🔥 Don’t Miss This Insightful BDPA Tech & Career Talk: “Beyond The Binary: Tech, Talent & Transformation”
The latest conversation, led by Tech & Career Talk leader Devin Jenkins and Akil Becka of Vanguard Consulting Group LLC, featured special guest Carlos Gladden, CEO and founder of 360 Degrees Group Inc..
We dove deep into how tech leadership, business systems, and workforce development intersect with purpose, equality, equity, and impact. Gladden, whose company 360 Degrees Group Inc. started as a web-based company before transitioning into a business process management firm, built his organization around technology, infrastructure, and systems while focusing on serving underserved communities.
Key Takeaways from Carlos Gladden:
• The Power of Acceptance: Carlos shared how he relied on his guiding principles (acceptance, accountability, responsibility, and perseverance) to overcome challenges, starting with accepting his medical situation.
• 360 Degrees Philosophy: Carlos revealed the exclusive story that the name “360 Degrees” is based on the universal concept of the sun being the center—not just business processes—representing how the business or leader controls the environment that orbits around them.
• The Real Business is Relationships: To increase revenue and growth, technology companies must connect with the whole industry ecosystem. He emphasized that the real business is relationships and relationship building is what closes deals.
• Building Equity: Equity in technology is built by developing your skill sets and relationships. It is all about value—the more people or businesses that use your systems, the more value you have.
• Non-Negotiable Skills: Carlos believes the three non-negotiable mindsets or skills everyone needs right now are Listening, Observing, and Being Open (applying knowledge).
• Workforce Development Advice: For upskilling, he advises people to be willing to learn about different systems and platforms on their own without requiring someone to teach them. For program designers, he stressed the need to put People First and approach development from a stakeholdership perspective, collaborating to enhance existing platforms rather than recreating the wheel.
BDPA (Black Data Processing Associates) was founded in 1975 to continue building the African-American talent pipeline in the technology industry. You can catch the BDPA Tech & Career Talk usually on the second and fourth Friday of each month at 12:00 pm Eastern.
