Name: Corey C. Briscoe
Age: 27
Profession: Managing Partner, Talent Acquisition and Operations, ABCD & Company / Field Business Management Consulting
One Word That Describes You: Prodigy
What does being one of the BEMM 100 Men of Distinction mean to you?
It is always an honor to be recognized for one’s work. However, it is even more special to be honored amongst peers for contributions to society and specifically defeating stereotypes of African American men. The honor says I am not resting on the legacy of titans like Thurgood Marshall, but I am taking their lead to build a bright future.
What are some examples of how you turned struggle into success?
Graduating from Howard University in 2011, I was a trustee on the board with two degrees and unemployed. I was embarrassed and ashamed. After being unemployed for some time, I worked a job that I knew wasn’t for me in corporate America. It was here that I realized that company culture was something I wasn’t willing to compromise. It gave me the foundation and push to start ABCD & Company with three colleagues.
What is an important quality you look for in your relationships with others?
I know it sounds cliché, but excellence. I want people around me who don’t always get it right, but are always striving toward excellence. It is a mentality game. The day you stop aiming for excellence is the day when you no longer can even achieve good. I surround myself with people who push themselves beyond their limits.
What are some immediate projects you are working on?
I have been out of my office for the past five months building brands and strengthening operations for clients, all while planning a client’s national conference in four months. Sometimes, you focus so much on the client, that you can neglect the home front. I am looking forward to spending the next month expanding our ABCD Institute, the brainchild of our company. I am also excited to do some speaking engagements and author a few editorials and blogs on company culture and leadership.
What is the best advice you ever received?
The best advice I have received was in regard to pricing. So often, we sell ourselves short just to get the gig or contract; this is especially true as a minority. My uncle Maurice sat me down one day and said, “What a client pays you tells you how much they think you’re worth.” Every time I create a proposal, this is in the back of my mind.
What is some advice you have for other men who want to make a difference?
Be unwavering in your beliefs, even if that alienates you from others. The day you comprise on your beliefs is the day when you no longer hold the reigns of your destiny. Stay true to you, not what others want you to be.
How do you prep for an important business meeting and/or event?
I am a man of great faith, so I take time to center myself and pray. When you realize that it is bigger than you, and that you don’t hold all the answers, it is much easier to go and excel.
As a busy Modern Man, how do you unwind on vacation? Share a story about your best vacation.
I am an avid boater and cook. My best vacation was when I took my boat out on the Chesapeake for about a week. I took a few colleagues and cooked great appetizers like rosemary garlic marinated flank steak and shrimp and crab salad. We just sat out on the water and relaxed. I literally didn’t answer any emails or calls. It was better than any elaborately orchestrated trip I have had to date.
If you could travel and stay anywhere in the world, where would it be and why?
I would ship my boat to Fiji, have a quiet bungalow, and enjoy the calm of the great scenery. When you live out of a suitcase, you learn to appreciate simplicity.
Anything else you’d like to say?
Pass the torch. This is the biggest challenge I see in African American communities; there is a black male with the ability to cure cancer who is waiting to be mentored. There is no singular ownership of my success. There is a village, from the Carolinas to Maryland, to whom I owe a great deal of gratitude. All the greatness achieved by a person means nothing if there is no one to carry on the mantle.
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