Gregory Krug President & CEO Lampire Biological Laboratories
Regina Hairston President & CEO African - American Chamber of Commerce of PA, NJ & DE
Lawrence James President & CEO Connexus Technology
Suzanne Yoon Founder & Managing Partner Kinzie Capital Partners
Regina Hairston President & CEO African - American Chamber of Commerce of PA, NJ & DE
Lawrence James President & CEO Connexus Technology
Suzanne Yoon Founder & Managing Partner Kinzie Capital Partners
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Episode Transcript
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(00:10):
Welcome to Executive Leaders Radio, yourspot in the corner office, the radio
show where executives share their secrets tosuccess. Executive Leaders Radio, you're listening
to Real World Leaders Broadcasting conjunction withBelmont Charter High School this year host Herb
Cohen with my co host Starin DeShawnDenim, Jayanna Tashira, and Zoe from
(00:35):
Belmont Charter High School. We havetwo great guests today, Regina Harriston,
President CEO of the African American Chamberof Commerce of Pennsylvania, New Jersey and
Delaware, and Gregor Recruit, PresidentCEO of Lampire Biological Laboratories. Let's get
to know our first guest, ReginaHarriston, President CEO of the African American
Chamber of Commerce of Pennsylvania, NewJersey and Delaware. Regina, what is
the African American Chamber of Commerce.The AACC is the leading EVOC for minority
(01:00):
owned businesses, serving over fifteen hundredbusinesses in the Delaware Valley in southeastern Pennsylvania.
Yeah, and where you're from originally? How many brothers and sisters?
And where are you in the packingorder. I'm from Callen's, Virginia.
I'm a middle child, but neverlearned how to be the middle child,
So I was the baby girl.And tell me a little bit about eight
(01:21):
to fourteen. What kind of stuffwere you doing eight to fourteen years old?
Eight to fourteen, I was outon the farm, playing, riding
my bike, helping my grandfather plantthe garden. Then I started to have
friends in school and we started hangingout and participating in school activities such as
student government pageants and things that allteenagers do. Darren, what was your
(01:44):
question? What college did you do? At ten? I went to Saint
Joseph's University for my bachelor's degree andUniversity of Pennsylvania for my master's degree.
Day sean earlier, you mentioned havinga very outdoor tri childhood. How did
it having that outdoor centric childhood contributeto who you are today? Certainly?
(02:06):
So being outdoors allowed me the space, the freedom to grow and to the
person that I am today. Andso that allows me to always think about
creating pathways. So folks have opportunitiesand options. The more options I have,
the freer I feel. Denim,what motivated you to do what you
(02:28):
wanted to do. I've always wantedto help people. It's something that was
a part of me as a child, and that is what I'm in.
My most happiest time is helping otherpeople, so that motivates me. Joey,
what kind of resources do you offerto business owners? We are for
programming to help businesses grow. Weprovide networking events to help businesses connect to
(02:53):
other businesses that are gonna help themgrow. We provide advice, and we
provide leg advocacy around legislation to helpbusinesses thrive. College your life on college?
Did you have good time management?I had absolutely terrible time management.
I had to reposition myself and understandand learn how to go about the life
(03:16):
of college and how to connect toresources. Gianna okay, Um, what
what things do you need to besuccessful during in your position? Um?
To be successful in any position,you have to have tenacity and grit.
Everything will not always go the wayyou expect it to go, but you
(03:38):
just have to keep moving, keepgoing. You have to find the energy
to do it, pick yourself upand just keep moving forward. Day Sean,
how did we in the middle childlead to and contribute to your position
as the president of the AC See? It makes me accessible. Anybody can
talk to me at any time.I didn't come into this world by myself.
(04:00):
I had a sister already there tolead the way and somebody to talk
to. So I'm always wanting peopleto talk to Darren. How was your
transition from high school to college?Oh? It was super hard, right.
I always had people to help meand to figure it out for me,
and so I had to stand onmy own for once for the first
time in my life, and Ididn't have my parents there to figure it
(04:25):
out for me, or my grandparentsthere to make sure that I get up
for school or to make sure thatI eat. So it was hard at
first, but I figured it out. How young were you when you began
sticking up for other people or gettingother people a voice? How young were
you when that when that characteristic beganto show up? Really young, Probably
(04:47):
around maybe five years old. Iremember in church there was a community member
who needed a kidney transplant, andI started raising the money for his medical
care. How young were you?Probably five? So you're telling me you're
helping raise money for somebody you didn'treally know for their medical care. I'm
(05:08):
trying to figure out what's that characteristichave to do with you being the president
and CEO of the African American Chamberof Commerce at Pennsylvania, New Jersey and
Delaware. I've always been an advocate, and that's what I am now.
I'm the voice of black business ownersaround the region. I've always advocated.
I've always created spaces for other voices. But what did your mom and dad
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do for a living? Sure?So my mom, even though she had
a bachelor's in criminal justice, sheworked in manufacturing. And my father was
in the Air Force and went onto work in an emergency room. Huh
So were you like, well,what do you bring from mom to work
every day? So? My momis always, as I say, in
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someone's business and always trying to helpthem. She would take in anyone.
She would hold the baby on thetrain for strangers she didn't know. And
so that is what I do now. I'm always asking questions, how do
you want to grow? What arethe barriers to you being able to have
your business? So I'm very inquisitivein other people's business. And how about
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that? What do you bring fromdad to work every day? Yeah?
So my dad is really intelligent,and so I have to shift to that
strategic head where I'm taking all ofthat information and creating a plan to get
the outcome that we're looking for.So how do you know you're making a
difference. I know I'm making adifference when I have members that will email
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me or call me, or I'lljust hear them say how we at the
Chamber have made a difference for them, How we've connected them to an opportunity
or something that we did that grewtheir business. So part of your job
is connecting, its understanding people andthen connecting people to other people. It's
connected. It's understanding what people need. It's connecting them to other people and
(07:08):
connecting them to resources so they canget the outcome they're looking for. So
it sounds like, as opposed tobeing the boss, you're like all about
servant leadership or something like that.As opposed to do it my way,
I'm the boy. It's like you'relistening to everybody and trying to figure out
what everybody needs and trying to getthem what they need. Am I reading
that correctly? That's correct? Ilike to say I'm pollinating. So I
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go from I'm the bee that's pollinating. I go from flower to flower.
I get a little bit of information, I take it to the next flower
to help it blossom and grow,and then we take it to the next
flower. So I guess the goodthing is because you're the president and CEO,
you go into work in ten oreleven o'clock and lead it three or
four o'clock, and you have longlunches and you have fun and you don't
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got to work weekends or evenings oranything like that, do you That's absolutely
correct. No everyone sees. ButI am working. If I'm not sleep,
i'm working. I'm always thinking aboutwhat members need. I'm always thinking
about an idea. I'm always thinkingabout legislation. I'm always thinking about how
we can make it better. I'malways answering emails Like it's a lot of
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work but super rewarding and there's nothingelse that I would be doing in this
moment. Do you get paid extra? But how early in the morning do
you start with your emails and howlate do you go to night? And
do you get paid extra for workin those extra hours? So there's no
paid extra, but the you're paidwith the reward, right, So the
outcomes of that work is the reward. That is how I'm paid. So
(08:41):
I don't try to I don't tryto get up extra extra early because I
like to hit the treadmill before Istart with the emails. So I'm going
to say about seven. And everyday just kinda is different as far as
what the latest time I might checkemails. But I work on Saturday and
Sunday. But to me, everyday is a Friday. There's no such
(09:01):
thing as a Monday. When you'redoing what you love, and it's and
what is you love best about yourJob's what do you really enjoy about the
job the most? The people.I love people. If you haven't figured
it out, I love people.So I love helping people accomplish whatever they're
passionate about. You love helping peopleaccomplish whatever the But how about you?
(09:24):
How about you accomplishing with You're puttingeverybody else's needs before your own, aren't
you. But I'm passionate about helpingpeople. So that is, in return
what makes me happy. Huh,other people's business, helping their business.
