Christopher Ryan-Lawrence
Founder, Principal & CEO of ARK Leadership, LLC | Greater Atlanta Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce
Chris is a Founder, Principal and CEO of ARK Leadership LLC. and is a proven entrepreneurial leader with more than twenty four years of business building leadership experience. He was a founding partner and principal who launched Pegasus Residential based in Atlanta, Georgia, which subsequently grew into a multimillion dollar company, operating in ten states, in five years. After selling his interest, he subsequent launched ARK Leadership LLC, a business building company made up of uniquely multitalented entrepreneurs driven to improve all facets of business performance under the ARK umbrella. He has launched or improved over eighty multimillion dollar residential communities in his career, essentially all small businesses, through his hands on and “in the trenches” personal leadership style. This experience has led ARK to successfully improve a variety organizations in a variety of industries from national sales organizations to major metropolitan cities from the East Coast to the Midwest. Chris graduated from Virginia Tech with a Bachelors in Business Administration with a focus on Marketing.
Chris is additionally a speaker on both local and national platforms largely due to his enthusiastic and passionate delivery method infused with a great deal of humor centered around electrifying organizations culture and business performance. He has been a guest lecturer to The University of Georgia and Georgia Tech for over ten years, and is also a guest lecturer at his alma mater Virginia Tech. His speaking topics have included personal accountability in the workplace, creating and maintaining enthusiastic company cultures, innovations in management techniques, creating sustainable performance in a recovering economy, and many more that have been tailored specifically to his audience and their business needs.
Chris is also passionate about giving back to the community, and speaking on LGBTQ equality. He founded a youth organization that grew to nationally ranked status in four years, was on the Board of Directors of the LGBTQ Organization for Virginia Tech, was a volunteer with the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) for three years, and was a youth facilitator with YouthPride for two years. He was recently elected to the Atlanta Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce (AGLCC) Board of Directors and leads Business Development Committee which organizes AGLCC-University, Procurement Spotlights, LGBTBE Certifications as well as leading the AGLCC/Small Business Administration alliance. In addition, ARK is proud to be a certified LGBTBE through the NGLCC.
Community, recognition and recent speaking events
- Board of Directors – AGLCC 2015 – current
- Small Business Development Chair
- Chairman, Youth Performing Arts Group of Richmond, Inc. 1996-2000
- Speaker – NAA national convention – 2012 Click for NAA seminar description “Best of Boston”
- Speaker – NAA National Convention – 2015 “Five Star Award”
- Speaker – Atlanta Apartment Association – 2011
- Speaker – Interface Multifamily Southeast – 2010 / 2012
- Speaker – Marcus Millichap Conference / Carolinas and Southeast – 2014
- Guest lecturer – University of Georgia 2004 – Current
- Guest lecturer – Georgia Tech 2004-2013
- GAEIF award for continuing contribution to education in Georgia – 2013
- Speaker – Georgia Leadership Conference / Emory University September 2014
- Speaker – National Apartment Association Conference – June 2015
- Executive Seminar Series, Matrix Residential – December 2015
- Executive Seminar Series, Franklin Johnston Group – 2015
- Executive Seminar Series, Carma Productions – 2015-2016
- Guest lecturer – Virginia Tech College of Business and College of Architecture – 2015
He is proudly married to his husband, Thomas and lives in Atlanta Georgia with their son Noah who was the inspiration for the formation of ARK Leadership LLC.