We were lucky to catch up with Paul Bryant recently and have shared our conversation below.

Paul, appreciate you joining us today. It’s always helpful to hear about times when someone’s had to take a risk – how did they think through the decision, why did they take the risk, and what ended up happening. We’d love to hear about a risk you’ve taken.

I left a 20 year career to lead a floundering non-profit organization.

I was a business banker with Wells Fargo managing a $75 million small bunnies portfolio when a community service organization applied for a line of credit. In short, their recent credit history was not stellar. They lost their United Way backing, burned through half million in reserves, and discontinued programming. It was a textbook case for mismanagement.

I was familiar with the organizations history and did not want to see it close. I prayed about it that evening and woke up the next morning inspired to apply for the position.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

I currently hold the position of Vice President of External Affairs for H. J. Russell & Company. A 70+ year old business that is the largest Black Owned company in the state of Georgia and the 25 largest Black Owned company in the U. S.

I run Russell Cares, the philanthropic arm of the company. It is the commitment to service that separates H. j. Russell from its competitors. From founder Herman Russells involvement with Martin Luther in the inner circle of the civil rights movement to supporting community service organizations throughout the metropolitan Atlanta area, we are committed to our motto: We just don’t build buildings, we build communities.

We’d love to hear about you met your business partner.

As mentioned earlier, I made a career pivot toward more purposeful work for which I was passionate. I met the CEO of H.J.Russell & Company, Mike Russell at a community service event. I asked him if he would speak at out year end dinner. He agreed, and that is where God stepped in. I was so inspired by Mr. Russell’s presentation that I met with him later that week and told him I’d like to work for him. Over the next several months I submitted numerous revisions and eventually created a position for myself.

Any fun sales or marketing stories?

I once walked up to Isiah Thomas, Stedman Graham and Dr. J at a golf tournament and walked away with a $700,000 contract.

Image Credits
1. Panelist at the 1st Morehouse/Spelman Business Association’s joint meeting 2. PB with Ernest Ellis, president of the National Association of Minority Contractors, Russell wins Contractor of the Year Award 3. PB with Congressional Certificate – Russell receives Minority Enterprise of the Year from the US Department of Commerce. 4. PB with Robert Gould of RGMedia 5. Chillin in France – work hard/play hard 6. Accepting award with CEO Mike Russell 7. Clowning with ShaQ 8. & 9. With Lonoia Murphy – pod cast Co- Host