Patricia R. Coleman is the chief operating officer for Behavioral Health Response (BHR), which provides 24hour behavioral health and crisis response services to agencies and companies worldwide.
“One of the keys to BHR’s successes is our employees respect and appreciation for differences in work experiences, perspectives, cultures and life styles,” Coleman said.
Her goal is to create an environment where employees feel valued and supported, she said.
“We have the tools and support in place to foster the success factor of diversity,” she said. “Overall, that is what we strive for at BHR, and I believe that is why the people that we hire are second
to none in the field of behavioral health. It is that kind of environment that professionals want to work in.”
BHR’s Board of Directors
named Coleman the president and CEO, and she will assume her new role on December 1. Coleman started at BHR as a human resources consultant in 1996, under the auspices of the consulting group she founded. She was later hired as a full-time employee.
Patricia R. Coleman
Coleman is a graduate of the St. Louis Business Diversity Initiative Fellows and Focus Leadership St. Louis programs. She serves on the Workforce Investment Board, the Diversity Awareness Partnership Advisory Council and is a
prior executive member of the local chapter of the National Association of African Americans in Human Resources (NAAAHR).
“I believe St. Louis has a bit of a ways to go in the area of diversity, in part, due to our segregated communities and geography as a whole,” she said.
The metropolitan area is much smaller than the extended counties and suburbs that make up what people know to be St. Louis, she said.
“We are also faced with the challenge of having so many pieces that are working separately instead of together,” she said. “The fact that people are working towards worthwhile goals is great but the
lack of collaborative works hinders us from pooling our resources to make the biggest impact. I’m hoping that we can make better strides for the next generation of leadership.”
She most recently has become a board member of Mental Health America of Eastern Missouri. She is an active member of Mercy Seat Missionary Baptist Church located in the Central West End. Coleman is a CARF surveyor and enjoys the responsibility of ensuring that organizations become accredited in providing quality services to enhance the lives of the people they serve. Anative of St. Louis with education from the St. Louis City public schools, she holds a Bachelor of Arts from St. Louis University and an MBAfrom Fontbonne College.
2012 Excellence in Business Performance awardee
Darron Lowe: ‘Diversity makes a strongercompany’
By American staff
Darron Lowe has been a leader in the Wells Fargo Advisors Black/AfricanAmerican Initiative to increase the recruitment, retention and development of African Americans.
“Diversity makes Wells Fargo a better, stronger company and even a better place to work,” said Lowe, assistant vice president of market growth & development consultant for the Lending Banking Services Group. “It enables us to better serve our diverse customers’needs and provide outstanding service to our customers and communities.”
This year, Lowe helped create and launch the Emerging Leaders Program to pair young black professionals with senior leaders who can assist in building a solid foundation for strong leadership.
Lowe joined Wells Fargo Advisors in 2008 as a project manager in the Lending & Banking Services Group. Then, in
2011, Lowe moved into a channel manager position. He manages the firm’s largest Corresponding Firm lending strategy, which closes approximately $40 million annually.
Lowe was named the 2009 Volunteer of the Year for Wells Fargo Advisors. He was also named to the 2011 St. Louis Business Diversity Initiative.
“St. Louis continues to make progress in terms of diversity, and we have begun to work on a sustainability planning effort in the past 18 months,” he said.
The sustainability plan will look to harness the strength and spirit of its diverse community to create an economically, socially and ecologically vibrant city for present and future generations, he said.
“There is much work to be done since many components make up diversity, and we have to be willing to become uncomfortable in order to understand and learn,” he said.
“The city of St. Louis is my home, and its community must hold each other to a higher standard regarding becoming a more diverse city and continue making advancements that are beneficial to one and all.”
Prior to joining Wells Fargo Advisors, Lowe was an account manager for MasterCard International, leading initiatives to increase card usage. He started his career as an operations manager at Bank of America and in this role, he managed the servicing, vendor relationships and new service enhancements for the largest ATM network in the
nation.
In the community, Lowe has volunteered with City Academy to launch a partnership with their summer school program, professional mentor program and reading workshop. Lowe was a volunteer basketball coach at River Roads Lutheran School for 10 years, and now he’s coaching junior varsity basketball at Whitfield High School.
“I’m very passionate about our youth and ensuring they achieve a quality education,” he said. “I’ve focused my volunteer efforts on a couple of inner-city schools to assist with fundraising efforts and reading workshops.”
What are some of Lowe’s proudest achievements?
“Personally, it’s the daily impact I have in my son’s life when I can share with him relevant skill sets that I’ve learned in my own professional development,” he said.
Darron Lowe
2012 Excellence in Business Performance awardee
Wendy Richardson: ‘Diversity sits at the root of innovation’
By American staff
Wendy Richardson has held a variety of leadership roles at MasterCard, from leading the ITTransformation Management Office to technology account manager.
Currently, she leads the MasterCard Customer Technical Communications team, who develops and delivers technical and operational information to customers.
“As a global technology company, MasterCard has demonstrated a commitment to diversity and inclusion, by the formation and support of Business Resource Groups (BRGs), a driven Chief Diversity Officer, and a Multicultural Committee that develops strategies and sets direction,” said Richardson, VPof customer technical communications at MasterCard Worldwide..
As an advocate for diversity and inclusion, Richardson serves on the Multicultural Leadership Committee, and
she was the lead chair of the St. Louis Lifting Employees of African Descent (LEAD) Business Resource Group at MasterCard (from 20082010).
She also graduated from two leadership development programs that impacted her career, perspective and life, she said. She was a fellow of the St. Louis Business Diversity Initiative in 2010, and a graduate of the FOCUS Leadership St. Louis in 2012.
“Diversity sits at the root of innovation,” she said. “Diversity of culture, experience and thought all drive innovative thinking. Employees are encouraged to express diverse opinions, ideas, and insights.”
that means participating in the business resource groups, which are employee-led groups that promote the company’s inclusion strategy.
