Once Incarcerated, This CEO Now Helps Americans with Criminal Records Find Work

How one Wall Street bigshot found himself in prison, and the company he l_ _ _ _ _ _ _ after his release connects
the formerly incarcerated with second-chance jobs.

A_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ one in three American adults have criminal records – that’s 70 million people, and nearly
75 percent of them are still unemployed a year after their release. With few prospects to cover basic expenses,
many ex-offenders return to illicit activities. Unable to make ends m_ _ _, an overwhelming majority (89 percent)
are unemployed at the time of their re-arrest.
Back in the late 90s, entrepreneur Richard Bronson found himself in a prison cell, wondering how he would turn
his life around. A few years following his release, Bronson became the founder and CEO of 70 Million Jobs, the
first national employment platform for people with criminal records.
This is his story.

Twenty-two months into my sentence the anxiety kicked in. I was sitting on my cot in a federal prison with eight
weeks left on my two-year sentence for securities fraud, and my impending freedom made me feel only one
thing: d_ _ _ _.
I began working on Wall Street in the early 1990s, and after working at several of the largest i_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
banks, I made a career pivot into a small brokerage firm on Long Island, Stratton Oakmont. You may know this
company better as the infamous Wolf of Wall Street firm. I did so well there I quickly became partner.
My a_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ were greater than Stratton Oakmont, and after a year I left to found my own financial services
firm. Our success was swift; in 18 months, I had 500 employees, and was generating $100 million in annual
revenue. I was getting very rich very fast.
As portrayed in Wolf of Wall Street, our success came from conducting business the wrong way—the illegal way.
I knew my behavior was wrong, but I told myself “everyone’s doing it.” I wish I could say it was a mistake or they
got the wrong guy, but none of that was true. I was guilty of securities fraud. So, despite having paid everyone
back, I was still—rightfully—punished with a prison sentence.
I came out of prison destitute and nearly h_ _ _ _ _ _ _—thank God for a sister and her couch. I wanted to put
the past behind me and live an honest, productive life. However, accomplishing this proved more daunting than
I ever
e_ _ _ _ _ _ _. Old friends deserted me and new acquaintances feared I was “radioactive”. Once they learned
about my incarceration, many kept me at arm’s length. Over the next several years I went from one bad situation
to another. I thought I fully learned the lesson of humility, having scrubbed toilets for hundreds of inmates, but
class had just begun.
I eventually ended up working at Defy Ventures, a prominent non-profit in the reentry space. I loved the
opportunity to help my brothers and sisters as they s_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ with their transition to freedom. It was
deeply rewarding work—very good for my karma—but over time I became convinced that reentry was ready
for disruption, specifically with a for-profit approach.
So I launched 70 Million Jobs, not knowing if large, national employers would be w_ _ _ _ _ _ to pay to access
our large community of job seekers. We got our answer almost immediately: while we don’t sell them all, the
vast m_ _ _ _ _ _ _ have been highly interested in our work, while many have discovered that hiring folks with
records is not only a great way to fill jobs but also a powerful step in asserting their leadership as fair-chance
employers.
The real heroes are our job seekers. Studies show that many of them become an employer’s best hire. For the
simple fact that they have few a_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _, they know they have to perform well to retain their job.
And they know that their employer took a chance in hiring them. So, unlike many in our workforce, they typically
reward their employer with greater retention. Great performance and retention is a home run for any HR
professional.
Once Incarcerated, This CEO Now Helps Americans with Criminal Records Find Work
https://www.smartrecruiters.com/blog/70-million-jobs-ceo-helps-americans-with-criminal-records-find-work/

How one Wall Street bigshot found himself in prison, and the company he launched after his release connects the formerly
incarcerated with second-chance jobs.
Approximately one in three American adults have criminal records – that’s 70 million people, and nearly 75 percent of
them are still unemployed a year after their release. With few prospects to cover basic expenses, many ex-offenders return
to illicit activities. Unable to make ends meet, an overwhelming majority (89 percent) are unemployed at the time of their
re-arrest.
Back in the late 90s, entrepreneur Richard Bronson found himself in a prison cell, wondering how he would turn his life
around. A few years following his release, Bronson became the founder and CEO of 70 Million Jobs, the first national
employment platform for people with criminal records.
Seeking to provide second chances for the one in three Americans with conviction histories, Bronson sees his company as
providing “double bottom line returns”, doing massive social good as well as building big, profitable businesses.
This is his story.

Twenty-two months into my sentence the anxiety kicked in. I was sitting on my cot in a federal prison with eight weeks
left on my two-year sentence for securities fraud, and my impending freedom made me feel only one thing: dread.
I began working on Wall Street in the early 1990s, and after working at several of the largest investment banks, I made a
career pivot into a small brokerage firm on Long Island, Stratton Oakmont. You may know this company better as the
infamous Wolf of Wall Street firm. I did so well there I quickly became partner.
My ambitions were greater than Stratton Oakmont, and after a year I left to found my own financial services firm. Our
success was swift; in 18 months, I had 500 employees, and was generating $100 million in annual revenue. I was getting
very rich very fast.
As portrayed in Wolf of Wall Street, our success came from conducting business the wrong way—the illegal way. I knew
my behavior was wrong, but I told myself “everyone’s doing it.” I wish I could say it was a mistake or they got the wrong
guy, but none of that was true. I was guilty of securities fraud. So, despite having paid everyone back, I was still—
rightfully—punished with a prison sentence.
I came out of prison destitute and nearly homeless—thank God for a sister and her couch. I wanted to put the past behind
me and live an honest, productive life. However, accomplishing this proved more daunting than I ever expected. Old
friends deserted me and new acquaintances feared I was “radioactive”. Once they learned about my incarceration, many
kept me at arm’s length. Over the next several years I went from one bad situation to another. I thought I fully learned
the lesson of humility, having scrubbed toilets for hundreds of inmates, but class had just begun.
I eventually ended up working at Defy Ventures, a prominent non-profit in the reentry space. I loved the opportunity to
help my brothers and sisters as they struggled with their transition to freedom. It was deeply rewarding work—very good
for my karma—but over time I became convinced that reentry was ready for disruption, specifically with a for-profit
approach.
So I launched 70 Million Jobs, not knowing if large, national employers would be willing to pay to access our large
community of job seekers. We got our answer almost immediately: while we don’t sell them all, the vast majority have
been highly interested in our work, while many have discovered that hiring folks with records is not only a great way to
fill jobs but also a powerful step in asserting their leadership as fair-chance employers.
The real heroes are our job seekers. Studies show that many of them become an employer’s best hire. For the simple fact
that they have few alternatives, they know they have to perform well to retain their job. And they know that their
employer took a chance in hiring them. So, unlike many in our workforce, they typically reward their employer with greater
retention. Great performance and retention is a home run for any HR professional.