Black Create Connect Podcast

Ep 78 - Teacher Black ft James Prescott-Kerr

James is an experienced copywriter, blogger, and social media manager with a proven track record of assisting growing businesses in connecting with their audiences and positioning themselves as industry experts. With a strong background in email marketing, blogging, and writing website pages, the individual excels at capturing the voice of a brand.
Having worked on successful B2B business development teams, James has generated millions in revenue for employers. His expertise in sales cycles allows them to effectively identify prospects and tailor their messaging based on demographic and brand familiarity.
In his previous role as Head of Music Partnerships at Fever, James oversaw various event campaigns, providing input on strategies, content, and delivery for multiple sold-out events. His skills extend beyond copywriting, as they also possess the ability to consult on strategy and guide teams in optimizing delivery.
As a published author and creative writer, James passion for storytelling translates into crafting enjoyable and impactful sentences. His business development experience ensures that every piece of writing has a clear objective and is successful in achieving it. In summary, his focus is on delivering visible results with style.
 
In this episode Alicia and James discuss:
Being Black in China 
The realities of teaching in China 
Some of the beautiful experience you gain from living in a different country 
Why James wrote his book Teacher Black
Dealing with racist CEO’s ans workplace environments 
Book - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Teacher-Black-My-Year-China-ebook/dp/B08R7X919T
LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jprescottkerr/
Insta - https://www.instagram.com/jamespkwrites/
Writing Portfolio - https://www.canva.com/design/DAFopiDkdZo/W55E9Y5glJBbmcQ9trcIPg/view

Ep 77 - The real history of racism and what they didn’t teach us in school ft. Romain Muhammad Founder Diversify

Romain Muhammad is a is a distinguished professional with over a decade of corporate experience, making significant contributions on both national and international levels. He is the Founder and CEO of Diversify, an agency focused on empowering marginalised communities in the professional world. 
Romain is widely recognised for his expertise in DEI, and corporate social responsibility and is a respected writer and public speaker. 
Currently, he holds the prestigious position of Aziz Foundation Scholar at Birkbeck, University of London, where he conducts research on the histories and cartographies of 'race' and racism, culture, ethnicity, diaspora, and postcoloniality in post-war Britain. Romain earned his Bachelor of Arts in History & Politics from the School of Oriental & African Studies, University of London
His debut book "The Others We Became: Exploring Race, Identity & Belonging in Postwar Britain will be released in 2024
In this episode Alicia and Romain discuss: 
Untold facts about Black history 
Why the education system is flawed and encourages racism 
Why Race, Class and Culture matters in all areas of life 
How racism and slavery was justified to white supremacist
The part systematic racism plays in all areas of society 
The myth behind Black’s having a higher pain threshhold 
How Diversify helps to dismantle systemic barriers 
Learn more about Diversify here -  www.wediversifytalent.com 
Connect with Romain here - https://www.linkedin.com/in/romain-muhammad-diversify/

Ep 76 - I started coding from the age of 8 ft Charlene Hunter Founder Coding Black Females

Charlene Hunter is the CEO & founder of Coding Black Females. Charlene has a strong academic background with a BSc in Mathematical Sciences and an MSc in Computer Science from the University of Birmingham.
She has over 10 years of experience as a Java and C# developer and technical architect and has skills in requirements capture, technical architecture, testing, and various other aspects of building successful software applications.
She has a strong passion to increase and showcase the skills and talents of Black women in tech and is determined to diversify the tech sector.
Charlene set up Coding Black Females because in her years as a Software Developer, she discovered Black women were heavily underrepresented in tech. She wanted this to change, and ensure that Black women were able to discover role models and see familiar faces within the industry.
Charlene has received multiple awards and recognition work she does to support Black women in tech.
 
In this episode Alicia and Charlene discuss: 
Coding from the age of 8 
Being brought up with a community mindset 
How to progress into leadership within a short timeframe 
The reality of starting a community 
How to get involved with Coding Black Females 
The impact of Bootcamps, events and careers fairs
To learn more about Coding Black Females:
https://codingblackfemales.com/ 
Connect with Charlene here - https://uk.linkedin.com/in/charlenephunter 

Ep 75 - From £200 a week to 1.4 million tech empire ft Oyin Adebayo Founder Niyo

Oyin Is a Serial Tech entrepreneur and Angel Investor. She has built her businesses from bootstrap to 7 figures. She runs Niyo, a multi-award-winning company specialising in using technology to empower black women economically.
 