Wendy Richardson
The best way to promote diversity and inclusion at any organization is by getting involved, she said. At MasterCard,
“I’ve served in many capacities in our BRGs, from event champion to panel participant to the lead co-chair of LEAD,” she said.“This experience allowed me to expand my leadership skills, build my network, and make a greater contribution to MasterCard.” Richardson received her undergraduate degree and Masters of Business Administration from Fontbonne University, where she currently serves as a senior adjunct lecturer.
She said one of her proudest achievements is helping others grow their knowledge and gain professional skills, as a faculty member at Fontbonne University. And as a leader at
“Diversity of culture, experience and thought all drive innovative thinking.”
– Wendy Richardson of MasterCard
MasterCard she also proud to her team members grow professionally and expand their careers.
Wendy has received many awards and honors for outstanding performance throughout her career, including the Harlem YMCABlack Achievers in Industry Award.
Richardson chaired the 2011 MasterCard - United Way giving campaign, she serves on the board of the International Institute, and she participates in several charitable and educational programs, including Junior Achievement and Rebuilding Together.
2012 Excellence in Business Performance awardee
Chris Tabourne:
‘We reflect the community we
do business with’
By American staff
Chris Tabourne is the assistant vice president of diversity and inclusion at Enterprise Holdings — the parent company that operates Alamo Rent ACar, Enterprise Rent-A-Car and National Car Rental.
Tabourne leads and implements diversity and inclusion initiatives for the company’s 72,000 employees.
“We want to shape our workforce and leadership team so that we reflect the community we do business with,” he said.
As part of his role, he also heads-up the company’s North American Diversity and Career and Family Focus teams, who assist in the recruitment, retention and development of a diverse workforce.
number of minorities and women at all employment levels and helped to expand community outreach and improve relations with the group’s diverse business partners.
Because of his success in New York and Atlanta, Tabourne continued up the corporate ladder to become the corporate diversity and inclusion manager in St. Louis in 2005. After leading that charge, he received yet another promotion in 2008 to his current role — assistant vice president of diversity and inclusion for Enterprise Holdings’worldwide operations.
Chris Tabourne
“It’s important to note that diversity starts at the top with Andy Taylor, chairman and CEO, and Pam Nichelson, COO and president,” he said. “They set the right tone and lead by example.”
Tabourne joined Enterprise in 1989 as a management trainee in Atlanta and quickly advanced through operations to become a branch manager. From there, he transitioned to human resources and became a group recruiting supervisor and a recruiting manager. During this time, Tabourne was recognized as the Recruiter of the Year by the Morehouse College Business Association.
“We know the marketplace is ever-changing, and we have more diversity in our marketplace than ever before,” he said. “For us diversity within our company is critical to our long-term success.”
“We want to shape our workforce and leadership team so that we reflect the community we do business with.”
– Chris Tabourne, assistant vice president of diversity and inclusion at Enterprise Holdings
In 2002, Tabourne became the company’s first group diversity manager. He said the position allowed him to lead, develop and implement diversity strategies for Enterprise’s operations in New York.
In this role, Tabourne increased the
Tabourne is involved with a number of local community and professional organizations, and currently serves on the board of directors for MERS/Goodwill Industries in St. Louis and is a member of the St. Louis Diversity Officers Network. He also is a visiting professor for the National Urban League’s Black Executive Exchange Program and chairs the community/school initiatives for Brittany Woods Middle School in University City, Mo. Additionally, he serves on the advisory board of the World Diversity Leadership Summit — an organization that awarded him the Diversity Champion Award in 2012.
Tabourne holds a political science degree from Howard University and lives in St. Louis with his wife Vikki and their two children.
The Area's Top 25 black Businesses for2012
Listed in alphabetical order
The area’s Top 25 African-American Businesses for 2012 were selected based on several criteria, including revenue, business practices, employee and vendor diversity, and community involvement.
This year, a substantial emphasis was placed on those companies who are giving back to the community, through philanthropic efforts, support of community service organizations and mentorship.
To nominate an African-Americanowned company for Salute to Excellence in Business Top 25 recognition in 2012, please visit stlamerican.com.
The 2012 Top 25 African-Ammerican Businesses are:
ï Ability Building & Restoration LLC
ï ABNAEngineering Inc.
ï Afram Corp.
ï AfroWorld International
ï Andy’s Seasoning, Inc.
ï BAM Contracting, LLC
ï BRK Electrical Contractors
ï Brown Kortkamp Realty
ï Capital International Communications
ï Centrex Electrical Supply Corp.
ï Davis Associates, CPAs
ï FUSE
ï Hicks-Carter-Hicks, LLC
ï Interface Construction Corp.
ï KAI Design & Build
ï Kwame Buildling Group Inc.
ï Mind Safety Management, LLC
ï Quest Management Consultants
ï Project Management Solutions Group
ï Real Estate Solutions
ï Riley Ready Mix & Materials Inc.
ï Sweetie Pie’s
ï Vector Communications
ï William C. Harris Funeral Directors
ï World Wide Technology
The following pages profile each of the Top 25 African-American businesses.
Ability Building & Restoration, LLC
Big projects are no longer new to Ability Building & Restoration. In recent years, the firm has done extensive construction work for Centene’s headquarters, the Four Seasons Hotel in downtown St. Louis and work on three different phases of the major expansion of Express Scripts.
Founded in 2002 by Kayla L. Dennis, Ability Building & Restoration (ABR) specializes in carpentry. Through eager, innovative, collective and individual contributions, ABR feels it can fulfill its mission to ‘build bridges’among all people and organizations in its community.
