This week on The Urban Business Roundtable, UBR contributor Renita D. Young speaks with Wykesha Hayes, the founder and CEO of Keey2Kids, a Houston-based educational firm. As a school teacher, she was motivated by a desire to impact the lives of her students and their families beyond the boundaries of her role in public education.
Hayes graduated from the University of Houston in 2001 with a bachelor of science degree in psychology and earned a certification in nonprofit management. In August 2002, she began teaching in the Houston Independent School District and enrolled in the HISD alternative certification program through University of St. Thomas. In 2006, she graduated from the University of Houston Clear with a masters in educational administration and her Texas Principals Certification. As a current Doctoral student at Texas A&M University she is pursuing advanced studies and research opportunities while completing her degree in curriculum and instruction with a specialization in urban education. Hayes, also a speaker, conference planner and community activist, achieved her goal of creating a community-focused education firm with Keey2Kids, which prides itself on providing quality educational services, supplemented by community enrichment through her local non-profit Keeys 4 Kommunities Inc. She joins the Roundtable to share how she overcame the obstacles facing education entrepreneurs to realize her purpose.
Also, UBR Contributor Samantha Pass speaks with April Love, founder of the celebrity public relations firm Ask April Love in Atlanta. Love counts Def Jam Music, Coors and BET Networks among those on her client roster. She’s also recently launched her “A Brand New You” seminar, which shows how to transform your passion into a money-making venture. Love joins the Roundtable to share how to establish yourself as a profitable brand.
In addition, in my “Alfred’s Notepad” segment, I share the most important thing you, as an entrepreneur, must know about your customers to gain the competitive edge: How they feel about your business. Most business owners know a lot about their clients and customers, from demographic information, to which products and services they buy, how much and how often. But the smartest business understand that knowing how their customers feel about their companies, and the experiences and relationships they have with them, is the holy Grail of successful entrepreneurship. There’s a saying that people will not remember what you say or do, but they will remember how you made them feel. The same is true about how we feel about the businesses we patronize.
And finally, every week on UBR, you’ll get motivation and inspiration from author and entrepreneurial icon Farrah Gray, a weekly wrap-up of business news from USA Today business correspondent Charisse Jones, our Patient Investor Report from Ariel Investments and key economic intelligence for small business owners from our UBR economists Derrick Collins and Rasheed Carter.
If you have a question you want answered or a topic you want addressed on The Urban Business Roundtable, connect with me at BE Insider, the social media network for people who are serious about Black Enterprise. You can also find me on Twitter and Facebook.
Alfred Edmond Jr. is the senior VP/editor-at-large of Black Enterprise and the host of the Urban Business Roundtable, a weekly radio show, sponsored by Ariel Investments, airing CST Wednesdays at 8:30 a.m., Thursdays at 6:30 p.m. and Saturdays at 9:30 a.m. on WVON-AM 1690, the Talk of Chicago. You can also listen live online at WVON.com. Check back each week for UBR Spotlight, which features additional resources, advice and information from and about the topics, entrepreneurs and experts featured on the show.