Kelly Perdew biography: 13 things about ‘The Apprentice’ Season 2 winner

Kelly Crawford Perdew is an American businessman born in Lexington, Kentucky, United States. He is the oldest of five brothers and he spent most of his childhood not only in Kentucky but also in Florida, USA and in Wyoming, USA.

While attending high school in Cheyenne, Wyoming, Perdew played sports and worked at McDonalds during the summers. After high school, he became the first in his family to go into the military.

From 1985 to 1989, Perdew attended the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, New York, USA where he earned his bachelor’s degree in national security and public affairs. From May 1990 to June 1992, he was a U.S. Army first lieutenant.

From 1992 to 1996, Perdew attended the Anderson School of Management of the University of California, Los Angeles in Los Angeles, California, USA, where he earned his master’s degree and Juris Doctor in entrepreneurship, and the university’s law school where he earned his master’s degree and Juris Doctor in law. From 1993 to 1995, he was a Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP intern.

Currently, Perdew and his wife live in Los Angeles. They have two children, who are twins, together.

Kelly also have a stepson. Here are 13 more things about the former:

1. From September 1995 to March 1998, he was the acting chief financial officer of ImageTel International Inc. From April 1998 to October 1999, he was the strategy practice manager of Deloitte Consulting. From October 1999 to January 2001, he was the acting president of eteamz.
2. From 2000 to 2004, he was on the advisory board of Pandora. In February 2001, he co-founded The Layoff Lounge. From March 2001 to January 2006, he was on the advisory board of CoreObjects Software, Inc. From September 2003 to December 2004, he was a board member of the Product Development and Management Association in California. In June 2004, he co-founded MotorPride, LLC. In January 2004, he founded Perdew Properties, LLC.
3. He won “The Apprentice” Season 2, which aired on NBC from September 8, 2004 to December 16, 2004. From December 2004 to December 2005, he was a LinkedIn advisor. From January 2005 to February 2006, he was an executive vice president at The Trump Organization.
4. From January 2006 to May 2008, he was the managing director of Angel Venture Partners. From April 2006 to November 2007, he was a board member of Job Zone Network. In May 2006, he founded American Family Protection. On June 15, 2006, he became an appointee of 43rd U.S. president George W. Bush’s Council on Service and Civic Participation.
5. From December 2006 to May 2008, he was the ProElite, Inc. president. From May 2008 to October 2011, he was the chief executive officer of Fastpoint Games. From May 2010 to July 2012, he was a Founder Institute mentor.
6. He joined DuMont Project as an advisor from January 2009 to September 2011 and a managing partner from October 2011 to June 2021. In July 2010, he joined GatherGreen as an advisor. From July 2010 to July 2011, he was on the advisory board of Parentella.
7. He was an investor of Klout from August 2010 to March 2014, BetterWorks from November 2010 to July 2012, Bitium from January 2012 to September 2017, RideScout from September 2012 to October 2014, harvest.ai from September 2014 to June 2016, Reachify from May 2016 to December 2018, Yoi Corp from October 2016 to July 2017, Threatcare from December 2017 to October 2019, Fair.com from April 2016 to August 2022, eTailPet from March 2019 to August 2022,
8. From August 2011 to January 2016, he was a Ustream advisor. In December 2011, he became a mentor of MuckerLab and Amplify.la. In January 2012, he co-founded TargetClose. From June 2012 to February 2020, he was a Consensus Point board member in Nashville, Tennessee, USA.
9. He became an investor of ID.me in October 2010, Social Rewards Inc. in July 2011, Ampsy in August 2011, Scopely in February 2012, Nimble in August 2012, APX Labs in October 2012, lettrs in March 2013 and Thrively in August 2013.
10. From September 2013 to August 2015, he was the chairman of Electronic Retailing Association’s digital council in Washington, D.C., USA. He became an investor of Boomtown in March 2014, en*theos in May 2014 and Arx Pax and HiQ Labs in June 2014.
11. In September 2014, he and Craig Cummings co-founded Moonshots Capital. He became an investor of MobLabs in September 2014, Edbacker in November 2014, Zuma Ventures in January 2015, Co and ClassPass in February 2015, Roost in March 2015, HONK Technologies in May 2015, Domuso in October 2015, Synergy Fuels and Unoceros Corporation in December 2015, CrossChx and PreFix Inc. in April 2016, GoMeta in September 2016, Pray.com in November 2016, PlushCare in December 2016, ProducePay in January 2017, Slack in October 2017, Emerge and PlanetiQ in November 2017, Yonder and Milestone Brands in January 2018, Shep in February 2018, Catalog in August 2018, RED6 Aerospace in March 2019 and Backtracks in May 2019.
12. In June 2019, he joined Bunker Labs in Chicago, Illinois, USA as an executive board member. He became an investor of Wildfire Systems in June 2019, BioThread in July 2019, The Quantum Storey Company in August 2019, Vacayou Wellness and Active Travel in October 2019, nok, Gretel.ai, CESPPA and Cooper Labs in November 2019, Zabo in February 2020, Robinhood in September 2020, Transmute in October 2020, X2 PERFORMANCE in January 2021, Carta in February 2021, Cart.com in March 2021, Pacaso in March 2021, Realize.me in September 2021, VersusGame and Able in October 2021, SGNL in November 2021, Afterparty, GrubMarket and Groundswell in December 2021, Azibo in February 2022 and Cartwheel in April 2022.
13. On January 29, 2023, he turned 56. He became an investor of Matchday in February 2023 and Proteus Space in June 2023.