Some of the services ABR provides include: commercial, industrial and residential renovation; new construction projects; interior build out; light gage metal framing; commercial door framing; millwork, wood framing, and drywall work. ABR works with several major construction-related companies
such as Clayco, Paric, SM Wilson, Wright Construction and McCormack Baron Salazar. ABR actively pursues participation, certification and education on LEED and Green building practices. Express Scripts is one of the largest LEED-credited new projects in Missouri, to date. ABR performed a portion of the work on the third phase of the Express Scripts expansion near and on the campus of UMSL. Current projects include: Hazelwood School District, Saint Louis Public School District, Isle of Capri Casino, Cupples 9, Peabody Opera House, Peabody Energy Headquarters, Arlington Grove, and North Sarah. Dennis serves on the board for Central Institute for the Deaf, and Saint Louis University’s John School of Business Center for Entrepreneurship. She is a member of Leadership St. Louis, RBC’s YPN, United Way Women Leadership, Missouri Star, and SBA. (4-Time Top 25 Awardee)
Kayla L. Dennis
ABNAEngineering
In its 18 years, Abe and Nicole Adewale’s ABNAEngineering is still the largest Black-owned engineering firm in St. Louis and one of the largest overall.
ABNA Engineering, Inc. was founded in 1994, has grown to over 70 employees and is consistently ranked among the top 25 Engineering Firms by the St. Louis Business Journal (2001-2009).
ABNAprovides Engineering Design Services for Transportation infrastructure including Structural design, Water Wastewater systems, and other civil facilities. Additionally, ABNAprovides Surveying, Geotech, Construction Staking and Management, Materials Testing & Inspection and Planning/GIS Services.
Parking Garage, University of MissouriColumbia Surgical Tower, and BJC Ambulatory Care Clinic. Our Construction Services department expanded its staff and our Corps of Engineers Validated & AASHTO- accredited materials testing laboratory to better meet the needs of its clients.
ABNAis certified to provide professional Engineering & Surveying services.
Some of ABNA’s major clients include: IDOT, MoDOT, MSD, BJC, Lambert –St. Louis International Airport, USACE, O’Hare Airport, and City+Arch+River 2015.
Some of ABNA’s major projects include the New I-64 Design/Build and the Lindbergh Tunnel that traverses beneath Lambert Airport. Its corporate portfolio includes Monsanto’s W1
For the last ten years Abe has participated as a judge and sponsor of the St. Louis Regional FIRSTRobotics Competition. Among Nicole’s current community efforts are with the NSBE Annual Scholars Reception committee and a Trustee for the St. Louis Science Center (SLSC).
(9-Time Top 25 Awardee)
Abe and Nicole Adewale
AFRAM Corp.
Solomon Akinduro’s AFRAM Corporation continues its upward climb. The firm recently spent $1.2 million to buy a 2-story, 20,000 square foot building at 16th and Olive, reportedly, that it now calls home.
The company also has satellite offices in Chicago and Memphis. AFRAM offers a full range of construction management, engineering design, architecture, planning / development, energy and telecommunication services.
Akinduro attributes his company’s growth to their ability to think (in terms of) big dreams and believe that the sky is the limit.
degree in Construction Management at Washington University in St. Louis and has more than 25 years of international design and construction experience.
“Recently we were named prime contractor on a large project and interestingly, one of the subcontractors is a large national firm,” Akinduro said. “This would never have happened without thinking outside-the-box.”
The company’s operational philosophy is no surprise to those who know Akinduro. Aminister who immigrated from Nigeria with the help of his church, he completed his master’s
“We treat people the way we want to be treated and we make sure each project is completed in the most efficient and cost-effective method possible,” Akinduro said.
Success such as this definitely impacts the overall business climate of St. Louis because AFRAM hires St. Louis companies whenever possible to execute projects.
Some of AFRAM’s local highprofile projects have included: Lambert St. Louis International Airport Expansion, the City of St. Louis, St. Louis Board of Public Service and St. Louis Public Library. All of which are prime reasons Akinduro felt a commitment to be in downtown St. Louis. AFRAM also works with the Missouri Department of Transportation and provides engineering services and other management consulting services for Metro.
(6-Time Top 25 Awardee)
Afro World International
The sign at 7276 Natural Bridge Road says “Alittle of everything.” And that’s just what Russ Little and Sheila LittleForrest have with Afro World. Afro World, a leader in Afrocentric hair and hair care and beauty supply products, has been serving the community locally and globally for over 39 years.
Afro World offers the finest 100% human hair and supplies for all types of hair extensions including: Loc And Load™Extension System, 2Strand twist , afro kinky hair, afro toupees, male wigs, braiding & weaving hair, dred locks and twisting hair, hairpiece maintenance supplies, and much more.
Over the years Afro World has
expanded its scope of products to include traditional and contemporary Afrocentric fashions and accessories. Little-Forrest manages the retail and mail order customer base of over 100,000, from 50 states and 6 continents. She has been committed to increasing community awareness in the St. Louis area by hosting numerous community consciousness programs for the African American community. Afro World is currently the Normandy satellite location for voter registration and Saturday phone bank where volunteers inform residents about pressing political issues, such as the health care reform.
(11-Time Top 25 Awardee)
Solomon Akinduro
Sheila LittleForrest
Andy’s Seasoning, Inc.
Andy’s Seasoning, Inc. began in the basement of Katherine and Reuben “Andy” Anderson’s home, where Reuben combined a love of cooking with a knack for blending ingredients.Through trial and error they perfected their first product, barbecue sauce, which they would use for summer cookouts and work events.Friends and relatives loved their barbecue sauce and would say, “You ought to put this on the market.”The couple listened to their advice and started making samples taking it to their jobs to get feedback. They began visiting local grocery stores.
Larry W.Lee
In 1981 the company incorporated and began the process of growing from a small, two-product homebased business to a nationally known firm.Although Andy’s began with barbecue sauce, the company discontinued the product in 1990 to concentrate on dry blends of seasoned breading and seasoned salt.The first dry
products were the Red Fish, Mild Chicken and Yellow Fish breading, which was the actual breading that Mrs. Anderson used for her fish dinners and summer fish fry’s.
In 1996 Reuben Anderson passed away suddenly.Refusing to abandon the dream that she and her husband created years prior, Katherine Anderson retired from her city job and enrolled in an entrepreneurial program at Saint Louis University. Mrs. Anderson expanded the plant and has more than quadrupled the revenue of Andy’s Seasoning.