Niyo Hair and Beauty is a brand looking to reimagine the end-to-end beauty experience for black and brown women starting with their AR and AI mobile platform. Customers get to try on hairstyles before they book appointments in the exciting and exclusive premium salon. The beauty tech company has served over 1000 clients across the UK whilst economically empowering hairstylists through an academy to get accredited. Niyo Bootcamps is a learn-to-earn ed-tech platform focused on enabling 1 million black women globally to be upskilled. She has worked with clients like Goldman Sachs, KPMG, The Department for Education and much more.
 
Her work has been recognised in BBC News, The Voice, Metro, Black Beauty and Hair Magazine, Nottingham Post and many more. She has also won many awards including Women in Tech Innovation Awards, Great British Entrepreneur of the Year Award, Barclays Social Impact Awards, MBCC Entrepreneur of the Year and Female Innovator of the Year. She has spoken at Women In Tech Festival, Vodafone UK, KPMG, Goldman Sachs, Credit Suisse, Africa Tech Week, Birmingham Tech Week and many more.
 
In this episode, Alicia and Oyin discuss:
The misconception of being raised in Nigeria 
Where her desire for helping others comes from 
How she won awards and was recognised for noteworthy achievements from the age of 14
The journey of Niyo Bootcamp and Niyo Hair 
Managing finances and a profitable business from a young age
Investing in Black women tech businesses 
The future for Niyo
See more about Niyo & Oyin here:
https://www.niyo.co/
https://uk.linkedin.com/in/oyinkansola-adebayo 
https://www.oyinadebayo.com/

Ep 74 - Building a business with Faith Ft Leah Brown Founder Broadstairs Consulting

Leah Brown FRSA (https://linktr.ee/leahbrownfrsa) is a professional speaker, freelance writer and recovering corporate M&A lawyer. She is Founder & CEO of Broadstairs Consulting, a crisis advisory and mediation firm specialising in sports, media and politics. She hosts a weekly crisis podcast called The Longest Day (https://pod.link/1684217939), and is a regular political commentator on Mid-Atlantic Podcast (https://www.acast.com/midatlantic). When Leah isn’t navigating difficult situations, through Leah Talks Ltd she’s running the legal function in early stage businesses, being paid to speak her mind, or squirrelled away in a nook writing another non-fiction book. She lives in Broadstairs with her micro dog, Saphy.
 
In this Episode Alicia and Leah discuss: 
The importance of being in a peaceful environment  
Being the main care-taker for a family member with mental health challenges
The realites of starting a faith based business 
Choosing and changing careers 
The reason for her book
Why her Faith plays an important part of her business
To Connect with Leah:
Instagram: @seenheardspoken / @broadstairsconsulting / @thelongestdaypodcast
Twitter: @OnlyOneLeah / @WeAreBCLtd
Websites: www.broadstairsconsulting.com / www.leahtalks.com 

Ep 73 -The Launch of Javelin a platform connecting black professionals to jobs through AI ft Kike Oniwinde Agoro Founder, BYP

Kike Oniwinde Agoro is the award-winning Founder and CEO of BYP Network, a multi-million pound company focused on advancing the careers of Black professionals around the world. She is a BSc Economics graduate of The University of Nottingham, University of Florida MSc Management scholar, and an ex-Great Britain javelin thrower. She is also the Vice-Chair of the London Chamber of Commerce Black Business Association, she’s on the board of ‘Getting on Boards’ a charity dedicated to diversifying charity boards and she is an alumni of the World Economic Forum Global Shapers.
​By just the age of 30 she has received over 100 awards from sports to academics to business and continues to be a trailblazer breaking glass ceilings. She is just one of a few Black female founders to have raised over $1m and was recently chosen by the United States Government as a Young Transatlantic Innovation Leader. Kike is also a Forbes 30 under 30, Maserati Top 100 Most Innovative Founder and a Computer Weekly UK Top 10 woman in Technology.
 
In this epsisode Alicia and Kike Discuss:
The reality of being a GB athlete
Overcoming Imposter Syndrome 
The importance of connecting black professionals 
The journey of developing BYP 
How the BYP team raised $1M 
The launch of Javelin AI platform 
See more about Kike here - https://www.kikeoniwinde.com/ 
See more about BYP here - https://byp.network/ 
 

Ep 72 - Saluting Our Sisters ft Alicia Richardson Founder Black Create Connect

In this week's episode, we're celebrating Black History Month with our founder, Alicia!
Alicia opens up about why she feels Black History Month is so important and how it's helped her grow as a person. She also shares some words of encouragement to the black community, talks about key black women in her life, and touches on plans for the future with BCC—how we plan to continue to elevate black professionals.
Remember to connect with Alicia here - https://www.linkedin.com/in/alicia-richardson/ 
And Follow BlackCreateConnect on all social platforms 
Join us to celebrate Black History Month 19th Oct in London @ ASOS head Office  in collaboration with Black Recruiters Network - https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/brn-bcc-present-black-resistance-tickets-726846767247? 

