Today we’d like to introduce you to Damien Jones.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I’m the grandson of Mississippi sharecroppers who learned the importance of faith, creativity, and hard work at an early age. I was born and raised in Jackson, Mississippi by my outstanding parents Bill & Eva Jones and my two older brothers. I’m a respected political consultant, national speaker, proud member of Lilly Grove Missionary Baptist Church, uncle, husband, and Laker fan.
We connected with God every Sunday at Zion Travelers Missionary Baptist Church under the leadership of Rev. Dr. Daniel Watkins, where I served as an usher and choir member. In 2003, I graduated from the prestigious Piney Woods School (a historically African American boarding school founded in 1909) and enlisted in the United States Air Force as an F-16 electrician.
After honorably serving my country, I was hit the political bug to learn more about how government works, specifically for African Americans, so I enrolled at Texas Southern University in 2011 to study political science & public affairs.
TSU afforded me excellent academic & cultural development opportunities that shaped my perspective on leadership, governance, and public outreach. I was blessed to serve as Political Science Club President, Student Veterans of America President, Student Government Association Senator, and most notably Student Government Association Executive Vice President. These roles allowed me to engage thousands of students in civic participation, voting, and school pride. I am very proud to have registered over 5,000 students to vote during my time at TSU.
During the next few years, I secured my first political internship at Houston City Hall with former Houston Police Chief & At-Large Councilmember C.O. Bradford. Shortly thereafter, I was chosen to host a weekly news/public affairs radio program on KTSU titled “A Closer Look” in addition to being chosen as a Wal-Mart Emerging Leaders intern with the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation in Washington, DC. After completing the internship, I served under Senator Rodney Ellis and Representative Ron Reynolds, respectively, as a legislative aide.
In late 2014 inspired by the protests in Ferguson, Missouri, I co-founded Houston Justice, a community-based organization focused on civic engagement and balancing the scales of justice. In a short period of time, we were able to get legislation passed related to body cameras on police in addition to changing eligibility requirements to serve on grand juries in Harris County.
In 2015, I relocated to D.C. upon securing my dream job as Program Coordinator of the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation Leadership Institute. In that role, I trained over 90 young African American professionals to be policymakers, in addition to establishing strong relationships with members of Congress, lobbyists, and social advocates. I was then hired as the first Environmental Justice Outreach Advocate for the Union of Concerned Scientists, one of America’s leading environmental organizations. That role allowed me to travel America working to fight environmental injustices in Black and Brown communities.
After three years in DC, I decided it was time to get back to Houston to start a family. In May 2018, I joined the U.S. Senate Campaign of a little known Congressman from El Paso named Beto O’Rourke. I served as Regional Political Director for Harris & Fort Bend counties. I was blessed to lead a team that helped elect 18 African American judges, registered over 50k voters, inspired historic turnout among African American Texans and turned Texas into an important battleground state. I am very proud of what our team achieved, although we came up slightly short in the race.
After a gratifying professional experience working on a high profile U.S. Senate campaign, my wife Courtney and I launched Ambition Strategies, a political consulting firm providing high-quality political strategy, fundraising, public outreach, and media relations services to clients in Texas and across America. In less than a year of operations, our firm has raised over $200k for our clients, provided high-level strategy for local and national campaigns, and we continue to advise elected officials daily.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Life is never a smooth road but I’m always excited about the learning experience and growth opportunities from obstacles. My story is unique and full of obstacles and full of wins. I finished dead last in my high school class, have been told I would never amount to anything, but those experiences pushed me to work maniacally to achieve my goals while using my story to inspire and develop other leaders. Nobody is exempt from adversity, but the important piece is how you respond to adversity. I choose to count it all joy and keep doing God’s will. I feel very good about the impact God has allowed me to have on his people.
My favorite Bible verse – Matthew 23:11
I strive to be a great servant, Christian, and husband each day.
Ambition Strategies – what should we know? What do you do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
I serve as Managing Partner of Ambition Strategies, under the direction of my CEO and business partner Courtney Jones. We started the company when we noticed the scarcity of African American operatives and consultants in the state of Texas. We specialize in political strategy, public outreach, media relations, and fundraising. We are most proud of raising over $200k for our clients in our first year of operation. We are very proud of being serious about producing high-quality results for our clients with high transparency and integrity. We are different from our competitors because we only work with clients who share our same values of excellence, honesty, and sustainable community impact. Our team is laser-focused on making real community impact that can inspire others to help the least, last, and lost.
What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
There are three things I’m most proud of:
-Taking Beto O’Rourke from a virtually unknown politician to a rock star among Houston’s African American community and Presidential candidate.
– Inspiring hundreds of young African American professionals across America to achieve their dreams with high intensity.
– Marrying my wife Courtney.
Contact Info:
- Website: IamDamienJones.com
- Email: admin@AmbitionStrategies.com
- Instagram: @iamdamienjones
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/damien.t.jones.75
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