The future of Andy’s is bright. With customers in all 50 states, looking for Andy’s products in grocery chains from coast to coast and major clients such as Tyson Foods, Keystone Foods, Schnuck’s, SuperValu and Peyton.
After Mrs. Anderson’s death in November 2011, her son Larry W. Lee is now President & CEO.
(13-Time Top 25 Awardee)
BAM Contracting, LLC
Brian Murphy started BAM Contracting in 1998 after working more than 10 years for the City of St. Louis in various capacities including the Mayor’s Office, Community Development Agency, and Director of Business Development for St. Louis Development Corporation, followed by seven years with regional construction firms.
BAM specializes in residential, educational, commercial and municipal projects.
Brian Murphy
Projects have included the new Busch Stadium, Lindell Pavilion Boathouse and Probstein Learning Center and Clubhouse in Forest Park, and many others.
Recent projects include: the Coca Cola Plant, Harrison Education Center, Crown Foods, Wohl Recreation Center, North Newstead V, St. Williams Apartments, LaSalle Park Village, Sinai Village, Salisbury Park III, Hillsdale Manor and Xinlink.
BAM is currently working on the Laclede Groves Elderly Home, Eagle Ridge Apartments (Joplin), St. Luke’s
Hospice Center, Gotham Mixed-Use, Hyde Park South, Lambert-St. Louis International Airport Terminal 1 (ticketing), and Missouri Baptist west pavilion.
Afew years ago, Murphy invested in additional equipment and employees, and grew BAM’s revenue to$3.5 million in 2009, increasing to more than $7 million in 2010, with a goal of more than $10 million in 2012.
Some of BAM’s major clients include: Alberici, Paric, EM Harris Construction, RG Ross, K&S Associates, Impact Strategies, J.E. Dunn, Altman Charter and ARCO.
Murphy is a Deacon at Westside Missionary Baptist Church and is a board member with the local chapter of the United Cerebral Palsy organization and Vintage International. BAM is a member of the Associated General Contractors, the Home Builders Association, Kansas City Builders Association, and Regional Union Construction Center (RUCC).
(2-Time Top 25 Awardee)
BRK Electrical Contractors, LLC
Marion Hayes III opened BRK Electrical Contractors in St. Louis in February, 2003. Because of its tremendous, immediate growth, nine months later the company was named the Emerging Business of the Year at the St. Louis American Foundation’s Salute to Excellence Luncheon.
In just its first year, BRK’s revenue numbers reached $1.2 million. In 2004, revenue jumped to $2 million, and the numbers continue to grow for BRK. Also in 2004, Marion Hayes was the recipient of the Entrepreneur of the Year Award by the St. Louis Chapter of the National Society of Black Engineers.
In 2007, BRK was honored by the St. Louis Minority Business Council as the 2007 Construction Business of the Year, and in 2008 Hayes was recognized as one of the region’s “Most Influential Minority Business Leaders” by the St. Louis Business Journal.
BRK has done extensive work for Ameren, including its Labadie, Meramec, Rush Island and Portage des Sioux units and projects. Other recent projects include the parking garage and site lighting at Lumiere Place Casino and Hotel in downtown St. Louis, work on the new Busch Stadium, Lambert Airport, Metro, the Walgreens/Kingshighway project, as well as the Biomedical Research Building at Washington University’s School of Medicine. BRK also worked on Culinaria, Schnucks’grocery store in downtown St. Louis.
Marion Hayes III graduated from Washington University with a B.S. in Electrical Engineering as well as a Masters of Construction Management degree. Previous to forming BRK, he worked several years for both Guarantee Electric and Sachs Electric. Hayes serves on a variety of local boards, including PRIDE and the SIUE Construction Leadership Institute.
(4-Time Top 25 Awardee)
Brown-Kortkamp Family of Companies
Gail A. Brown is proprietor of a family of companies consisting of Brown-Kortkamp Moving & Storage (BK), Urban Planning and Development Corporation of America (UPDC), BrownKortkamp Realty and Elisha Brown Insurance Agency, Inc. (EBIA). As president and CEO, Gail leads the organization of progressive real estate, insurance and transportation professionals.
BK has served the greater St. Louis area since 1961. In January, 2010, BK Moving was presented with a Business Leadership Award from the City of St. Louis and in December it was named an Excellence Award finalist by the St. Louis Minority Business Council.
Some of the many services that Brown-Kortkamp Moving & Storage provides include: interior solutions, systems furniture reconfiguration, warehouse and distribution services, move and moving management services, office furniture sales, asset management, and space planning.
In addition to hundreds of residential
moves completed each year, BK’s commercial division provides moving services to some of St. Louis’most-recognized institutions. Most recently, Brown-Kortkamp was selected as the only St. Louis moving company to participate in the St. Louis Library renovation project move, which the company recently completed. Additionally Brown-Kortkamp provides contract services for Washington University, St. Louis Public Schools and St. Louis Community College.
On the real estate side of the business, Brown-Kortkamp is presently a local listing broker for HUD and PAS (a division of Wells Fargo).
Gail Brown serves on several area boards, including: Commissioner, Affordable Housing; St. Louis Community College Foundation Board; St. Louis Association of Realtors; St. Louis Association of Real Estate Professionals; and as a Trustee for Central Baptist Church.
(9-Time Top 25 Awardee)
Marion Hayes III
Gail A.Brown
Capital International Communications
The last few years have certainly been busy ones for Dr. Don Cook, Sr. of Capital International Communications (CIC).
In 2012, Cook was appointed by Governor Jay Nixon to the Lincoln University Board of Curators, In 2010, CIC received the Business Leadership Award presented by the City of St. Louis. CIC was selected as one of the Top 50 Diversity-Owned Businesses in Missouri, and was also selected as one of the Top 50 PrivatelyHeld Businesses in Missouri, both by DiversityBusiness.com.
Investment Board. The board serves as an advisory council to the Governor and the Division of Workforce Development on employment and training needs of Missouri businesses.