So it sounds like you're like,you really enjoy being involved helping the business
(09:48):
community advance themselves. To the AfricanAmerican community advanced themselves and connect them with
resources. It really it's like amission for you it is. I've and
driving impact, impact and the AfricanAmerican community since I knew what the word
was. What's the website address forthis African American Chamber of Commerce sure is
(10:09):
aa chamber dot org. We've beenspeaking with Regina Harriston, President and CEO
of the African American Chamber of Commerceat Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware here
on Executive Leaders Radio. Visit ourwebsite Executive Leaders radio dot com. Learn
more about our Executive Leaders and wewill be back in a moment after we
take this quick break and again inRegina Harston, President CEO of the African
(10:31):
American Chamber of Commerce. This isHERBCO and your Executive Leaders Radio host and
the CEOs we've interviewed on this showare interested in helping you get your business
started and helping you grow your business. Whether you're aware of the issues or
(10:52):
whether you want the CEOs to giveyou a hand identifying the issues in getting
your business started, and we're ingrowing your business. Why don't you email
us at consult at Executive Leaders radiodot com. That's consult at Executive Leaders
(11:13):
radio dot com. Whether you're interestedin having our CEOs speak with you regarding
getting your business started or growing yourbusiness. Send us an email at consult
at Executive Leaders radio dot com andwe'll be sure to get back to you
shortly with some help. We're back. You're listening to a real world leaders
(11:52):
Executive Leaders Radio this year host HeardCohen with Darren Day, Sean Denim Gianna
to Shara and Zoey is my cohosts like to introduce Gregory Kruge, President
and CEO of Lampire Biological Laboratories.Mister Kruge, what is Lampire Biological Laboratories.
What are you guys doing? We'resupplying fiery agents to the life science
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industry, biotechnology, pharmaceutical and diagnostics. Huh, that sounds pretty complicated.
How did you get started with thisbusiness? And how young were you when
you got started with this business.I was in college in between my sophomore
and junior year, and I showedup the wrong place for a job interview,
and I was about eighteen years old. You were about eighteen years old,
(12:37):
And like, are you a geniusgetting this business started? Which you
told us earlier, is one hundredand thirty or one hundred and forty people
in the life science industry biological huhNo, not at all. Passionate,
passionate about what we do. Huh, Zoe, what was your question?
Have you ever felt uncomfortable with doingcertain experiments on animals? Yes? In
(13:01):
other words, certain experiments we don'tdo and we don't work with companion animals.
We mainly work with domestic farm animalsand certain laboratory animals. All right,
Gianna, Ryan, did you seeyourself in this career because of my
love for animals. It's very passionateand I love going to work every day
(13:22):
knowing I'm helping human and animal kindto like to share what you know?
Now, would you go back andchange anything about your career? I love
my career. I love how itstarted and where we're going, and every
day I look forward to so I'dsay I'd stayed the same path, Darren.
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Where is your educational bank man?I have a BS degree in Animal
science from Delaware Valley University, butI also come from the school of hard
Knocks, which is starting a businessfrom scratch and working through it day Seawan.
Do you get attached to any oldanimals? Very much so. The
animals all have different personalities and manyof them have names, it's easy to
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get very attached to them working withthem day to day, to share how
many children do you have and whathave you learned from your children about business?
I have five boys, and workingwith the boys, I've learned a
lot about business. They always endask interesting questions about what we do and
(14:31):
why we do what we do,and it causes me to think and they
come up with some really great ideassometimes from our discussions. I look at
them sometimes as true partners. Wait, man, how old are your sons
and you're saying they're coming up withideas for the business. Yeah, they
come up with very good ideas.There arrange of age of fifteen to twenty
(14:54):
four, and they're coming up withideas that can help them. Let me,
Yeah, you've got a team ofone hundred and thirty or one hundred
and forty people. Do your peopleever come up with good ideas? Fantastic
ideas. We work as a teamand there's a lot of synergistic effect.
We have a very diverse background ofeducation in our workforce, everything from tech
(15:16):
students all the way through the PhDsvetinarians. So I guess that's why you
want your team to be. Yourteam is because they really do all contribute.
Everybody contributes. It's a team event. Uh huh yeah, five days
a year, M day Sean,have you had to overcome any adversary or
(15:41):
adversity or any significant obstacles? Alwaysthere's always, you know, blocks in
the road and working through things,just like this latest COVID virus, trying
to keep our employees safe, tryingto keep our facilities open because we had
to produce very crucial products that wereneeded to detect or fight this very significant
(16:03):
virus. I got a question,do you ever have a day where there's
not problems to be solved? Idon't think so. I think there's always
challenges there that we're working through ortrying to look into. Do you have
any people that have been with youfor a long period of time. Our
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oldest employee we've been in business forover forty five years. I have employees
that have been there for over thirtyyears, many that have been over with
the company for over twenty years.So why do people come to work for
your company and or come to workfor the business or the team, or
(16:44):
come to work with the team andstick around for so long? I believe
it's again the passion of the workthat we do and knowing that every day
when you come into work, you'rehelping mankind around the world. So do
you whever talk to your people ordo you sit in the fancy dancy office
and drink coffee all day? No. I try and talk to my people
(17:07):
and interact. I learn a lotfrom them every day. And then on
Fridays we do a town hall meetingas a zoom meeting, and we bring
everybody together and share what's happening withinthe company and that different facilities, and
share each other's personal good news.Wait wait, wait, you're running a
business. Why would you go aboutsharing personal good news if you're running a
(17:30):
business. Not because we're a family. We all share and the photos of
new births or new pets or thingsthat are happening. We have employees who
end up getting engaged and married andso and so forth. So it's a
continual interaction. But isn't that doesn'tthat take away from doing business, the
fact you're taking time out of onehundred and thirty people's time to talk about
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who got a new dog? Notat all. It's all very important that
we understand and we're there for eachother. Through the winds, the sorrows
and the victories. It sounds tome like you're running a business of people
as opposed to something with animals.I mean, it's just people, people,
people, or it's always about peoplewith you as well as animals.
(18:14):
Am I seeing that right? Oram I wrong? No, it's definitely
the biggest asset of any companies.It's people. That's the biggest asset a
company can have. Do you thinkthere's any opportunities for high school students nowadays
to get involved with biological sciences thestuff that you're doing most Definitely, there's
fantastic programs out there, and industryknows that we need to create that workforce,
(18:37):
that energy to see things through andto develop. But it's constantly changing
and we love bringing young people on. Do you do you have all the
employees that you need? I mean, do you have all your all the
positions filled right now? No,we're constantly growing and needing more staff.
Are there opportunities for young people likehigh school student to get involved in the
(19:02):
company and be able to really earna good living and enjoy their lives with
a job with your company. Notonly can they come on and start making
a good income, but we'll helpthem with their education. We have a
tuition reimbursement program that will pay fortheir further education based on grade. If
they get an AG, we payone hundred percent. If they get to
be we pay seventy five percent.To get to see we pay fifty percent.
(19:25):
And we can help them grow inother ways. We'll help them get
certain certifications, will help them withtraining well, even help them go work
for another company to help them grow. So you believe in investing in your
people. Maybe that's one of thereasons they stick around. Then you're doing
everything from helping them with college tuitionto other certifications and other programs, and
(19:49):
you're doing these town hall meetings witheverybody on Fridays to develop, to build
a family, to build a team. So it sounds to me like your
real focus is really building the team. It's building the family. That's what's
made the company so successful for fortyfive years. The people, do you
(20:10):
I mean, do you do youknow some of your people's names and birthdays
and stuff like that. Sure,we sell break birthdays all the time.
In other words, we have differentcelebrations and birthdays. We give them gift
cards, we do in house parties. It's you know, it's hard to
remember everybody's name. I'm not greatat it, but I try to remember
(20:34):
the face. And uh definitely willnot stop and talk to anybody who wants
to discuss anything at any time.And going back to these obstacles, I
mean, I guess you know,growing a business, you said, there's
not really a day where there's notproblems. What kind of problems is that?
Is it? What kind of problemsdo you deal with? Just like
any business in other words, youknow, there's always the issues of cash
(20:56):
flow, new technologies, breakdown ofequipment, and you know people who in
other words, need something yesterday,and you know, the shortage of supply
with the supply change today, increasedcosts, personnel issues. It goes,
you know, hand in hand withbusiness. But those are the challenges that
you learn not to regret, butto be passionate about to make it better.
