Placing Values Front and Center
As KC Black Owned explores stories of women business owners for Women's History Month, we continue to be impressed by a host of women that persist in the business world, in spite of barriers placed before them solely due to their gender.
Mission-Focused Work
Alana Henry, owner and editor in chief for The Writique, a resume service, is especially inspirational. We admire her mission-focused work and her advocacy and are truly proud to call her a member of KC Black Owned.
The idea for The Writique came to Alana as a means to help fight for equity in the world of job seekers. During her time as a teacher, Alana noticed a lack of career resources, particularly for young people. She built her business so that she could help bridge the gap: “I wanted to be a part of the solution,” she recounts.
Alana grew up in a household that celebrated mission-focused work. Her values, built on ideas like love of her home and service, are what pushes her to be a resource in communities in need. Through regular intervals of outreach days–days where The Writique offers services through local libraries for free–she furthers her mission of helping others, but she doesn’t stop there.
Supporting Women and Communities
Alana’s voice blooms with pride as she shares that her team is 100% women. “I am proud of my all female team,” she proclaims, more than once. Not only does she invest in women through hiring them, Alana also has worked hard to create an environment that is as flexible as possible–an opportunity that allows women the freedom to carve out their own individual paths to success.
But, still, Alana doesn’t stop there. Truly driven by a mission to provide healthy food alternatives to the KC metro area, Alana is also owner of Young Family Farm, a farm that focuses on offering healthy food options to people who may otherwise not have access to fresh foods.
Placing Values Front and Center
Today, Alana's smile stands out proudly on her The Writique website but this wasn’t always the case. One of the challenges Alana has had to overcome as a Black woman business owner was the reality that her identity markers–Black and female–were potential barriers to her financial success. For a while, Alana refused to be a visible part of her business, “I thought that by staying in the shadows, it would prevent the exclusion of my business for opportunities. But,” she continues, a sliver of iron in her voice, “everyone is worthy. This is me, and if you don’t want me because I am a Black woman, I don’t need you. I am putting my face front and center and my values up front.”
Alana sees Women’s History Month as a time to pay homage to those who have paved the way for Alana and other women business owners. She shares that she is proud of how women now have more opportunity to contribute to society in many different ways than in the past and respects the choices that every individual woman makes for herself.
Specialized Career Services
The Writique is unique from other resume services because Alana herself is involved in all of the projects. She and her team work hard to create a service that is based on connection and that approaches each client as an individual. Unlike other “resume mills,” Alana and her team take the time to understand the needs of the client. The Writique serves customers from entry level to executive and specializes in assisting females and folks in disenfranchised communities. Schedule a consultation today to get the chance to work with Alana and her talented team of women writers.
