111. Building Jobs Where Everyone Else Left with Andy Kizzee

Andy Kizzee didn’t set out to build a workforce model in one of Memphis’ most challenged neighborhoods. However, after moving into Binghampton and getting to know his neighbors, he began asking a different question: not just why people weren’t working, but what kind of work actually changes a life. A structural engineer by training, Andy spent six years in India before returning to Memphis with a conviction that a good job can solve more than just income: it can create stability, dignity and opportunity.

Today, he leads the BDC Business Hub, an 80,000-square-foot recycling and logistics operation designed as a real job from day one. With almost no barriers to entry, the program hires individuals coming out of long-term unemployment, recovery and incarceration and puts them to work immediately, processing everything from streetlights and mattresses to large-scale e-commerce returns. Since launching, the Hub has hired 175 people and continues to grow through partnerships with major commercial and municipal projects.

At the center of it all is a simple but powerful idea: work matters. Drawing on the concept of “gleaning” — leaving space for others to work alongside you rather than handing out aid — Andy has built a model rooted in dignity, not dependency. It’s not perfect, and it’s not easy, but it’s real. And in a city like Memphis, it may be one of the most scalable ways to create lasting change.