Ep 71 - How I generate multiple streams of income with an invisible disability ft Chloe Jessamy

Chloe Jessamy is the founder and Director of Supportal Business Services, a highly acclaimed virtual assistant agency known for its excellence in matching 5* Virtual assistants with busy professionals and SME’s business support needs. Her mission is simple, to help clients do less and achieve more. With a multitude of awards under her belt, and features in esteemed media outlets such as the BBC, she continues to further solidify her reputation as a recognised figure in the industry.
As a certified business foundations coach and mentor, Chloe extends her expertise to empower online service providers and VAs in strategically starting and scaling their ventures. Her remarkable journey spans over 16 years, during which she has refined her skills in organisation, systems, and marketing, earning a stellar reputation. Chloe also uses her digital creative skills to create a wealth of resources and templates to support business owners, particularly those navigating the DIY stage of their ventures.
In this Episode Alicia and Chloe Discuss:
What keeps Chloe constantly motivated despite health, life and circumstancial set backs 
Alicia's experience using Supportal Services 
How Chloe started Supportal and how it supports SME's
The reason why being organised can make or break your business 
How Chloe has made life adjustments to work around her disability 
The experience of being physically disabled for a year of her life 
How Chloe aquires long term retainers and high paying clients
Learn more here about Supportal:
https://timefreedomlab.supportalservices.com/ 
https://www.instagram.com/supportalservices/ 
https://www.supportalservices.com 
Connect directly with Chloe here:
https://www.instagram.com/chloejessamy/https://www.linkedin.com/in/chloejessamy/

Ep 70 - I pitched to 200+ investors before receiving investment for my start-up ft Theo-lee Houston Founder Slinger Staff

Theo-Lee Houston is the founder of Slinger. A platform to help young people to thrive in the gig economy.
In this episode Alicia and Theo discuss:
- The realities of growing up in a working-class home 
- Why failing in business isn't that bad 
- The impact networking had on his business opportunities 
- Why and how he built a community for Slinger Staff 
- The impact that Slinger staff is having on the job hospitality industry 
- Why CV's shouldn't matter 
- How to get 6 figure investment for your start up
 
Download Slinger here - https://www.slingerstaff.com/ 
Follow Slinger here - https://www.instagram.com/slingerstaff/?hl=en
Connect with Theo - https://www.linkedin.com/in/theo-lee-houston-b8b0572b/ 

Ep 69 - Hear the journey of an award-winning British TV, Radio presenter and host ft. Remel London

Remel London is an accomplished British TV and radio presenter known for her vibrant personality. With a degree in Broadcast Journalism from the University of Leeds, Remel was a lead presenter on SKY One's "What’s Up TV" and host of CAPITAL XTRA's Saturday Afternoon show. She's a sought-after voice-over artist, lending her talents to organizations like the BBC and BT Sports. She also served on the MOBO Awards panel and hosted their Red Carpet events. Remel's passion for encouraging young people from diverse backgrounds to pursue a career in media led her to create The Mainstream platform. A creative platform offering networking opportunities, workshops and a thriving podcast that features industry experts such as content creator Nella Rose and actor Jimmy Akingbola.
In this episode, Alicia and Remel discuss: 
Youtube, Blogging, Facebook, and the beginning of social media 
Being young, confident and creative
Why she chose to be an Entertainment present over a News presenter
The journey to getting her own show on Capital Xtra 
The Mainstream UK, purpose, podcast and live show!
Various income streams for presenters
Future Goals – what’s next
Attend the Podcast show This Thursday here - https://www.kingsplace.co.uk/whats-on/comedy/remel-london-the-mainstream-present-the-big-live-show/ 
See more about Remel here - https://remellondon.com/ 
https://www.instagram.com/remel_london/ 
Follow The Mainstream - https://www.instagram.com/themainstreamuk/ 
Listen to the Mainstream Podcast here -  https://open.spotify.com/show/0C9XV3v0n2qeIDDy6jpGzT