Tag: Be the Boss

Kyle Smith, Determination, Incorporated

Inmate to business founder: Determination, Incorporated adds partner with lived experience

By Tommy Felts / April 10, 2019

Determination, Incorporated’s new partner in compassion places a new lens on the impact the prison-to-founder non-profit could have, said Kyle Smith. “I’ve gotten this non-profit this far, but I can’t do it alone,” said Smith, founder of Determination, Incorporated, which uses entrepreneurship to curate new opportunities for formerly incarcerated people, on the addition of his…

Read More >
Kyle Smith, Determination, Incorporated, Rise Up Get Started

Fund Me, KC: ‘Rise Up, Get Started’ competitions give spotlight to formerly incarcerated entrepreneurs

By Tommy Felts / November 7, 2018

Startland News is continuing its segment to highlight area entrepreneurs’ efforts to accelerate their businesses. This is an opportunity for entrepreneurs — like startup community leader founder Kyle J. Smith’s Rise Up, Get Started campaign— to share their crowdfunding stories to gain a little help from their supporters. Who are you? I am Kyle J Smith, founder of…

Read More >
Kyle Smith, Determination, Incorporated

KCultivator Q&A: Kyle J Smith talks serious work, socks with sandals, pickled pig brains

By Tommy Felts / November 2, 2018

Editor’s note: KCultivators is a lighthearted profile series to highlight people who are meaningfully enriching Kansas City’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. The KCultivator Series is sponsored by WeWork Corrigan Station, a modern twist on Kansas City office space. A place to live, work, and play — three ingredients for a new life, said Kyle J. Smith, founder…

Read More >
Kate Spade Kyle Smith

Kyle J Smith: Creating hope in a dark place; a reflection on the passing of Kate Spade

By Tommy Felts / June 8, 2018

Editor’s note: Kyle J Smith, an entrepreneurial ecosystem builder in Kansas City, reflects on fashion designer Kate Spade, 55, who died Tuesday of suicide. Born Katherine Brosnahan in Kansas City, Missouri, she went on to build a widely successful business and brand that carried her name. My heart broke when I heard about Kate Spade’s…

Read More >
Kyle Smith, Be the Boss

‘Be the Boss’ invites probation, parole clients into entrepreneurial ecosystem

By Tommy Felts / January 20, 2018

Would-be entrepreneurs who are returning from incarceration shouldn’t feel excluded from Kansas City’s startup ecosystem, Kyle J. Smith said. Be the Boss, a support group launching next month under Smith’s leadership, aims to provide a welcoming environment free from the stigma associated with a criminal history, he said. “When we’re being honest about the elephant…

Read More >