Dr. Cook is much more than a businessman. He has a doctorate in Higher Education Administration from Saint Louis University and a lifetime Missouri teaching certification for elementary and secondary education, as well as Missouri elementary principal certification.
CIC provides telecommunications services in airports and prisons, including: pre-paid telephone calling cards, high speed internet access, MP3 downloads, quick charge for communication devices, laptop rentals, and touch screen games in airports.
Cook is the owner of CIC and serves as President and CEO. Cook was appointed by Missouri Governor Jay Nixon to the Missouri Workforce
Dr. Cook continues to serve as a mentor in the middle school mentoring program which he co-established in the Parkway School District.
Dr. Cook serves as a director of Portfolio Gallery and Education Center board and the Lincoln University Foundation board. He performs with The Jazz Edge Orchestra as well as being the saxophonist for New Sunny Mount Baptist Church.
(5-Time Top 25 Awardee)
Centrex Electrical Supply Corp.
With a strong work ethic that began first in the military working as an officer in supply and transportation and later as an electrician, Wilber “Gus” Stuart II developed the expertise and leadership skills necessary to forge a successful enterprise. He joined his family business, Stuart Electric in 1968, determined to bring the highest level of service to the industry — focusing on top quality and impeccable values.
In 1978, he formed Centrex Electrical Supply Corp. Today, as President of Centrex, Mr. Stuart has built on this extraordinary foundation with the unmatched experience of nearly five decades in the industry.
Centrex Electrical Supply is a full-line wholesale distributor of top-grade electrical and data/telecom equipment and supplies - stocked and ready for delivery from its 40,000-square-foot warehouse. From bulbs and batteries, to poles and specialty airport lighting -
Centrex has been a chief supplier for some of the areas largest projects for Fortune 100 companies, government agencies and major construction groups.
Centrex offers a full line of electrical equipment and supplies, such as wire and cable, conduit, lighting products, batteries, fuses, wiring devices, power distribution equipment, circuit breakers, and virtually all major products utilized in the electrical industry. Its client list includes many independent contractors as well as larger construction groups, other companies in the private sector, and many different government agencies. Arepresentative sampling of customers include: Ameren UE, Gerstner Electric, Electrico, Laclede Gas, Southwestern Bell, Sachs Electric, Pinnacle Casinos, Guarantee Electric, St. Louis History Museum, Kaiser Electric, Wissehr Electric, JF Edwards Construction Company, and LK Comstock.
(3-Time Top 25 Awardee)
Wilber A. “Gus”Stuart II
Dr.Don Cook
Davis Associates, CPAs
Davis Associates, Certified Public Accountants is a full service CPAfirm providing accounting, audit, tax, payroll, management consulting, litigation support, and educational seminars and training services. The firm serves small and middle market businesses, non-profit organizations, individuals, churches and clergy. The firm conducts QuickBooks Made Easy® training, Financial Literacy and Church Accounting and Clergy Tax Seminars® throughout the United States.
Darlene M. Davis,CPA
Darlene M. Davis, CPA, Principal owner, established the accounting practice in 2000 as a home based business. Due to hard work, commitment, dedication and exceptional client care the firm has experienced exponential growth and now operates from its Florissant corporate office with 10 employees.
The firm is m/wbe certified. Some of its major clients include Washington University, Washington University
Medical Center, Armstrong Teasdale, Metropolitan Sewer District, Missouri Gaming Commission, Missouri Lottery, St. Louis County Economic Council, CORTEX and a host of local churches and small businesses.
Davis Associates, CPAs most recently was nominated as one of the “Best Accounting Firms” in St. Louis and Darlene Davis as one of “The Best Accountants” in St. Louis by the readers of the St. Louis Small Business Monthly. The firm received the “MBE of the Year – Consulting Services” award from the St. Louis Minority Business Council.
Davis serves on the board of the African Arts Festival as board treasurer and is a member of the National Association of Black Accountants, Missouri Society of CPAs, and the American Institute of CPAs. She is a member of the Bethesda Temple Church of the Apostolic Faith, Inc. (4-Time Top 25 Awardee)
Hicks-Carter-Hicks, LLC
Hicks-Carter-Hicks (HC-H) is a full-service performance improvement firm that designs and develops customized business solutions to help organizations improve their performance and overall results. H-C-H specializes in developing solutions to resolve workplace issues in the following areas: leadership, human resources, performance management, training & development, diversity, quality management, and strategic planning.
COUNTRYInsurance & Financial Services.
Current president & CEO Gloria J. CarterHicks founded the company in 1999. Prior to launching her own business, Carter-Hicks worked as a human resources executive for 15 years. She is proud to have parlayed her college education and business expertise into a successful firm.
The “mission” of FUSE Advertising is to become the premier urban and multicultural communications specialist to world class brands. FUSE is a whollyowned, independent, private fullservice marketing and advertising firm based in St. Louis, and considers itself the “most creatively recognized African American owned advertising agency in the country.”
FUSE
Using H-C-H’s expertise, organizations learn to develop their employees, improve work processes and create a work environment conducive to high productivity. The firm has an extensive network, spanning 25 affiliates across the United States. H-C-H’s client list includes: Laclede Gas, Greater Cincinnati Water Works, Metropolitan Sewer District of Greater Cincinnati, MOHELA, Hazelwood School District, Nonprofit Services Center, and
Among Carter-Hicks’ many accomplishments, she was appointed a member of the Missouri Training and Employment Council by Gov. Matt Blunt, and was appointed as a member of the St. Louis County Workforce Investment board by the late St. Louis County Executive Buzz Westfall. In 2009, she was an Enterprising Women of the Year nominee by Enterprising Women Magazine.
In 2012, Carter-Hicks was recognized by the St. Louis Small Business Monthly as one of the region’s 2012 Diversity Heroes.
(3-Time Top 25 Awardee)
Ask any of the Franklins involved, and they will tell you FUSE is an agency of change. “We will redefine how minority advertising is created. How it is executed. And above all, how it is perceived.”
