Hi

 

What does Private Equity investment, diversity in Applies Behavior Analysis, and Behavior Analysis as applied to sports all have in common?

 

It just so happens that these are the topics I'll be chatting about with Beverly and Kirk Kirby of Team ABA!

 

At last year's ABAI, Rick Kubina introduced me to this dynamic duo, and boy do they have a great story to tell, and I'm frankly quite grateful that they're doing so on The Behavioral Observations Podcast. 

 

Along with Rick and Mark Dixon, Beverly was on a panel that I chaired that discussed the role of big money in ABA. Mark discussed the business side of PEAK and Rick talked about the founding and subsequent purchase of Chartlytics by Central Reach. 

 

And then Beverly shared the story of how the Kirby's started Sparks ABA, a company that was dedicated to serving the underserved in the DC Metro area. Sparks went on to be acquired by a private equity investor, and Beverly shared the lengthy and challenging process of selecting an investor that would continue to provide high quality ABA services in an ethical manner. Whether you're a business owner or not, this is a great story on its own!

 

The Kirby's went on to found the aforementioned Team ABA. The services Team ABA provides are quite varied, but a lot of their focus is on using ABA for improving sports performance, addressing wellness, and helping organizations run more effectively. And if you caught the last episode with Rick, he mentioned some of the cool stuff that they're doing in the realm of sports performance. If you're curious about this line of work, I suggest visiting their Facebook page and checking out some of the videos that they have on it. 

 

The Kirby's are also passionate about improving the diversity in our field. They've done some outreach to Historically Black Colleges to provide internships and other opportunities for students of color. This is an issue that does not get talked about a lot in our field, and to be candid, this is a long-overdue discussion at least as it relates to my show. 

 

So as you can see, we have a ton of things to talk about. While it's possible that we'll fit it into one show, this might span another episode or two. As always, I'd love to have you involved in the conversation, so if you have questions in any of these areas, please let me know and I'll do my best to include them. 

 

All the best,

Matt