LOS ANGELES, Sept. 21, 2021 /PRNewswire/ — Serial entrepreneur and Webb Schools alumnus, Blake B. Johnson, recently received the Webb Schools' prestigious Alumni Outstanding Achievement Award. The annual recognition is bestowed upon alumni whose accomplishments exemplify the motto and values of Webb. Johnson's unique combination of entrepreneurial success, philanthropic endeavors, and innovative thinking made him a natural choice for the 2020 award.
Serial entrepreneur Blake Johnson announced today that he has donated $25,000 to the Los Angeles Mission. The donation will support the nonprofit organization's residential rehabilitation programs and fight to end homelessness in Los Angeles.
Blake Johnson, co-founder and former chairman of Byte®, announced today that he has made a $5,000 donation to the C5 Youth Foundation of Southern California (C5LA). The contribution will be used to help expand academic resources and opportunities to youth in under-resourced Los Angeles communities.
When entrepreneurs refocus on revenue, metrics and building a strong foundation, they wind up sounding fresh and innovative.
The past decade or so has popularized the “grow at all costs” model of business, with innovative tech companies leading the way. Staying in the red for years on end has become trendy, with Jeff Bezos himself insisting that long term investment in future growth is more important than quarterly earning targets. But for every Amazon success story there are hundreds if not thousands of failed attempts to replicate the same model. These SoftBank companies, (as they have come to be known regardless of whether or not the notorious Japanese conglomerate is actually invested) fail far more often than they succeed. At the very least, they become embarrassments.
When entrepreneurs refocus on revenue, metrics and building a strong foundation, they wind up sounding fresh and innovative.
The past decade or so has popularized the “grow at all costs” model of business, with innovative tech companies leading the way. Staying in the red for years on end has become trendy, with Jeff Bezos himself insisting that long term investment in future growth is more important than quarterly earning targets. But for every Amazon success story there are hundreds if not thousands of failed attempts to replicate the same model. These SoftBank companies, (as they have come to be known regardless of whether or not the notorious Japanese conglomerate is actually invested) fail far more often than they succeed. At the very least, they become embarrassments.
Blake B. Johnson, a Los Angeles-based entrepreneur, has sat on both sides of the fundraising table. In addition to advising startup founders on how best to structure and manage a growing team, Johnson is also about the fundraising process to ensure that founders really understand their options.
Los Angeles-based entrepreneur and investor Blake B. Johnson has seen success over the course of his 16-year career because he doesn't build his company cultures around shiny objects; instead, he cultivates a foundation of serving others. "When my employees participate in community-building programs outside of the office it creates an unparalleled buzz inside the office. After team volunteering events, people are generally happier and more productive. The chance to work together to build something solely for the benefit of serving others is more motivating than any office perk or team-building exercise," Johnson says.
It’s six o’clock on a Friday night in Santa Monica, and Blake Johnson is right where you’d expect him to be. The young serial entrepreneur, who has founded companies ranging from fintech to orthodontics, has tucked into his table at Mason with his wife and kids. He was at the dark, wood-ensconced midcentury restaurant the night before too, but that meal was for business. On both occasions Johnson didn’t have to wait to be seated, and the staff all knew him. On this night he skipped the wedge salad, Dover sole and steak frites to order something not on the menu, because anytime he’d done that before the chef made a delicious rendition of exactly what he was craving. “I’ve been looking for a restaurant that has high-quality food and a really good atmosphere,” he says. “Mason is a place I can be proud to take people to, but it also still has the comforts of home.”
The COVID-19 pandemic has created an urgent need for telehealth services. With social distancing orders in place and non-emergent healthcare services postponed or cancelled, people at home are turning to technology-enabled healthcare services en masse for the first time. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has temporarily broadened access to telehealth services by reimbursing telehealth appointments that previously required onsite visits. The Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights has even elected to exercise enforcement discretion and waive penalties for violations of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), openly encouraging healthcare providers to utilize communication technologies such as FaceTime and Skype. The combination of government deregulation, provider adoption, and patient need has resulted in a dramatic increase in telehealth usage.
Longtime Palisadians Blake Johnson and Scott Cohen are business partners, good friends and co-founders of byte—who are now using their time and company to give back to frontline workers.
