Star Client Takes Her Side Business to a Full Time, Thriving Enterprise
For 15 years, Patricia Morgan had been working her side-passion job while employed full-time in a position she depended on for financial security. But during the pandemic, her side business caught the attention of so many companies, Ms. Morgan took a leap of faith. She formalized her business, Executive Learning Lab, and within two years, stepped away from her paid position to give full-time to her passion in the Diversity and Inclusion and leadership development space.
“We help organizations create safe and affirming spaces and we do that through three service models: training & development (all staff training on D&I, compliance training, employee relations & well-being training); leadership development (leadership coaching, leadership training); and strategic planning (what does it look like to carefully get there).”
Her company has grown exponentially and has won a contract above half a million dollars. Ms. Morgan credits the Urban League with giving her the tools to advance.
“As soon as I officially registered my business as an LLC in 2020, I decided to connect with the Urban League,” she said. “I began tuning into the webinars like the weekly “Lunch & Learn” series and participating in the 1:1 business coaching that’s offered. Also in 2020, I entered one of the partner-led pitch programs and won $5,000.”
Ms. Morgan saw that the Urban League had even more to offer. She joined The Entrepreneurship Center’s (TEC) Small Business Development Center Care Program in March 2021. In March 2022, she participated in the Growth Accelerator Program. And in September 2022, she applied for another grant, Elevate Together, and won another $5,000.
“Recently, I participated in the Metro Atlanta Capital Readiness Program, which has been fruitful. It was important for me to join this program because I wanted to be very intentional about my business getting a federal contract,” she said. “We were killing at roughly 70% rate at the state, local & municipality level, but I wanted to get into the federal space. And I did just that! I secured my first federal contract. It’s a $550k contract with a Department of Defense agency.”
An additional benefit of working with the Urban League, Ms. Morgan said, is that doors are opened for talented individuals to walk through to compete on a level playing field. “What I love about ULGA is that the programs are backed with capital. I’ve been placed in rooms to make strategic partners, teaming partners, people who I’ve been able to go after RFPs together and we’ve won them. This year, my company has seen an 80% growth in revenue from last year. And we secured over a million dollars in contracts for this fiscal year and also won thousands in grants.”
Ms. Morgan said she lives by the adage, “Never tell yourself no.”
She explained, “I’m not going to shut the door on myself. An imposter syndrome is a tool that the enemy has used for too long to make us believe that we are not capable and that we don’t deserve a seat at the table. It doesn’t serve you to play small. Take up space, especially in this anti-DEI climate we’re in. Continue fighting to get into those spaces.”
Her goal, she continued, is to hire more staff and ultimately sell her business and transition to helping other women turn their businesses into multi-million-dollar enterprises.
“To the Urban League team, thank you so much for taking a risk on me. Opening your doors and always embracing me,” she said. “If there’s a business concern that I have, I don’t have to figure it out on my own. You support me. I so appreciate the way you are invested in my personal and professional growth.”