(21:22):
M And I guess that's why youneed your team, because that's those
are the kinds of problems you guysneed to succeed. What what what's the
website address for our Lampire Biological Laboratoriesww dot lampire dot com. Let me
have that one more time ww dotlampi R dot com. We've been speaking
(21:44):
with Gregory Recruit, president CEO ofLampire Biological Laboratories here on Executive Leaders Radio
and Real World Leaders. Don't forgetto visit our website, Executive Leaders Radio
dot com to learn more about ourexecutive leaders. Stick around. Were back
in a moment right after this quickbreak. You're listening to Executive Leaders Radio,
(22:12):
Real World Leaders this year host HerbCohen with my co host Shade Desire,
Darren Dillon, Denia day Shorn,and Brent Soul. Our students are
from the Belmont Charter High School andwe have two great guests on our s
today including Lawrence James, President andCEO of Connexus Technologies and Susan founder and
(22:33):
managing partner of Kinsey Capital Partners.Let's get to know our first guest,
Lawrence James, President and CEO ofConnexus Technology. Lawrence, what is Connexus
Technology? What do you guys do? Pleasure to be here? Connexus Technology
provides it staffing and data integration services. Where you're from? How'd you get
a job with this company? Istarted Connectus Technology with my partner and my
(22:56):
last year at Directly Number where you'refrom. How many brothers and sisters?
And where are you in the peckingorder? I'm an only child. I'm
from Brooklyn, New York. Iwas raised by my mom. How come
you were raised by your mom?My father passed a Hodgkins lin foma when
I was three years old. Andwhat was the effect of that on you,
the fact that your dad passed itthree years old? Well, it
(23:17):
was just my mother and I andshe looked out for me, and I
really looked out for her even asa little child. What do you mean
it looked out for her as alittle child. What are you talking about?
Well, every time she left towalk out into the street, I
was always concerned and I would watchher, you know, as she would
travel through the street, and whatevershe had to do, I always had
her back. What is that havingher back and always watching for her on
(23:41):
the street even as a little kid. Have to do with you building this
business which is thirty people nowadays?Well, this company is all about people
and it is most important that wetake care of each and take care of
each other as well of our customers. Deny you do look like for you?
(24:02):
What does the typical thing look likefor you? Lawrence, Well,
my day is meeting with my teamand my leaders. So the first meeting
is meeting with my team to makesure that everything's running well and making any
changes we need to make day Sean, do you answer to anyone or do
you freely make in your decision beingthe president? I answered to my customers.
(24:25):
M Dyren, you talked about basketball. How did you get involved in
basketball? When my father passed,we moved to a really nice neighborhood,
and in this neighborhood, I wasthe probably one of the only minorities,
and I was the only black hidon the team. They thought I could
play, I couldn't, and that'show I got into the game. What
(24:48):
was your role on the team andwhat's that have to do with who you
are nowadays? Well, originally myrole was I was just a simple guard,
and then I evolved into becoming thestarting point guard. And that's very
similar to what I do in mycompany now. I lead and make sure
that the playing field is advantageous tomy team. Dylan, what do you
(25:11):
do differently as a boss to ensureyour team is happy and healthy? Communication
is key, so we are shutto set up events and forums, a
space for us to talk about what'sgoing on individually as persons and people,
as well as the work that wehave in front of us. How do
you define success? I feel asthough success is a journey, so depending
(25:38):
on what's going on. As longas I'm making my family happy, I'm
creating opportunity for others. I considerthat to be positive on the forward movement
of success. Say how stressful isit managing your company? I'd like to
say that entrepreneurship can be manic,depressive, extreme highs and extreme lows,
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and I appreciate it when it's agood balance and we're in the middle.
What is your least favorite part aboutyour job being a people person. I
least like having to terminate people daysean. How do you build connections with
(26:21):
your employees at work? Very goodquestion. Before the pandemic, we would
have a lot of social events wherewe could come together after work and so
forth. It's been more difficult now. During the pandemic, we all had
VR headsets and we'd go party inthe metaverse, how do you stay so
focused when being pulled in so manydifferent directions? Very good question. My
(26:44):
foundation is most certainly God and mywife. I speak to them both constantly,
darn what education and or experiences neededto work at your company? So
we are technology based company. Inthe past you needed a college education to
learn the skills and so forth.Now you can learn them on the internet.
(27:07):
You can learn them through experience.So it's a wide variety of experience
and education that would make you greatfor my company. Well, what kind
of skills and what kind of whenpeople come to work for your company?
What kind of skills do they gather? First and foremost, You're going to
learn how to work with people.Um, I think that's the most important
(27:30):
part of working at Connects is beforeyou learn the skills that are needed to
do the job. Shay, howdo you manage your time to ensure a
good work life? Violence? Greatquestion. I'm still working on that.
However, I set agendas, tasks, and plans ahead of time, so
(27:51):
as I walk into the day,I have clear goals and I know what
I'm looking to achieve on a dayto day basis. Mister Brent saul Arne,
did you have any mentors in yourlife, and if so, how
did they shape you? Yes?So I had two mentors that I could
think of. One is my computer, teacher when I was in high school,
he gave me an independent study projectwhere I was creating software building machines,
(28:15):
So technologies, you know, coreto me. In college, when
I started Connexus, I had amentor that was very instrumental teaching me the
fundamentals of business. So together theyare shaping where I am today. You
mentioned earlier that you really rely.I think you mentioned on your wife and
God to keep you focused. AmI correct? Yes? Is your wife
(28:38):
a business genius? So my wifeis a people genius in terms of she's
very intuitive, So I can bringanything by her and she'll give me sound
advice and if we don't have theanswers, we'll pray about it. Wait
a minute, you're talking about intuitionhaving something to do with business. I
(29:00):
thought business was numbers and law andaccounting. What business is all about people
process, And for me, understandingpeople is most paramount in terms of building
a team and making the right decisions. And my wife is very instrumental in
helping me see through things that Idon't see see alone. Wait wait,
(29:23):
amen, And you also mentioned thatI don't mean to embarrass you that you
pray. Should you be praying?What are you talking about. So in
my house, before we leave,my kids and my wife and I we
pray together, we read a scripturetogether, and we don't start the day
any other way. I need toinvite God into my day before the day
starts. What's the benefit. Thebenefit is that I know and I believe
(29:48):
that I have an advocate in Heaventhat's looking out for me no matter what
happens. And if I started thatday that way, I know that I
have that divine support. So letme ask you this question. In terms
of the thirty people that are onyour team, and I know that you
have agreements with people, You're supposedto pay them a sorry amount of money
and all that other kinds of stuff, do you ever go beyond the call
(30:10):
of duty for any of your people? For my people, for sure,
we do, as well as mycompany. We serve in the community.
For example, my business partner hasprogramming for youth in Southwest My wife and
I have set up a Bible studyat a local Pennsylvania jail. So serving
(30:33):
people is most paramount to myself aswell as my partner, Chris Hollands.
Doesn't that suck out a lot ofenergy from you and take up a lot
of time. On the contrary,it's it's actually what feeds me because the
monotonous process and things that occur inbusiness sometimes can be draining. But then
when I'm doing something that is feedingpeople and helping people to grow, that
(30:56):
that feeds my soul and there's nothingmore important than that. Way minute,
what each your soul helping people anddoes that help you in business? Helping
people? It does. It doesbecause as a leader, I believe that
the best example is a servant leadership, and that's leading by example and showing
people how to do what they areto do. So I thought you were
(31:21):
the boss. You're supposed to sitat the top and yell and scream at
people. They're supposed to do whatyou want, right, So I've learned
that it's easier to show people howto do things rather than to tell them,
and people tend to respect you moreand they seem to be more invested
when they see that you're actually doingwhat you're teaching. So you're telling me
(31:45):
that to lead a company, it'sreally leading from behind. What you're trying
to do is to demonstrate and thegain commitment because you can't really demand compliance.
