Alumni Spotlight: Ellis Hubbard III
Ellis Hubbard III, CEO and Co-Founder of Keys Please Drivers on Demand, is a member of the Intro Nashville December 2021 session. In a recent discussion, Ellis shares how participating in the Intro Nashville program enhanced his capabilities as a professional entrepreneur and strategic networking coach.
Who is Ellis Hubbard III and what should we know about you?
Ellis Hubbard III is a professional entrepreneur and strategic networking coach who loves to build businesses and people. He is as entrepreneurial as one can get and loves to inspire others to spread their entrepreneurial wings too. He brings his experience in coaching, personal development, workforce development and B2B networking to help clients achieve their financial and business goals. Before becoming a full time entrepreneur, Ellis worked in Corporate America in Sales, Marketing, the Workforce Solutions system and in varied management roles where he was best known for his personal and career development work and passions. For twenty years, he was also counted on for developing the next leaders of the corporations he worked for, through both modeling his successful skill sets and in training those same skills. Ellis lives in Nashville, TN with his wife La Tanya and together are the proud parents of six adult children and two grandchildren.
How did Intro Nashville provide value to you as a business owner?
Intro Nashville brought me together with other business professionals, entrepreneurs and Chamber members who all want(ed) the same thing: to network their ways to business and professional success in Nashville. It helped open doors to the possibilities this city and region have for business owners like me and pointed me in the direction of the people and relationships I need to create and nurture in order for my business to succeed and did it in a way that without it, I would not have been able to on my own.
What is unique about your business that makes it stand out?
Our company's vision is to make an actual impact against the massive drunk driving epidemic that plagues our country by providing a realistic option available to everyone.
What's your biggest goal for your company this year?
We will finalize our proprietary technology in Q2 and launch it in major markets across the United States shortly thereafter.
What best business practices did you learn in 2020 during the pandemic and what did you do to be creative?
I learned that following the CDC guidelines was not just to protect my business and employees, it was a necessary best business practice to keep my customers happy about what type of company we were and were going to continue to be - putting their needs (and health) first and foremost as we pivoted our services.
What's your best piece of advice for other business owners?
My best piece of business advice to other business owners is to learn and/or perfect the skill of networking - building a business is all about relationships and becoming a great networker gets you into doors and thereby opportunities that might not be there if you only stand on the sidelines and wait for the business/customers to come to you.