On Saturday, July 26, Seat at the Table will bring together and celebrate Milwaukee’s young talent and leaders with networking, speakers and a dinner at Saint Kate – The Arts Hotel. We spoke with founders Brandon Ramey and Braylen Stevens about what makes this event unique, their hopes for its growth, what attendees can expect and more.
Can you explain what Seat at the Table is?
Brandon Ramey: In the simplest terms, Seat at the Table is an opportunity for us to unite, inspire and uplift the young professionals here in the City of Milwaukee. We execute that through our annual gala, which is hosted at Saint Kate – The Arts Hotel. We’re going into our third annual event, but we also host quarterly programming throughout the year to help continue those discussions, to continue that peer-to-peer mentorship, and to continue to pour into the young professionals in the next generation of leaders. What we like to say is that Seat at the Table is the next 40 under 40, and it is truly about connecting those young professionals and preparing them for the next level of their careers and their leadership journeys.
It’s time to pick your Milwaukee favorites for the year!
Braylen Stevens: A lot of it is really just finding the opportunity to continue to amplify what the city has to offer. When we think about opportunities and creating opportunities, we recognize that there is a limited amount of spaces where young professionals can truly dress up and kind of just commune to celebrate one another. So we look at this project as a “for us, by us” model. If you don’t have a seat at the table, feel free to make your own table or pull up chairs as well for your peers to be at the table.
Ramey: From the very beginning, we have had a huge focus on talent retention and keeping talent, specifically young talent, right here in Milwaukee. Braylen already hinted at the fact that there’s not a lot of spaces that are designed by young professionals for young professionals. … Our goal is to make sure that they see a bright future for themselves here in the City of Milwaukee.
Where did the idea to start Seat at the Table begin?
Ramey: It started as a conversation between me and Braylen. This was probably a conversation that we were having back in 2021. We both met each other growing up here in the city, but also we were part of an amazing program called the MKE Fellows Program, which is focused on uplifting young Black men in Milwaukee. … Coming back, we really just sat down and had a conversation about how there are not enough spaces in the City of Milwaukee for young professionals to connect – on a professional scale or even a personal scale, like having fun. We started to brainstorm and that is where Seat at the Table was born.
Stevens: I remember Brandon had mentioned finding a way to connect young professionals in the city. I have MBRACED Culture, which does a lot of consultancy around activation and development, and at that time, we were taking on new projects, specifically around creating communal, very intimate spaces with other organizations. And so I said to Brandon, “Yo, why not just do a creative dinner?”
Sometimes you just need people at the table with different skills, different thoughts and different ideas. When you’re at the table and you have the opportunity to collab with one another, to discuss what’s top of mind or the challenges you have, somebody might have a problem, and that person across from you at the table might have the solution.
So it’s the third year of this event – how has it grown and evolved since the first year?
Stevens: It’s definitely grown year over year in a few different ways. My first way would be its reach. One thing I really admire about what we’ve created is that every year we meet a new group of young professionals, and a lot of times we have a lot of mutuals, but just never had the opportunity to cross paths or to be in the room.
Also in terms of growth, I would say that we really took time to be intentional. Every year, we learn not just from the production aspect of Seat at the Table, but we also learn what is the need in that moment in time. A lot has changed on various fronts, so year over year we’re constantly improving in terms of our intentionality and the problems we want to solve, but then also just improving our professional network as well. From a leadership perspective, it’s been really great to see and hear other leaders – specifically C suite executives around the city – really champion Seat at the Table.
Ramey: I definitely want to echo all of that. But on top of that as well, we’ve grown, in a way, to where it’s starting to be identified that we are bridging a gap, but we’re also creating a solution here within the community. I think that is evident through the sponsorships year over year, and the organizations that have poured into us to trust our vision.
Shout out to the organizations that were there from the very beginning: Live Incorporated, Community Advocates, Mentor Greater Milwaukee. Fast forward to that second year, we grew those sponsorships from a few local organizations to about seven or eight organizations. Now, as we reflect on where we’re at today, we have almost 11 confirmed sponsors for this year. We’ve got the Milwaukee Bucks, Quad, Mentor Greater Milwaukee, Community Advocates, Northwest Side Community Development Corporation, Envision Growth, Denise Thomas from the Effective Communication Coach, BDO USA, Envision Growth, Jonco Industries, Secure Futures. Some of these organizations are not for profit organizations, which shows even more value of what we’re bringing into the community.
What’s been the most rewarding aspect of creating and growing Seat at the Table?
Stevens: Just recognizing the energy, the vibrancy and the excitement that Seat at the Table brings to various generations. When we share with the seasoned professionals, the older professionals, they’re like, “Oh my god, this is amazing. Y’all are literally filling that gap.” Because we target ages 21-35 because that’s just an area that often gets left behind, or doesn’t have as many resources. They’re that manager, middle management kind of level. So hearing the excitement and investment around the seasoned professionals is very rewarding.
Secondly, we have a lot of fun doing this. That’s what I’ve really enjoyed about this process. Our committee, transparently, everyone does this as volunteers. No one’s getting paid for this. So the rewarding aspect is seeing how passionate our peers have become around creative a space for us to thrive and have fun.
Ramey: Definitely agree with everything that Braylen already shared, but just reflecting on what has been and continues to be most rewarding for me is the opportunity that we’ve had to change that narrative for the young professionals here in Milwaukee, showing our city and our community that we can build something that is elegant, that is inspiring, that is an opportunity for us to unite and do it in the right way, the professional way, and in a very high-class way. I think a lot of people, when they think about young people in the City of Milwaukee, they think we don’t know how to act when we’re in those spaces. So for us to be able to shift that narrative and change that narrative has been super rewarding for me.
But it’s also just been the wow factor as well. Seeing every year the looks on the young professionals faces, seeing their eyes light up, seeing them walk into that event space and see the detail into everything that we put into this – from the decorations to the setup to the executives that are there doing the keynote conversations – it has just been super rewarding to see them walk away with not only actionable steps on what they can do to improve their leadership journeys but also walking away with actionable networks and resources.
What are your hopes for the growth of Seat at the Table?
Ramey: Something that we’ve always talked about from the very beginning is the importance of intergenerational connections that we’re making. Our hopes in the future is that once we age out of that 21 to 35 platform, that we have young people right behind us and beside us that are willing to take this and continue to put on a Seat at the Table experience for years to come.
Stevens: That’s what it’s all about right? Just really setting a foundation so that somebody could take it to the next level. Just really setting a foundation so that somebody can take it to the next level. Also, the goal is for Seat at the Table to be the premier night for young professionals every summer. We want this to be the night that young professionals look forward to. That’s what our primary goal is. The biggest thing is the growth and the reach, and then thinking about the bigger initiative of how do we retain talent in Milwaukee.
What can attendees expect at this year’s event?
Ramey: Oh, come prepared to feel like you’re that person. We’ve turned things up a notch, a few notches, actually, just to make sure that when folks walk in the room, they feel like they are treated the same as a CEO, a CFO, a C suite executive would be, regardless of their background, their level, etc.
Stevens: Expect to be able to walk in authentically. A lot of times we get these invites from our organizations and we show up to these galas and events and for me it’s still awkward. Sometimes we still feel like we have to code switch or that imposter syndrome kicks in. But this event is for us, by us, so expect to be able to walk in and truly be everything that you are. And expect to walk away with some amazing connections and relationships, to feel empowered to continue to push our city and our community forward.