FUSE is in the midst of celebrating its successful campaign for Obama For America. FUSE also
worked on Obama’s 2008 presidential campaign. As a member of the Obama Media Team, FUSE was honored with two top prizes – the Titanium Grand Prix and the Integrated Grand Prix – from the Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival in 2009.
Other major clients of FUSE include CNN, State Farm, Democratic National Committee, Hyundai, Washington Convention & Sports Authority, District of Columbia Department of Transportation, Saint Louis Public Schools, and Entergy.
In 2010, Advertising Age ranked FUSE as the sixth largest African-American owned advertising firm in the nation. (13-Time Top 25 Awardee)
Interface Construction Corporation
Samuel Hutchinson, CEO and owner, founded Interface Construction in 1978 following a 14-year career as an engineer and technician with Shell Oil Company. He is actively involved in all areas of Interface’s operations, having built the company to achieve more than $30 million in annual revenues, with more than 100 employees.
Sam is a member of the Regional Chamber & Growth Association, St. Louis Council of Construction Consumers, Associated General Contractors of St. Louis, Forest Park Forever, St. Louis Zoo Friends Association, and the Board of Directors for Alton Memorial Hospital.
Interface Construction is a general contractor providing pre-construction, construction management, design/build and traditional general
contracting services.
Arecipient of numerous awards, Interface was recognized with a “Top 50” award from the Regional Chamber and Growth Association in 2010, and is a multi-year recipient of Ameren’s Contractor Eagle Safety Award.
Some of Interface’s current clients include: Washington University (8th floor anatomy renovations), SSM Health Care (St. Mary’s southwest removation), BJC Health Care (project management, office renovation), Ameren (Page substation oil containment), Monsanto, Pfizer, St. Louis Zoo, Missouri Botanical Garden and MoDOT.
In 2012, Becky Spurgeon, who has been with Interface since 1987, was promoted from her position as Vice President/CFO to President of Interface Construction.
(13-Time Top 25 Awardee)
Clifford Franklin Sharilyn Franklin
Michael Franklin
Gloria J. Carter-Hicks
Samuel Hutchinson
KAI Design & Build
KAI Design & Build is headquartered in St. Louis with offices in Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas. KAI is a design & build firm performing architecture, engineering, and program management/construction management services nationwide.
Michael E. Kennedy, Sr. began the firm in 1980 with a mission to stay true to the company’s core values. Those values and the drive to be the best at the design and build collaboration guided the direction of the firm and helped it become the successful business it is today.
Michael Kennedy,Jr. president
Clay Sr. Early Childhood Development/Parenting Center at Harris-Stowe State University, which was received an LEED Silver designation and the CNR Regional Excellence Award. The firm also recently finished a major project, the new Carondelet Park RecPlex in South St. Louis, which opened in 2010. Last year KAI also played a substantial role in the $20 million recreation complex in O’Fallon Park in North St. Louis. The center includes a fitness room, walking track, indoor pool and outdoor pool.
Kwame Building Group, Inc.
Founded in 1991 by Anthony (Tony) Thompson, Kwame Building Group continues to be one of the state’s preeminent providers of construction management services.
2010, Kwame began a $50 interior renovation of LambertSt. Louis International Airport. Kwame is a joint venture partner in the overall seven year, $1.8 billion airport expansion and renovation.
many other local organizations. Besides his tremendous business acumen, Thompson is well known for his ‘giving back’to the community. He and his wife Kim established the Kwame Foundation to support universities and schools that improve educational opportunities for minorities.
Under his direction, the firm has participated in local notable projects such as the St. Louis City Justice Center, the new Busch Stadium, station design for St. Louis’MetroLink system, Gateway Transportation Center and the Cambridge Heights Hope VI Housing Development.
Recent projects include architectural work on the $17 million William L.
Current projects include Arlington Grove Housing Development; North Sarah Housing Revelopment; Lemay Wastewater Treatment Plant (MSD); Saint Louis Art Museum Expansion (construction – joint venture); Hazelwood School District renovations; Billy Dade Middle School (DISD); and Sam Houston High School (San Antonio ISD).
(13-Time Top 25 Awardee)
Kwame was also the project manager for construction of the new residence hall on the campus of Harris-Stowe State University, the second residential hall on the HSSU campus, which provides housing for 200 students.
Other current projects of Kwame Building Group include: The New Mississippi River Bridge; MSD/Missouri River Wastewater Treatment Plant, Saint Louis Public Schools (Proposition S Program); and Orleans Parrish Criminal Sherriff Justice Center.
Kwame has done extensive work with SIU-Edwardsville, the St. Louis Cardinals, University School District, Metro, the Edward Jones Dome and
According to Thompson, “one of the principles upon which Kwame Building Group was founded was to provide opportunities for growth, development and leadership to young professionals.” As an extension of that principle, and in alignment with its “holistic approach to sustainability,” Kwame supports various institutions of higher learning across the country, including Goldfarb School of Nursing, Fontbonne University, Maryville University, Saint Louis Community College, Saint Louis University, University of Missouri-St. Louis, Washington University School of Engineering, Washington University School of Medicine, Webster University, and many others.
(13-Time Top 25 Awardee)
Anthony Thompson
Mind Safety Management, LLC
Mind Safety Management, LLC, provides comprehensive business process re-engineering and project management support for a variety of Information Technology solutions, including software development and system design; reconfiguration, installation and implementation; and technology evaluation, upgrades and implementation.
provide ITsupport to the OCC. This is Mind Safety’s third contract with the OCC which, at its completion, will give MSM a total of 10 years at the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.
Quest Management Consultants
MSM, with headquarters located on Washington Avenue in downtown St. Louis, was notified last September that it was the winner of a $2.66 million contract to provide computer information technology support services to the U.S. Treasury Department’s, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. The contract, consisting of one year base and four, one year options, was the re-compete of an existing contract won by Mind Safety Management (MSM) in 2006 to
The OCC uses computer information technology systems to support a broad range of its functions. These systems are produced through collaboration between the business units whose functions they support, the program management offices and the centralized ITorganization that is responsible for the technology supporting the ITportfolios.