You got to gain commitment, youcan't demand compliance. Does that make
any sense? It makes total sense. I mean, look, you can
pay people to do a job,but I would rather have people where their
heart is in it as well asthey're getting paid, because you get more
(32:08):
money. Fair. What's the websiteaddressed in Connexus Technology? Our website is
c O n N e x usT E c h n O l O
g Y dot com. Lawrence James, President and CEO Connexus Technology. Here
on Executive Leaders Radio, Real WorldLeaders stick around me back in a moment
(32:30):
right after this quick break. Thisis Herbco and you're hosted Executive Leaders Radio
dot com. Regarding your career,if you're trying to figure out how to
make the most money and also enjoyyour career, that's enjoy your career,
I mean, really enjoy your careerand make the most money. You ought
(32:52):
to talk to our CEOs. They'vegot the bird's eye view of where the
really profitable jobs are, where they'rereally profitable jobs are going to be,
and they're willing to speak with youregarding their vision for the future and where
you may fit into it. Inorder to make the most money and really
enjoy your career email us consult atExecutive Leaders Radio dot com. That consult
(33:20):
at Executive Leaders radio dot com toget help from our CEOs regarding where you
may want to go in your career. To make the most money and really
enjoy your career, consult at ExecutiveLeaders Radio dot com. We're back.
(33:52):
You're listening to Executive Leaders Radio.Real World Leaders like to introduce Zann you,
founder and managing partner of Kinsey CapitalParts. Suzanne. What is Kinsey
Capital Partners? What are you guysdoing? Kinsey is a private equity firm
focused on buyouts and acquisitions of lowermiddle market companies. How many dollars are
(34:13):
you managing? Is any of thisyour money? I'm so over a couple
hundred million at this point in growingand a portion of it is my money.
Were you from originally? How manybrothers and sisters? And where are
you in the packing order? So? I am originally from Chicago, Illinois,
and I am the oldest of fourand the daughter of immigrants from South
(34:36):
Korea. Huh and eight to fourteenyears old? Did you come from a
lot of money? I did not. My parents came here with nothing and
really worked hard to start a business. Unfortunately, my father was killed an
armed robbery at the age of ten. Uh huh, And this was working
at a store. If I remembercorrectly, how young were you when you
(34:57):
started working at that store. Iactually started helping my father as early as
four. So you're five years oldand you're working in your father's store.
What did you start doing there?What did you end up doing there?
I started with him trying to keepme busy and doing small tasks like putting,
cleaning up, putting things away,and I ended up expanding my horizons
(35:20):
to doing more of that so thatI could get candy bars in return.
And when dad was killed when youwere ten and you're the oldest of four
of an Asian family, what happenedto your role in the family. My
mother actually stepped up immediately and reallystarted working two shifts. She was a
nurse, and because of that,I really had to take over responsibilities for
(35:45):
my sibling and for our household.I don't know if you had to.
It sounds like as opposed to beinga victim, you did. So you
stepped up being the second parent toyour siblings, being the oldest of four
with an Asian family, and itsounds like It's the same thing you did
stepping up from the age of fourto the age of ten when you were
working with your dad in that store. So your middle name is like stepping
(36:06):
up. And I'm wondering if thathas anything to do with your being able
to find to be able to makeenough money and also run several hundred million
dollars in this private equity firm.Yes, I think I've always looked for
opportunities to do more and help peoplearound me, and I knew having the
right financial you know, financial stabilitywould also help my family, didn't they.
(36:30):
What does you probably do differently fromother companies in your industry? Yeah?
What does your company do differently thanother companies? We are really it's
a very competitive industry where I am, and we focus a lot on people,
on the diversity of our team,and we also how do you ensure
personal good for yourself and for youremployees. Starting the company itself was probably
(36:54):
the biggest growth opportunity I had formy employees. We're constantly looking for opportunities
to train Darren, what does agood team culture look like to you?
A great team culture to me iswhen everyone feels like they have a voice
and they know that their teammates aregoing to show up for them, and
(37:15):
that they're going to show up fortheir teammates, Dylan, How should someone
go about joining our company? So? My company does not hire out of
undergrad We generally tend to have atleast three to ten years of experience before
we hire. So you have tostart actually in a banking program or some
(37:36):
other type of financial program and getexperience prior to joining zer So see how
how what's it take to make itin your industry? It takes a lot
of grit and hard work and alot of hours. It's not an easy
(37:58):
industry. Shay, what is onething you wish you would have known when
you started this position? I wishI knew how hard it was going to
be, And I will tell youI knew it was going to be hard,
and it was so much harder thanthat. What is the least favorite
(38:20):
Yeah, what is the least favoritepart of your job? My least favorite
part of my job is when someonedoesn't work out on the team and I
have to let them go they Sean. What is one trait you expect from
members of your team? The mostimportant, I think is integrity and making
(38:42):
sure that not just being honest,but always doing the right thing and showing
up for others on the team.You said integrity, What do you mean
by it really showing up for otherpeople doing the right thing? And it's
not just about being honest, right, It's it's always some times there are
tough decisions and it sometimes means notmaking as much money or maybe not being
(39:07):
advantations to oneself, but also thinkingabout the larger group. Darren, what
is your proudest achievement? My proudestachievement other than starting Kinsey is really how
well my kids are growing up.It's really about my kids. Dylan,
(39:28):
how do you manage conflict amongst yourteam? I address it head on,
make sure that we address it rightaway when I see it, and um,
it doesn't Linger does her well?Life experience that you have to use
this line of work. Not havingfinancial stability as a child after my father
(39:50):
passed away, and wanting to havethat for not just myself but for my
family really led me to the financeindustry. Sha Let's sparking an interest in
your field? What sparked your interestin the field. It was actually in
movies and movies as a kid,in the eighties and nineties where I saw
(40:14):
people who had a lot of UM, I would say money and influence in
the finance field and the ability thatthey had to really make changes. Brent,
what has made the biggest impact onyour life other than my father passing
(40:35):
away? It was really becoming amother. What do you mean tell us
more? It is for people whoare parents. It is the greatest joy
of my wife. What have youlearned from your children that's helped you build
this business? Oh? Patience,communication, understanding that even living in the
(41:05):
same household, you very different personalitiesand desires, and how to build consensus
amongst a group of very different peopleeven though we have the same goals in
mind. What's the similarity between beinga CEO and being a parent and being
a mom? Oh, the scheduling, making sure that you are on top
(41:28):
of all of the scheduling and thehouse it is um. I don't think
there's a lot of difference between beinga CEO and the home and a CEO
at a company. So is therereally a connection between you're stepping up as
the oldest of four when you're adad, when your dad passed away when
you were four, and what you'redoing nowadays, I've maybe not actually the
(42:00):
question I've I think I've always lookedfor opportunities to step up and do things,
maybe a little differently than others.So you're comfortable stepping up, You're
comfortable taking responsibility. It sounds likeyou're really well organized too. You know,
you're looking into the future, You'retaking responsibility, You're working well with
(42:20):
the team like you did with yourmom, taking responsibility for your siblings,
taking responsibility for the team. Youknow, am I reading that correctly?
Yes, I'm very comfortable with takingresponsibility. I guess that's what you were
doing, like when you were fouryears old. I guess one of the
reasons your dad brought you in whenyou were four and kept bringing you in
the time you were until you wereten and he passed, was because you
(42:43):
know, you would bring in youmy guests is opposed to goofing around the
store. You really were working,weren't you? I was working. I
really wanted to be like my dad. What do you talk about store?
What do you mean? He wasan entrepreneur and he started the store.
He ran this or. He wasvery kind to his employees. He was
very kind to me and you know, and I think too he everyone in
(43:09):
the community knew that if they neededsomeone, they could go to my father.
How do you know that? Juststories I've heard and also the way
he treated our family. What's thathave to do with you in business?
I think I hold a lot ofthose same traits. I think if you
asked my team members who they wouldcall in an emergency, I might be
(43:31):
on the I hope I would beon the dot that list, because I'll
show us. I guess it's oneof the reasons your investors invest with you
and then continue to invest with you. It's because of your personal integrity.
Well, what's the website addressed tothis organization known as Kinsey Capital Partners www
dot KI, n z I eCP dot com. This is your host,
(43:53):
Herb Cohen, and today we've hadthe opportunity of co hosting with Shade
Zier and Darren Dylan, Denia DaveSean. Students from the Belmont Charter High
School who these shows were produced inconjunction with our guests have been Great Crew,
President and CEO of Lampire Biological Laboratories, Regina Harriston, President and CEO
(44:15):
of the African American Chamber of Commerceof Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware,
Laurence James, President and CEO ofConnexus Technology, and Suzanne Yuton, Founder
and Managing partner of Kinsey Capital Partners. Don't forget to visit our website It's
Executive Leaders radio dot com to learnmore about our executive leaders. It's Executive
Leaders radio dot com to learn moreabout our executive leaders. Thank you for
joining us today and have a niceday. Bye bye.
