June 25, 2014 -- Veteran investment executive and entrepreneur Earl Robinson has been named President, and economic development expert September Hargrove has been named Chief Operating Officer of PowerMoves.NOLA, a new national initiative focused on providing access to capital, connections and guidance to increase the number of America’s venture-backed minority entrepreneurs.
Earl Robinson
In addition to his new position at PowerMoves.NOLA, Mr. Robinson is an advisory board member of and partner of RLMcCall Capital, a private equity firm focused on investments in the media, technology, oil & gas and general industrials sectors, which he is relocating to New Orleans. He is a founding board member of Cardinal Points Holdings, an equity sponsor of ClearCompass Digital Group (www.cleadcdg.com), a digital media company based in Encino, California. Prior to co-founding Cardinal Points, Mr. Robinson launched Column Point Capital, an investment platform concentrating on the transportation, industrial services and healthcare IT sectors.
Mr. Robinson and his family are relocating from Atlanta for his new position.
Before joining PowerMoves.NOLA, Ms. Hargrove was the Policy & Program Manager in Mayor Mitch Landrieu’s Office of Economic Development for the City of New Orleans. In this position, she managed the City’s $2M Economic Development Fund, created the City’s Small Business Assistance Fund and collaborated with community partners on business and workforce development initiatives. Ms. Hargrove began her career in government as a California Senate Fellow. Following her fellowship, September received a gubernatorial appointment in the Schwarzenegger Administration as a Legislative Liaison. Her policy work in economic development and social services has been instrumental in passing legislation supporting opportunities in underserved communities to help individuals achieve self-sufficiency.
“Earl has a strong understanding of and background in the investment community, and he’s launched a number of new ventures during his career, so he understands first hand some of the hurdles that entrepreneurs - especially minority entrepreneurs - face in getting new businesses off the ground,” said PowerMoves.NOLA Founder Leslie Jacobs, president of the New Orleans Startup Fund. “September’s strong background in managing economic development initiatives and her understanding of the business climate here in New Orleans makes her a perfect choice to round out our leadership team. Most importantly, both Earl and September have a real passion and commitment to what we are trying to achieve with PowerMoves.NOLA.”
Prior to his position at Column Point Capital, Mr. Robinson served as a Senior Vice President at Pacific Corporate Group (PCG), a $2 billion private equity investment platform focused on special situations, turnaround, distressed and growth equity investments. Before joining PCG, Mr. Robinson served as the Operations Officer of JPMorgan Investment Management – Americas and as a Vice President at JPMorgan Investment Management, assisting the CEO with mergers, acquisitions, and strategy. Mr. Robinson began his career in corporate finance and mergers and acquisitions at Morgan Stanley & Co.
September Hargrove
Ms. Hargrove is an alumnus of the New Orleans Regional Leadership Institute (NORLI), Loyola University’s Institute of Politics and From Harvard Square to the Oval Office program. She is an active volunteer with the New Orleans Young Leadership Council as a Project Leader for the College Admissions Project where she manages a cohort of 75 students and volunteers at three local public high schools. Ms. Hargrove is a member of the Emerging Philanthropist of New Orleans, New Leaders Council of Louisiana and serves on the boards of the GNO, Inc. NexGen Council and Harvard Club of Louisiana. In 2014, Ms. Hargrove was a recipient of the NORLI Regional Leadership Award.
Mr. Robinson received his BA in Economics from Wesleyan University (Middletown, CT) and his MBA in Finance from Columbia Business School. Mr. Robinson attended Columbia as a Robert Toigo Foundation Fellow.
Ms. Hargrove received her BA from the University of California, Berkeley where she was a Ronald E. McNair Scholar and Public Policy International Affairs Fellow and her master’s degree in public policy and urban planning from Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government and Graduate School of Design.
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About PowerMoves.NOLA
PowerMoves.NOLA is a national initiative designed to increase the number of America’s venture-backed minority businesses by leveraging the entrepreneurial ecosystem, resources and culture of New Orleans.
Headquartered in New Orleans, PowerMoves.NOLA's mission is to deploy innovative ideas, fresh approaches, and an overall commitment to equity and diversity as a growth strategy to address the generational obstacles that prevent minority entrepreneurship.
PowerMoves.NOLA can be found online and in social media at www.powermovesnola.org, @powermovesnola, Facebook, LinkedIn.
Contacts: Lynn McReynolds, 410-268-0275
McReynolds Elek Communications/Urban Media Solutions
lynn@mcreynoldselek.com
Kim Elek, 410-956-0460
McReynolds Elek Communications/Urban Media Solutions
kim@mcreynoldselek.com
Editor’s note: Photos of Earl Robinson and September Hargrove can be downloaded here: http://s1261.photobucket.com/user/lynnmcreynolds/library/PowerMovesNOLA