E D D I E   F R A N C I S

OFFICIAL BIOGRAPHY

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Eddie Francis is a brand marketer, award-winning broadcaster, and speaker. Boasting a diverse professional background, he has been featured in multiple publications including The Chronicle of Higher Education, Bold Journey, Diverse: Issues in Higher Education, The Huffington Post, Inside Higher Ed, Careers in Government, and Watch the Yard. Eddie has also made appearances on various podcasts, including “ILLUMENATE,” “Confessions of a Higher Ed CMO,” “The Horrible Boss Effect,” “The Fraternity Foodie Podcast,” and “The HBCU Lifestyle Podcast.” He contributed to the books The 30-60-90-Day Handbook: Checklists for Communications and Marketing Leaders in Higher Education, From Letters to Leaders: Perseverance and How to Be a Great Fraternity or Sorority Alumnus, and Epic Content Marketing for Higher Education.

When he speaks, Eddie shares his thoughts and lessons learned about the leader-follower relationship, followership, career advancement, and personal leadership. He has spoken for such institutions and organizations as the American Marketing Association, the University of Alabama, the Big XII Conference on Black Student Government, the Northeast Greek Leadership Association, the Urban League of Louisiana, McNeese State University, Hannon Hill, the Association of Fraternal Leadership Values, and Southeastern Louisiana University. Eddie is also an adjunct instructor for Southern New Hampshire University.

The New Orleans native shares his thoughts about understanding and acting on everyday issues on his talk show “The Way Forward” on WBOK radio. He also hosts the personal leadership podcast “For Our Edification” and the fraternity and sorority leadership podcast, “Ethocast.” Eddie is the past host of “I Wanna Work There!,” one of Hannon Hill’s top higher ed marketing podcasts of 2024, and “The HBCU Lifestyle Podcast,” one of Podbean’s top 10 education podcasts. He also contributed to “The HBCU Nation Radio Show” on SiriusXM. Eddie’s career launched as “Fast Eddie,” producer of the hit morning show “C.J. & Company” on WQUE, New Orleans’ top hip hop radio station. He also co-produced the award-winning “Sunday Journal with Hal Clark” on the market’s top R&B radio station, WYLD. 

Ironically, Eddie found his voice in education. As a speaker for Monster’s Making It Count programs, Eddie reached over a quarter of a million high school and college students. He later led public relations at Southern University at New Orleans where he developed the university’s branding and led the redesign of the university’s website, and he later moved on to Paul Quinn College where he helped spark an enrollment increase amid a PR crisis. At Dillard University, Eddie led the “Write Your Legacy” brand refresh, increased the institutional media voices by 125%, expanded the university’s licensed merchandise offerings, and led the redesign of that website, as well. In a career pivot, Eddie entered talent acquisition where he recruited for award-winning global recruitment firm Cielo and for such brands as Quest Diagnostics, Staples, Lowe’s, Sprouts Farmers Market, and Tyco SimplexGrinnell. 

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Among Eddie’s honors are New Orleans Magazine’s “30 People to Watch,” the Press Club of New Orleans’ Best Radio Entertainment Feature Award, and two nominations for the AMA Foundation’s Higher Education Marketer of the Year. Eddie earned his master’s degree in strategic leadership from Tennessee State University and his bachelor’s in mass communication from Loyola University New Orleans. He is a member of the American Marketing Association where he served on the planning committee for the Symposium for the Marketing of Higher Education. Eddie is also a member of the Press Club of New Orleans and Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc. He is the proud husband of Dr. Halima Leak Francis, the proud father of Stevie, a dog daddy to Allegra, and a cat daddy to Asa.