Mind Safety Management was founded in 2003 by Peter Jones, Ralph J. Thompson, II, and Neil Jones. MSM has made it part of its corporate mission to give back to the community and has been a member of Mentor St. Louis for more than four years.
(4-Time Top 25 Awardee)
Management Consultants’ President and Founder Joe Wiley’sprofessional background includes 30 plus years of human resources experience with three major St. Louis corporations: Pfizer, General Dynamics and the Monsanto Company. After 23 years with Monsanto, he chose an early retirement and decided to venture into the human resource consulting business.
He founded Quest Management Consultants in August of 2003 and is the 100% owner of the company. Quest specializes in career transition, executive search, executive coaching, and organization improvement. Quest has worked with some of the top companies in St. Louis, assisting them with their outplacement and staffing needs. Asubstantial part of his business is conducted with organizations outside the St. Louis area. Quest is a member of OI Partners, which enhances its ability to deliver out-
placement service on a national basis.
Since 2003, Quest has completed over 100 searches in a wide variety of industries across many different disciplines. Quest strives to present a balanced slate of candidates for each assignment. Wiley’s broad human resource experience plays a key role in Quest Managements’ability to provide cost effective and high quality service.
Wiley is an active member of the following organizations: United Way of Greater St. Louis, St. Louis Zoo, Dollar Help, Toussaint Capital, St. Louis Public Library Foundation, St. Louis University Billiken Club and the Management Advisory Board- St. Louis University John Cook School of Business.
Finally, he finds time to serve as a basketball TVsports analyst for the St. Louis University Billiken basketball team.
(1st-Time Top 25 Awardee)
Peter Jones, CEO Neil Jones, CTO Ralph Thompson II, COO
Joe Wiley
Salute to Excellence In Business
Project Management Solutions Group
Project Management Solutions Group is an enterprise project management firm that handles IT, telecommunications, business operations, supplychain logistics, real estate and construction – then puts people and smaller businesses to work.
Michael Ward is president and CEO of Project Management Solutions Group, based in St. Louis and the Metro East. He started the firm in June 2005 after a 22-year career in the Coast Guard.
According to Ward, “We hire veterans. Veterans only. There are a lot of opportunities out there.” Ward said “We get the opportunity, then hire nothing but veterans – veterans know how to get the job done. We do discovery, figure out what is going on, what it will take to get the objectives accomplished, then we hire a team around the project.”
Ward developed his company with
the assistance of the Veterans Business Resource Center in St. Louis. He said that the Missouri Procurement Technical Assistance Center and his association with the Southern Illinois Leadership Roundtable have also been instrumental in the success of Project Management Solutions Group.
Ward has made effective use of opportunities for his own firm as a veteran-owned minority business enterprise. In the past three years, it has received a four-year subcontract from the U.S. Army Human Resources Command for $480,000 per year, and a $5.7 million prime contract from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for construction services at the Veteran’s Administration Medical Center in Marion, Illinois.
Other partners of Project Management Solutions Group include Deloitte, Booz Allen Hamilton, Holland Construction Services, and the U.S. Dept. of Commerce.
Real Estate Solutions
Nate K. Johnson is the president of Real Estate Solutions, a full service residential real estate brokerage.
In addition to representing clients in achieving their homeownership goals, Johnson and Real Estate Solutions currently represent the Normandy School District in marketing a 6 million dollar portfolio of former school buildings. Johnson also represents Fast Track Homes, a development company that is building 40 new homes within the Jennings community. Real Estate Solutions also represents X3 Modern Developers in marketing upscale homes in the Central West End area of St. Louis.
Nate K. Johnson
Johnson has been a member of the St. Louis Association of REALTORS (SLAR) since 1999. He served as president of SLAR, which represents nearly 8,000 realtors in St. Louis. He serves as president of The St. Louis
Association of Real Estate Professionals (SLAREP), a chapter of the National Association of Real Estate Brokers.
On the state level, Johnson serves on the Economic Development Council nad serves on the board of directors for the Missouri Association of REALTORS, which represents nearly 25,000 realtors in the state. He serves as president of the board of directors for the Metropolitan St. Louis Equal Housing Opportunity Council, which is the only not-for-profit fair housing enforcement agency working to end illegal housing discrimination in the St. Louis area.
He is also a member of the Missouri Association of Realtors Honor Society. He is a member of the Regional Business Council’s Leadership 100, Urban League Young Professionals and 100 Black Men of St. Louis.
(1st-Time Top 25 Awardee)
Michael Ward
Riley Ready Mix & Materials
The word ‘ready’couldn’t fit more into a company’s name as it does with Riley Ready Mix & Materials, Inc. Established in 1996, with a staff of more than 25, Riley Ready Mix & Materials is owned by James (Jay) Riley and specializes in the manufacturing and delivery of ready-mixed concrete.
Some of Riley Ready Mix & Materials’top clients include: Williams Concrete, Gateway Construction, R.V. Wagner, Midwest Mudjacking, St. Louis Bridge Company, and Gershenson Construction.
James (Jay) Riley
Jay Riley serves as treasurer of the Concrete Council of St. Louis and as a board member for the Carondelet Community Betterment Federation. Jeanine Riley has served as the board secretary for South Broadway Merchants Association and vice president of the Harris-Stowe State University Alumni Association board.
In 2007, several area businesses came to bat in recommending Riley to
receive the MBE of the Year Award. Most notably, Doug Jones, president of KCI Construction, stated that Jay Riley and Ready Mix have “consistently provided timely, quality service with an eye toward the finished project.” KCI worked with Riley Ready Mix & Materials on several area projects. According to Jones, “In explaining why our respect loom large, our example would be what Jay ‘doesn’t’ do. I have always been amazed that Jay will say ‘no’to future work before he will take on work beyond his capability or reach.”