Welcome to Executive Leaders Radio, yourspot in the corner office, the radio
show where executives share their secrets tosuccess. Executive Leaders Radio, you're listening
to Real World Leaders Broadcasting conjunction withBelmont Charter High School this year host Herb
Cohen with my co host Starin DeShawnDenim, Jayanna Tashira, and Zoe from
(00:35):
Belmont Charter High School. We havetwo great guests today, Regina Harriston,
President CEO of the African American Chamberof Commerce of Pennsylvania, New Jersey and
Delaware, and Gregor Recruit, PresidentCEO of Lampire Biological Laboratories. Let's get
to know our first guest, ReginaHarriston, President CEO of the African American
Chamber of Commerce of Pennsylvania, NewJersey and Delaware. Regina, what is
the African American Chamber of Commerce.The AACC is the leading EVOC for minority
(01:00):
owned businesses, serving over fifteen hundredbusinesses in the Delaware Valley in southeastern Pennsylvania.
Yeah, and where you're from originally? How many brothers and sisters?
And where are you in the packingorder. I'm from Callen's, Virginia.
I'm a middle child, but neverlearned how to be the middle child,
So I was the baby girl.And tell me a little bit about eight
(01:21):
to fourteen. What kind of stuffwere you doing eight to fourteen years old?
Eight to fourteen, I was outon the farm, playing, riding
my bike, helping my grandfather plantthe garden. Then I started to have
friends in school and we started hangingout and participating in school activities such as
student government pageants and things that allteenagers do. Darren, what was your
(01:44):
question? What college did you do? At ten? I went to Saint
Joseph's University for my bachelor's degree andUniversity of Pennsylvania for my master's degree.
Day sean earlier, you mentioned havinga very outdoor tri childhood. How did
it having that outdoor centric childhood contributeto who you are today? Certainly?
(02:06):
So being outdoors allowed me the space, the freedom to grow and to the
person that I am today. Andso that allows me to always think about
creating pathways. So folks have opportunitiesand options. The more options I have,
the freer I feel. Denim,what motivated you to do what you
(02:28):
wanted to do. I've always wantedto help people. It's something that was
a part of me as a child, and that is what I'm in.
My most happiest time is helping otherpeople, so that motivates me. Joey,
what kind of resources do you offerto business owners? We are for
programming to help businesses grow. Weprovide networking events to help businesses connect to
(02:53):
other businesses that are gonna help themgrow. We provide advice, and we
provide leg advocacy around legislation to helpbusinesses thrive. College your life on college?
Did you have good time management?I had absolutely terrible time management.
I had to reposition myself and understandand learn how to go about the life
(03:16):
of college and how to connect toresources. Gianna okay, Um, what
what things do you need to besuccessful during in your position? Um?
To be successful in any position,you have to have tenacity and grit.
Everything will not always go the wayyou expect it to go, but you
(03:38):
just have to keep moving, keepgoing. You have to find the energy
to do it, pick yourself upand just keep moving forward. Day Sean,
how did we in the middle childlead to and contribute to your position
as the president of the AC See? It makes me accessible. Anybody can
talk to me at any time.I didn't come into this world by myself.
(04:00):
I had a sister already there tolead the way and somebody to talk
to. So I'm always wanting peopleto talk to Darren. How was your
transition from high school to college?Oh? It was super hard, right.
I always had people to help meand to figure it out for me,
and so I had to stand onmy own for once for the first
time in my life, and Ididn't have my parents there to figure it
(04:25):
out for me, or my grandparentsthere to make sure that I get up
for school or to make sure thatI eat. So it was hard at
first, but I figured it out. How young were you when you began
sticking up for other people or gettingother people a voice? How young were
you when that when that characteristic beganto show up? Really young, Probably
(04:47):
around maybe five years old. Iremember in church there was a community member
who needed a kidney transplant, andI started raising the money for his medical
care. How young were you?Probably five? So you're telling me you're
helping raise money for somebody you didn'treally know for their medical care. I'm
(05:08):
trying to figure out what's that characteristichave to do with you being the president
and CEO of the African American Chamberof Commerce at Pennsylvania, New Jersey and
Delaware. I've always been an advocate, and that's what I am now.
I'm the voice of black business ownersaround the region. I've always advocated.
I've always created spaces for other voices. But what did your mom and dad
(05:31):
do for a living? Sure?So my mom, even though she had
a bachelor's in criminal justice, sheworked in manufacturing. And my father was
in the Air Force and went onto work in an emergency room. Huh
So were you like, well,what do you bring from mom to work
every day? So? My momis always, as I say, in
(05:53):
someone's business and always trying to helpthem. She would take in anyone.
She would hold the baby on thetrain for strangers she didn't know. And
so that is what I do now. I'm always asking questions, how do
you want to grow? What arethe barriers to you being able to have
your business? So I'm very inquisitivein other people's business. And how about
(06:15):
that? What do you bring fromdad to work every day? Yeah?
So my dad is really intelligent,and so I have to shift to that
strategic head where I'm taking all ofthat information and creating a plan to get
the outcome that we're looking for.So how do you know you're making a
difference. I know I'm making adifference when I have members that will email
(06:41):
me or call me, or I'lljust hear them say how we at the
Chamber have made a difference for them, How we've connected them to an opportunity
or something that we did that grewtheir business. So part of your job
is connecting, its understanding people andthen connecting people to other people. It's
connected. It's understanding what people need. It's connecting them to other people and
(07:08):
connecting them to resources so they canget the outcome they're looking for. So
it sounds like, as opposed tobeing the boss, you're like all about
servant leadership or something like that.As opposed to do it my way,
I'm the boy. It's like you'relistening to everybody and trying to figure out
what everybody needs and trying to getthem what they need. Am I reading
that correctly? That's correct? Ilike to say I'm pollinating. So I
(07:31):
go from I'm the bee that's pollinating. I go from flower to flower.
I get a little bit of information, I take it to the next flower
to help it blossom and grow,and then we take it to the next
flower. So I guess the goodthing is because you're the president and CEO,
you go into work in ten oreleven o'clock and lead it three or
four o'clock, and you have longlunches and you have fun and you don't
(07:54):
got to work weekends or evenings oranything like that, do you That's absolutely
correct. No everyone sees. ButI am working. If I'm not sleep,
i'm working. I'm always thinking aboutwhat members need. I'm always thinking
about an idea. I'm always thinkingabout legislation. I'm always thinking about how
we can make it better. I'malways answering emails Like it's a lot of
(08:18):
work but super rewarding and there's nothingelse that I would be doing in this
moment. Do you get paid extra? But how early in the morning do
you start with your emails and howlate do you go to night? And
do you get paid extra for workin those extra hours? So there's no
paid extra, but the you're paidwith the reward, right, So the
outcomes of that work is the reward. That is how I'm paid. So
(08:41):
I don't try to I don't tryto get up extra extra early because I
like to hit the treadmill before Istart with the emails. So I'm going
to say about seven. And everyday just kinda is different as far as
what the latest time I might checkemails. But I work on Saturday and
Sunday. But to me, everyday is a Friday. There's no such
(09:01):
thing as a Monday. When you'redoing what you love, and it's and
what is you love best about yourJob's what do you really enjoy about the
job the most? The people.I love people. If you haven't figured
it out, I love people.So I love helping people accomplish whatever they're
passionate about. You love helping peopleaccomplish whatever the But how about you?
(09:24):
How about you accomplishing with You're puttingeverybody else's needs before your own, aren't
you. But I'm passionate about helpingpeople. So that is, in return
what makes me happy. Huh,other people's business, helping their business.
