Community Highlights: Meet Craig Moore II of Black Excellence KC

Today we’d like to introduce you to Craig Moore II.

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Black Excellence KC started with a colleague of mine seeking me out to help her create a premiere event for KC black professionals to showcase and connect with one another. Through networking events and recognition ceremonies we brought together influencers from Kansas City’s black community.

Our aim of connecting and creative a safe space for professionals to celebrate each other was brought to a halt due to COVID. Even shut in, my co-Founder and I realized that the community still needed that safe place. Utilizing those same influencers we pivoted and started virtual panels to help our community navigate the pandemic and civil unrest it came with. The response triggered many to look to BXKC as a hub of resources and connections that grew by the day and made us sit back and reevaluate our brand strategy.

As my co-Founder’s personal career took flight, the full leadership BXKC was gracefully placed in my hands. I knew that I needed to see this brand reach its full potential and adopted out COVID pivot to the core of our programming. Through assessment-based programming, BXKC aims to be the hub for black professionals to strategically connect, develop, and unify each other’s efforts to increase our communities economic impact.

Our membership-based platform will provide a holistic plan of each member’s career journey and social development. Utilizing diverse resources in KC, our goal is to connect our members to mentors, courses, gatherings, and career opportunities. In these efforts, we aim to continue to provide a safe place for black professionals to grow, connect, and develop a brighter future for generations to come.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
COVID rock our plans when it hit. Not being able to have events, change in leadership, adding programming was all a whirlwind for me. There are a lot of long nights, weekends full of meetings, balancing a full-time job plus my family can get heavy from time to time. In it all, I found my purpose and that is a priceless feeling.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
We connect thousands of black professionals across the middle of the map to a space they can call “home”. Our executive and the advisory teamwork with some of the biggest brands and most impactful initiatives in both the region and the world. Surpassing levels of success against the odds of inequality, we have joined together to circulate wisdom throughout a community created to nurture Black professionals for generations to come.

In local and nationally documented articles, Black professionals do not feel like they are understood by the companies who hire them. The lack of relative internal culture that is inclusive of their background and their necessities for being successful. Many black professionals’ spark to create a life’s work is extinguished to “just being there so they do get fired”. Meanwhile, companies’ inability to connect with their diverse staff is reflected more in their community engagement. Causing many talented Black professionals to leave their home cities due to a lack of support and engagement from its community.

BXKC is a resource for Black professionals to learn how to add value to their career above and beyond their job description. We provide unique learning and social experiences, personality mapping, job placement matchmaking, tailored to each member within a community that gets them.

How do you define success?
Success is defined by the impact you have in someone’s life to beat the odds. My goal is to impact one person a day enough for them to do the same for the next and the next thereafter.

Contact Info:

• Email: info@bxkc.org
• Website: www.bxkc.org
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bx_kc/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BLXKC
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWhAo71hhVOXX0chO-FZhMA
• Other: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bxkc/

Image Credits
Sonae Photography
Black Excellence KC