Other local projects Riley Ready Mix & Materials has worked on include concrete work at: Forest Park Government Hill, Norman Seay Park, Forest Park Concourse North, Wilmore Park, Amherst Park, Carondelet Park, River City Casino, River Des Peres Greenway.
(3-Time Top 25 Awardee)
Sweetie Pie’s
In 2009, Sweetie Pie’s restaurant chain received the Emerging Business of the Year Award from the St. Louis American Foundation, RCGAand Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis. And “emerged” it certainly has.
For a long time, the drive to open a restaurant was overpowering for Robbie Montgomery, a former background vocalist and Ikette. She soon found another audience for her talents when she — along with her son, Tim Norman — opened Sweetie Pie’s. Sweetie Pie’s serves up that good food “Miss” Robbie’s mother taught her to make when she was just a girl.
Robbie Montgomery
Sweetie Pie’s has been featured on the Food Network’s “Diners, Drive-ins and Dives” and the third season of “Welcome to Sweetie Pie’s” just premiered in September on Oprah Winfrey’s OWN network. In the premiere episode, fans saw Montgomery and Norman preparing for the opening of The Upper Crust, the latest Sweetie Pie’s restaurant in what has become a successful franchise and must-see TV.
Montgomerie opened her first location in Dellwood in 1998. After long lines and tremendous success, she decided to open a second location in the Grove area, on Manchester in 2005. Most recently, she opened another location, The Upper Crust, on Delmar.
Their successes also included a visit from Winfrey herself who sang praises of the fried chicken and pear cobbler while at the Mangrove location. “It’s amazing because the entertainment industry was my dream and something that I had always been chasing,” Norman said. “And for it to come to a realization through the restaurant was something I never expected.”
(1st-Time Top 25 Awardee)
VectorCommunications
Vector Communications Corporation, whose motto is “advancing learning, dialogue and positive change,” is an award-winning public engagement and communications consulting firm owned by Laurna Godwin and Jessica Perkins. As a public engagement company, Vector involves citizens in public policy dialogue and decision-making in a number of issue areas such as transportation, education, health and human services, economic development, the environment and parks and recreation. Vector’s core competencies are:public engagement; strategic planning and organizational development; meeting facilitation and planning; event planning; communications (planning, media relations and social media); video production
Vector’s work has been recognized locally, nationally and internationally. The firm was just honored by the Association of Marketing and Communications Professionals with its
international AVA award for outstanding graphics/design and video production for its video on the City of Louis. In 2010, Vector’s public engagement and communications consulting on Metro’s longrange plan garnered the transit agency international recognition. It received first runner-up in the innovation category from the International Association of Public Participation (IAP2). In 2009, the City of St. Louis honored Vector with its “Business of the Year” award and in 2008, Wells Fargo Bank and the National Black MBA Association presented Vector with its “Entrepreneur Excellence Award.” This national award was based on “business performance, innovation, growth, and personal service to the community.” The St. Louis Minority Business Council has also recognized Vector as “MBE (Minority Business Enterprise) of the Year” in the category of professional services.
(1st-Time Top 25 Awardee)
William C. Harris Funeral Directors
Growing up in University City, William C. Harris, Jr. began his tenure in the funeral profession at the age of 12 years old. He started working at the Ellis Funeral Home under the guidance of his Godfather, Theodore Foster, Sr. In 1981, Foster opened Ted Foster & Sons Funeral Home where Harris began working.
At this time, he enrolled in St. Louis Community College, for Funeral Service Education. As a student, he was afforded the opportunity to travel to London, England with his class, to study the culture of funeral service at the Frederick W. Payne Undertaking Company, which was a registered site of the British Institute of Embalming. Shortly after college, he went to work at the Wade Funeral Home as a funeral director. In 2002 he became associated with the Stygar Family of Funeral Service, where
he was an independent contractor. He later purchased the funeral home from the Stygar family in 2006. Since 1999, he has served as both secretary of the Missouri State Funeral Directors and Association and as a board member of the National Funeral Directors and Morticians Association. He was also appointed governor of NFDMA’s District VII and State of Affairs chairman.He has planned two successful state funeral directors conventions.
In 2004, Harris received his CFSP certification from the Academy of Professional Funeral Service Practice and at present is the only AfricanAmerican funeral director in the St. Louis area with this certification. The company is a member of the National Funeral Directors and Morticians Association as well as the Academy of Professional Funeral Service Practice.
(1st-Time Top 25 Awardee)
Laura Godwin,left, and Jessica Perkins
William C. Harris
World Wide Technology, Inc.
At the 26th annual Black Engineer of the Year Awards held this past Spring in Philadelphia, David L. Steward of St. Louis, Chairman of the Board of World Wide Technology Inc., became the first non-engineer to be awarded Black Engineer of the Year Award.
Over the past two decades, Steward and his executive team have built what started as a small logistics/transportation audit company into a leading systems integrator and supply chain solutions provider, employing nearly 2,000 employees in offices throughout the world, according to U.S. Black Engineer & Information Technology magazine.
Specializing in cloud capabilities, data center and virtualization, security, mobility and networking technologies along with voice, video and collaboration solutions, World Wide Technology provides advanced technology solutions from over 3,000 manufacturers to the commercial, government and tele-
com sectors. The company’s annual revenue reached $4.1 billion in 2011. As Chairman, Steward plays a key role in WWT’s pursuit of major contracts and has helped build and nurture its culture and core values.
In 2010, WWTwon the St. Louis Minority Business Council Excellence Awards and was named the Minority Business Enterprise of the Year and an HPPartner in Excellence. They also won the AT&TSupplier Award. In 2011, WWTreceived several more industry awards ranging from National Minority Business Council’s Outstanding Technology Firm of the Year to VMware’s Government Partner of the Year Award for North America to the EMC Velocity Enterprise of the Year Award and the VAR500 Best Partnership Award. WWTwas recently named by FORTUNE magazine as one of the top 100 places to work in America.
(13-Time Top 25 Awardee)
David Steward