So it sounds like you're like,you really enjoy being involved helping the business
(09:48):
community advance themselves. To the AfricanAmerican community advanced themselves and connect them with
resources. It really it's like amission for you it is. I've and
driving impact, impact and the AfricanAmerican community since I knew what the word
was. What's the website address forthis African American Chamber of Commerce sure is
(10:09):
aa chamber dot org. We've beenspeaking with Regina Harriston, President and CEO
of the African American Chamber of Commerceat Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware here
on Executive Leaders Radio. Visit ourwebsite Executive Leaders radio dot com. Learn
more about our Executive Leaders and wewill be back in a moment after we
take this quick break and again inRegina Harston, President CEO of the African
(10:31):
American Chamber of Commerce. This isHERBCO and your Executive Leaders Radio host and
the CEOs we've interviewed on this showare interested in helping you get your business
started and helping you grow your business. Whether you're aware of the issues or
(10:52):
whether you want the CEOs to giveyou a hand identifying the issues in getting
your business started, and we're ingrowing your business. Why don't you email
us at consult at Executive Leaders radiodot com. That's consult at Executive Leaders
(11:13):
radio dot com. Whether you're interestedin having our CEOs speak with you regarding
getting your business started or growing yourbusiness. Send us an email at consult
at Executive Leaders radio dot com andwe'll be sure to get back to you
shortly with some help. We're back. You're listening to a real world leaders
(11:52):
Executive Leaders Radio this year host HeardCohen with Darren Day, Sean Denim Gianna
to Shara and Zoey is my cohosts like to introduce Gregory Kruge, President
and CEO of Lampire Biological Laboratories.Mister Kruge, what is Lampire Biological Laboratories.
What are you guys doing? We'resupplying fiery agents to the life science
(12:15):
industry, biotechnology, pharmaceutical and diagnostics. Huh, that sounds pretty complicated.
How did you get started with thisbusiness? And how young were you when
you got started with this business.I was in college in between my sophomore
and junior year, and I showedup the wrong place for a job interview,
and I was about eighteen years old. You were about eighteen years old,
(12:37):
And like, are you a geniusgetting this business started? Which you
told us earlier, is one hundredand thirty or one hundred and forty people
in the life science industry biological huhNo, not at all. Passionate,
passionate about what we do. Huh, Zoe, what was your question?
Have you ever felt uncomfortable with doingcertain experiments on animals? Yes? In
(13:01):
other words, certain experiments we don'tdo and we don't work with companion animals.
We mainly work with domestic farm animalsand certain laboratory animals. All right,
Gianna, Ryan, did you seeyourself in this career because of my
love for animals. It's very passionateand I love going to work every day
(13:22):
knowing I'm helping human and animal kindto like to share what you know?
Now, would you go back andchange anything about your career? I love
my career. I love how itstarted and where we're going, and every
day I look forward to so I'dsay I'd stayed the same path, Darren.
(13:45):
Where is your educational bank man?I have a BS degree in Animal
science from Delaware Valley University, butI also come from the school of hard
Knocks, which is starting a businessfrom scratch and working through it day Seawan.
Do you get attached to any oldanimals? Very much so. The
animals all have different personalities and manyof them have names, it's easy to
(14:09):
get very attached to them working withthem day to day, to share how
many children do you have and whathave you learned from your children about business?
I have five boys, and workingwith the boys, I've learned a
lot about business. They always endask interesting questions about what we do and
(14:31):
why we do what we do,and it causes me to think and they
come up with some really great ideassometimes from our discussions. I look at
them sometimes as true partners. Wait, man, how old are your sons
and you're saying they're coming up withideas for the business. Yeah, they
come up with very good ideas.There arrange of age of fifteen to twenty
(14:54):
four, and they're coming up withideas that can help them. Let me,
Yeah, you've got a team ofone hundred and thirty or one hundred
and forty people. Do your peopleever come up with good ideas? Fantastic
ideas. We work as a teamand there's a lot of synergistic effect.
We have a very diverse background ofeducation in our workforce, everything from tech
(15:16):
students all the way through the PhDsvetinarians. So I guess that's why you
want your team to be. Yourteam is because they really do all contribute.
Everybody contributes. It's a team event. Uh huh yeah, five days
a year, M day Sean,have you had to overcome any adversary or
(15:41):
adversity or any significant obstacles? Alwaysthere's always, you know, blocks in
the road and working through things,just like this latest COVID virus, trying
to keep our employees safe, tryingto keep our facilities open because we had
to produce very crucial products that wereneeded to detect or fight this very significant
(16:03):
virus. I got a question,do you ever have a day where there's
not problems to be solved? Idon't think so. I think there's always
challenges there that we're working through ortrying to look into. Do you have
any people that have been with youfor a long period of time. Our
(16:23):
oldest employee we've been in business forover forty five years. I have employees
that have been there for over thirtyyears, many that have been over with
the company for over twenty years.So why do people come to work for
your company and or come to workfor the business or the team, or
(16:44):
come to work with the team andstick around for so long? I believe
it's again the passion of the workthat we do and knowing that every day
when you come into work, you'rehelping mankind around the world. So do
you whever talk to your people ordo you sit in the fancy dancy office
and drink coffee all day? No. I try and talk to my people
(17:07):
and interact. I learn a lotfrom them every day. And then on
Fridays we do a town hall meetingas a zoom meeting, and we bring
everybody together and share what's happening withinthe company and that different facilities, and
share each other's personal good news.Wait wait, wait, you're running a
business. Why would you go aboutsharing personal good news if you're running a
(17:30):
business. Not because we're a family. We all share and the photos of
new births or new pets or thingsthat are happening. We have employees who
end up getting engaged and married andso and so forth. So it's a
continual interaction. But isn't that doesn'tthat take away from doing business, the
fact you're taking time out of onehundred and thirty people's time to talk about
(17:52):
who got a new dog? Notat all. It's all very important that
we understand and we're there for eachother. Through the winds, the sorrows
and the victories. It sounds tome like you're running a business of people
as opposed to something with animals.I mean, it's just people, people,
people, or it's always about peoplewith you as well as animals.
(18:14):
Am I seeing that right? Oram I wrong? No, it's definitely
the biggest asset of any companies.It's people. That's the biggest asset a
company can have. Do you thinkthere's any opportunities for high school students nowadays
to get involved with biological sciences thestuff that you're doing most Definitely, there's
fantastic programs out there, and industryknows that we need to create that workforce,
(18:37):
that energy to see things through andto develop. But it's constantly changing
and we love bringing young people on. Do you do you have all the
employees that you need? I mean, do you have all your all the
positions filled right now? No,we're constantly growing and needing more staff.
Are there opportunities for young people likehigh school student to get involved in the
(19:02):
company and be able to really earna good living and enjoy their lives with
a job with your company. Notonly can they come on and start making
a good income, but we'll helpthem with their education. We have a
tuition reimbursement program that will pay fortheir further education based on grade. If
they get an AG, we payone hundred percent. If they get to
be we pay seventy five percent.To get to see we pay fifty percent.
(19:25):
And we can help them grow inother ways. We'll help them get
certain certifications, will help them withtraining well, even help them go work
for another company to help them grow. So you believe in investing in your
people. Maybe that's one of thereasons they stick around. Then you're doing
everything from helping them with college tuitionto other certifications and other programs, and
(19:49):
you're doing these town hall meetings witheverybody on Fridays to develop, to build
a family, to build a team. So it sounds to me like your
real focus is really building the team. It's building the family. That's what's
made the company so successful for fortyfive years. The people, do you
(20:10):
I mean, do you do youknow some of your people's names and birthdays
and stuff like that. Sure,we sell break birthdays all the time.
In other words, we have differentcelebrations and birthdays. We give them gift
cards, we do in house parties. It's you know, it's hard to
remember everybody's name. I'm not greatat it, but I try to remember
(20:34):
the face. And uh definitely willnot stop and talk to anybody who wants
to discuss anything at any time.And going back to these obstacles, I
mean, I guess you know,growing a business, you said, there's
not really a day where there's notproblems. What kind of problems is that?
Is it? What kind of problemsdo you deal with? Just like
any business in other words, youknow, there's always the issues of cash
(20:56):
flow, new technologies, breakdown ofequipment, and you know people who in
other words, need something yesterday,and you know, the shortage of supply
with the supply change today, increasedcosts, personnel issues. It goes,
you know, hand in hand withbusiness. But those are the challenges that
you learn not to regret, butto be passionate about to make it better.
