Melea McRae-Hall

About Melea McRae-Hall

Melea is an entrepreneur, marketing strategist, business connector and adjunct professor with 30 years of experience elevating brands, amplifying missions and fueling business growth for B2B and B2C clients.In 2016, Melea made the entrepreneurial leap and founded Crux KC, a fast-growing WBE headquartered in KC. Known as the “un-agency,” Crux is a full-funnel outsourced marketing solution customized for organizations of all shapes, sizes and verticals, combining the expertise of fractional CMOs who build the marketing strategy with a deep bench of experts in each marketing discipline to deliver on that strategy. Crux’s core competencies extend across the full marketing cycle, from research and strategy to branding and messaging, content development, tactical execution of marketing plans, and finally, measurement, analysis and insights to fuel business growth for clients. In 2019, Melea co-founded Crux-Xcelerate, focused on sales coaching and development, aligning sales with marketing to positively impact revenue growth. Crux is a two-time Inc. honoree, an Inc Best Workplaces honoree, a Kansas City Business Journal 2023 Fast 50 company and two-time Champion of Business, and a three-time KC Chamber Top 10 Small Business.Melea is a Helzberg Entrepreneurial Mentoring Program (HEMP) fellow and a member of the Forbes Communications Council and Kansas City Business Journal’s 2021 Women Who Mean Business class, and she serves on multiple boards in the region, including incoming chair of the Kansas City Repertory Theatre board of directors; Arvest Bank’s Kansas City board of directors; KU Advancement Board at the University of Kansas Academic Medical Center; Charlie Hustle’s Heart of KC board of directors, the ECJC (Enterprising Center of Johnson County) board of directors; Circle of Red supporting the American Heart Association; and the Children’s Mercy Research Institute Advisory Council. Melea earned her undergraduate degree from Webster University and an Executive MBA from Rockhurst University’s Helzberg School of Management.Specialties: Marketing strategy, marketing communications, brand strategy and design, content strategy, PR and media relations, social media, digital marketing, business development, civic engagement, public speaking, product development, event management, and building client relationships.

Experience

1. Associate Professor

   Rockhurst University

   Aug 2020 — Present

Education

• Rockhurst University

  Executive MBA, Business Administration and Management, General

  2018 — 2020

• Webster University

  Bachelor's, Marketing/Business Management

  1989 — 1993