(21:22):
M And I guess that's why youneed your team, because that's those
are the kinds of problems you guysneed to succeed. What what what's the
website address for our Lampire Biological Laboratoriesww dot lampire dot com. Let me
have that one more time ww dotlampi R dot com. We've been speaking
(21:44):
with Gregory Recruit, president CEO ofLampire Biological Laboratories here on Executive Leaders Radio
and Real World Leaders. Don't forgetto visit our website, Executive Leaders Radio
dot com to learn more about ourexecutive leaders. Stick around. Were back
in a moment right after this quickbreak. You're listening to Executive Leaders Radio,
(22:12):
Real World Leaders this year host HerbCohen with my co host Shade Desire,
Darren Dillon, Denia day Shorn,and Brent Soul. Our students are
from the Belmont Charter High School andwe have two great guests on our s
today including Lawrence James, President andCEO of Connexus Technologies and Susan founder and
(22:33):
managing partner of Kinsey Capital Partners.Let's get to know our first guest,
Lawrence James, President and CEO ofConnexus Technology. Lawrence, what is Connexus
Technology? What do you guys do? Pleasure to be here? Connexus Technology
provides it staffing and data integration services. Where you're from? How'd you get
a job with this company? Istarted Connectus Technology with my partner and my
(22:56):
last year at Directly Number where you'refrom. How many brothers and sisters?
And where are you in the peckingorder? I'm an only child. I'm
from Brooklyn, New York. Iwas raised by my mom. How come
you were raised by your mom?My father passed a Hodgkins lin foma when
I was three years old. Andwhat was the effect of that on you,
the fact that your dad passed itthree years old? Well, it
(23:17):
was just my mother and I andshe looked out for me, and I
really looked out for her even asa little child. What do you mean
it looked out for her as alittle child. What are you talking about?
Well, every time she left towalk out into the street, I
was always concerned and I would watchher, you know, as she would
travel through the street, and whatevershe had to do, I always had
her back. What is that havingher back and always watching for her on
(23:41):
the street even as a little kid. Have to do with you building this
business which is thirty people nowadays?Well, this company is all about people
and it is most important that wetake care of each and take care of
each other as well of our customers. Deny you do look like for you?
(24:02):
What does the typical thing look likefor you? Lawrence, Well,
my day is meeting with my teamand my leaders. So the first meeting
is meeting with my team to makesure that everything's running well and making any
changes we need to make day Sean, do you answer to anyone or do
you freely make in your decision beingthe president? I answered to my customers.
(24:25):
M Dyren, you talked about basketball. How did you get involved in
basketball? When my father passed,we moved to a really nice neighborhood,
and in this neighborhood, I wasthe probably one of the only minorities,
and I was the only black hidon the team. They thought I could
play, I couldn't, and that'show I got into the game. What
(24:48):
was your role on the team andwhat's that have to do with who you
are nowadays? Well, originally myrole was I was just a simple guard,
and then I evolved into becoming thestarting point guard. And that's very
similar to what I do in mycompany now. I lead and make sure
that the playing field is advantageous tomy team. Dylan, what do you
(25:11):
do differently as a boss to ensureyour team is happy and healthy? Communication
is key, so we are shutto set up events and forums, a
space for us to talk about what'sgoing on individually as persons and people,
as well as the work that wehave in front of us. How do
you define success? I feel asthough success is a journey, so depending
(25:38):
on what's going on. As longas I'm making my family happy, I'm
creating opportunity for others. I considerthat to be positive on the forward movement
of success. Say how stressful isit managing your company? I'd like to
say that entrepreneurship can be manic,depressive, extreme highs and extreme lows,
(26:00):
and I appreciate it when it's agood balance and we're in the middle.
What is your least favorite part aboutyour job being a people person. I
least like having to terminate people daysean. How do you build connections with
(26:21):
your employees at work? Very goodquestion. Before the pandemic, we would
have a lot of social events wherewe could come together after work and so
forth. It's been more difficult now. During the pandemic, we all had
VR headsets and we'd go party inthe metaverse, how do you stay so
focused when being pulled in so manydifferent directions? Very good question. My
(26:44):
foundation is most certainly God and mywife. I speak to them both constantly,
darn what education and or experiences neededto work at your company? So
we are technology based company. Inthe past you needed a college education to
learn the skills and so forth.Now you can learn them on the internet.
(27:07):
You can learn them through experience.So it's a wide variety of experience
and education that would make you greatfor my company. Well, what kind
of skills and what kind of whenpeople come to work for your company?
What kind of skills do they gather? First and foremost, You're going to
learn how to work with people.Um, I think that's the most important
(27:30):
part of working at Connects is beforeyou learn the skills that are needed to
do the job. Shay, howdo you manage your time to ensure a
good work life? Violence? Greatquestion. I'm still working on that.
However, I set agendas, tasks, and plans ahead of time, so
(27:51):
as I walk into the day,I have clear goals and I know what
I'm looking to achieve on a dayto day basis. Mister Brent saul Arne,
did you have any mentors in yourlife, and if so, how
did they shape you? Yes?So I had two mentors that I could
think of. One is my computer, teacher when I was in high school,
he gave me an independent study projectwhere I was creating software building machines,
(28:15):
So technologies, you know, coreto me. In college, when
I started Connexus, I had amentor that was very instrumental teaching me the
fundamentals of business. So together theyare shaping where I am today. You
mentioned earlier that you really rely.I think you mentioned on your wife and
God to keep you focused. AmI correct? Yes? Is your wife
(28:38):
a business genius? So my wifeis a people genius in terms of she's
very intuitive, So I can bringanything by her and she'll give me sound
advice and if we don't have theanswers, we'll pray about it. Wait
a minute, you're talking about intuitionhaving something to do with business. I
(29:00):
thought business was numbers and law andaccounting. What business is all about people
process, And for me, understandingpeople is most paramount in terms of building
a team and making the right decisions. And my wife is very instrumental in
helping me see through things that Idon't see see alone. Wait wait,
(29:23):
amen, And you also mentioned thatI don't mean to embarrass you that you
pray. Should you be praying?What are you talking about. So in
my house, before we leave,my kids and my wife and I we
pray together, we read a scripturetogether, and we don't start the day
any other way. I need toinvite God into my day before the day
starts. What's the benefit. Thebenefit is that I know and I believe
(29:48):
that I have an advocate in Heaventhat's looking out for me no matter what
happens. And if I started thatday that way, I know that I
have that divine support. So letme ask you this question. In terms
of the thirty people that are onyour team, and I know that you
have agreements with people, You're supposedto pay them a sorry amount of money
and all that other kinds of stuff, do you ever go beyond the call
(30:10):
of duty for any of your people? For my people, for sure,
we do, as well as mycompany. We serve in the community.
For example, my business partner hasprogramming for youth in Southwest My wife and
I have set up a Bible studyat a local Pennsylvania jail. So serving
(30:33):
people is most paramount to myself aswell as my partner, Chris Hollands.
Doesn't that suck out a lot ofenergy from you and take up a lot
of time. On the contrary,it's it's actually what feeds me because the
monotonous process and things that occur inbusiness sometimes can be draining. But then
when I'm doing something that is feedingpeople and helping people to grow, that
(30:56):
that feeds my soul and there's nothingmore important than that. Way minute,
what each your soul helping people anddoes that help you in business? Helping
people? It does. It doesbecause as a leader, I believe that
the best example is a servant leadership, and that's leading by example and showing
people how to do what they areto do. So I thought you were
(31:21):
the boss. You're supposed to sitat the top and yell and scream at
people. They're supposed to do whatyou want, right, So I've learned
that it's easier to show people howto do things rather than to tell them,
and people tend to respect you moreand they seem to be more invested
when they see that you're actually doingwhat you're teaching. So you're telling me
(31:45):
that to lead a company, it'sreally leading from behind. What you're trying
to do is to demonstrate and thegain commitment because you can't really demand compliance.
You got to gain commitment, youcan't demand compliance. Does that make
any sense? It makes total sense. I mean, look, you can
pay people to do a job,but I would rather have people where their
heart is in it as well asthey're getting paid, because you get more
(32:08):
money. Fair. What's the websiteaddressed in Connexus Technology? Our website is
c O n N e x usT E c h n O l O
g Y dot com. Lawrence James, President and CEO Connexus Technology. Here
on Executive Leaders Radio, Real WorldLeaders stick around me back in a moment
(32:30):
right after this quick break. Thisis Herbco and you're hosted Executive Leaders Radio
dot com. Regarding your career,if you're trying to figure out how to
make the most money and also enjoyyour career, that's enjoy your career,
I mean, really enjoy your careerand make the most money. You ought
(32:52):
to talk to our CEOs. They'vegot the bird's eye view of where the
really profitable jobs are, where they'rereally profitable jobs are going to be,
and they're willing to speak with youregarding their vision for the future and where
you may fit into it. Inorder to make the most money and really
enjoy your career email us consult atExecutive Leaders Radio dot com. That consult
(33:20):
at Executive Leaders radio dot com toget help from our CEOs regarding where you
may want to go in your career. To make the most money and really
enjoy your career, consult at ExecutiveLeaders Radio dot com. We're back.
(33:52):
You're listening to Executive Leaders Radio.Real World Leaders like to introduce Zann you,
founder and managing partner of Kinsey CapitalParts. Suzanne. What is Kinsey
Capital Partners? What are you guysdoing? Kinsey is a private equity firm
focused on buyouts and acquisitions of lowermiddle market companies. How many dollars are
(34:13):
you managing? Is any of thisyour money? I'm so over a couple
hundred million at this point in growingand a portion of it is my money.
Were you from originally? How manybrothers and sisters? And where are
you in the packing order? So? I am originally from Chicago, Illinois,
and I am the oldest of fourand the daughter of immigrants from South
(34:36):
Korea. Huh and eight to fourteenyears old? Did you come from a
lot of money? I did not. My parents came here with nothing and
really worked hard to start a business. Unfortunately, my father was killed an
armed robbery at the age of ten. Uh huh, And this was working
at a store. If I remembercorrectly, how young were you when you
(34:57):
started working at that store. Iactually started helping my father as early as
four. So you're five years oldand you're working in your father's store.
What did you start doing there?What did you end up doing there?
I started with him trying to keepme busy and doing small tasks like putting,
cleaning up, putting things away,and I ended up expanding my horizons
(35:20):
to doing more of that so thatI could get candy bars in return.
And when dad was killed when youwere ten and you're the oldest of four
of an Asian family, what happenedto your role in the family. My
mother actually stepped up immediately and reallystarted working two shifts. She was a
nurse, and because of that,I really had to take over responsibilities for
(35:45):
my sibling and for our household.I don't know if you had to.
It sounds like as opposed to beinga victim, you did. So you
stepped up being the second parent toyour siblings, being the oldest of four
with an Asian family, and itsounds like It's the same thing you did
stepping up from the age of fourto the age of ten when you were
working with your dad in that store. So your middle name is like stepping
(36:06):
up. And I'm wondering if thathas anything to do with your being able
to find to be able to makeenough money and also run several hundred million
dollars in this private equity firm.Yes, I think I've always looked for
opportunities to do more and help peoplearound me, and I knew having the
right financial you know, financial stabilitywould also help my family, didn't they.
(36:30):
What does you probably do differently fromother companies in your industry? Yeah?
What does your company do differently thanother companies? We are really it's
a very competitive industry where I am, and we focus a lot on people,
on the diversity of our team,and we also how do you ensure
personal good for yourself and for youremployees. Starting the company itself was probably
(36:54):
the biggest growth opportunity I had formy employees. We're constantly looking for opportunities
to train Darren, what does agood team culture look like to you?
A great team culture to me iswhen everyone feels like they have a voice
and they know that their teammates aregoing to show up for them, and
(37:15):
that they're going to show up fortheir teammates, Dylan, How should someone
go about joining our company? So? My company does not hire out of
undergrad We generally tend to have atleast three to ten years of experience before
we hire. So you have tostart actually in a banking program or some
(37:36):
other type of financial program and getexperience prior to joining zer So see how
how what's it take to make itin your industry? It takes a lot
of grit and hard work and alot of hours. It's not an easy
(37:58):
industry. Shay, what is onething you wish you would have known when
you started this position? I wishI knew how hard it was going to
be, And I will tell youI knew it was going to be hard,
and it was so much harder thanthat. What is the least favorite
(38:20):
Yeah, what is the least favoritepart of your job? My least favorite
part of my job is when someonedoesn't work out on the team and I
have to let them go they Sean. What is one trait you expect from
members of your team? The mostimportant, I think is integrity and making
(38:42):
sure that not just being honest,but always doing the right thing and showing
up for others on the team.You said integrity, What do you mean
by it really showing up for otherpeople doing the right thing? And it's
not just about being honest, right, It's it's always some times there are
tough decisions and it sometimes means notmaking as much money or maybe not being
(39:07):
advantations to oneself, but also thinkingabout the larger group. Darren, what
is your proudest achievement? My proudestachievement other than starting Kinsey is really how
well my kids are growing up.It's really about my kids. Dylan,
(39:28):
how do you manage conflict amongst yourteam? I address it head on,
make sure that we address it rightaway when I see it, and um,
it doesn't Linger does her well?Life experience that you have to use
this line of work. Not havingfinancial stability as a child after my father
(39:50):
passed away, and wanting to havethat for not just myself but for my
family really led me to the financeindustry. Sha Let's sparking an interest in
your field? What sparked your interestin the field. It was actually in
movies and movies as a kid,in the eighties and nineties where I saw
(40:14):
people who had a lot of UM, I would say money and influence in
the finance field and the ability thatthey had to really make changes. Brent,
what has made the biggest impact onyour life other than my father passing
(40:35):
away? It was really becoming amother. What do you mean tell us
more? It is for people whoare parents. It is the greatest joy
of my wife. What have youlearned from your children that's helped you build
this business? Oh? Patience,communication, understanding that even living in the
(41:05):
same household, you very different personalitiesand desires, and how to build consensus
amongst a group of very different peopleeven though we have the same goals in
mind. What's the similarity between beinga CEO and being a parent and being
a mom? Oh, the scheduling, making sure that you are on top
(41:28):
of all of the scheduling and thehouse it is um. I don't think
there's a lot of difference between beinga CEO and the home and a CEO
at a company. So is therereally a connection between you're stepping up as
the oldest of four when you're adad, when your dad passed away when
you were four, and what you'redoing nowadays, I've maybe not actually the
(42:00):
question I've I think I've always lookedfor opportunities to step up and do things,
maybe a little differently than others.So you're comfortable stepping up, You're
comfortable taking responsibility. It sounds likeyou're really well organized too. You know,
you're looking into the future, You'retaking responsibility, You're working well with
(42:20):
the team like you did with yourmom, taking responsibility for your siblings,
taking responsibility for the team. Youknow, am I reading that correctly?
Yes, I'm very comfortable with takingresponsibility. I guess that's what you were
doing, like when you were fouryears old. I guess one of the
reasons your dad brought you in whenyou were four and kept bringing you in
the time you were until you wereten and he passed, was because you
(42:43):
know, you would bring in youmy guests is opposed to goofing around the
store. You really were working,weren't you? I was working. I
really wanted to be like my dad. What do you talk about store?
What do you mean? He wasan entrepreneur and he started the store.
He ran this or. He wasvery kind to his employees. He was
very kind to me and you know, and I think too he everyone in
(43:09):
the community knew that if they neededsomeone, they could go to my father.
How do you know that? Juststories I've heard and also the way
he treated our family. What's thathave to do with you in business?
I think I hold a lot ofthose same traits. I think if you
asked my team members who they wouldcall in an emergency, I might be
(43:31):
on the I hope I would beon the dot that list, because I'll
show us. I guess it's oneof the reasons your investors invest with you
and then continue to invest with you. It's because of your personal integrity.
Well, what's the website addressed tothis organization known as Kinsey Capital Partners www
dot KI, n z I eCP dot com. This is your host,
(43:53):
Herb Cohen, and today we've hadthe opportunity of co hosting with Shade
Zier and Darren Dylan, Denia DaveSean. Students from the Belmont Charter High
School who these shows were produced inconjunction with our guests have been Great Crew,
President and CEO of Lampire Biological Laboratories, Regina Harriston, President and CEO
(44:15):
of the African American Chamber of Commerceof Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware,
Laurence James, President and CEO ofConnexus Technology, and Suzanne Yuton, Founder
and Managing partner of Kinsey Capital Partners. Don't forget to visit our website It's
Executive Leaders radio dot com to learnmore about our executive leaders. It's Executive
Leaders radio dot com to learn moreabout our executive leaders. Thank you for
joining us today and have a niceday. Bye bye.
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