2015 Outstanding Alumni

Mark Hayden is the founder and head cook of Breakfast at 12, a brand experience and marketing firm based in Houston. The company helps clients understand and manage their brand from the inside out, then cooks up engagingideas that turn stakeholders into company ambassadors.

Prior to Breakfast at 12, Mark was vice president of marketing for Farouk Systems, makers of CHI and BioSilk hair care products. Before Farouk, he was vice president and chief communications officer with BrandExtract, a brand experience firm in Houston.

Hayden co-founded Parker:Hayden, Inc., an award-winning integrated branding and marketing firm, which later merged with BrandExtract. Previously, he was an angel investor and director of marketing for eRealty.com, the first real estate company to integrate online access to MLS information with a full service real estate brokerage. Hayden served as director of strategic services and senior writer with The Adcetera Group and has held various positions with Sysco Corporation, including product information specialist and product manager over frozen vegetables, potatoes and poultry. He also served on the task force that created the Casa Solana brand of products and branded kiosks. Hayden began his career as a copywriter, first with Winius-Brandon Advertising in Houston, and now with Anderson Advertising in San Antonio.

Hayden is a member of the Houston chapter of the American Advertising Federation and American Marketing Association. He has held board positions with the MIT Enterprise Forum of Texas, the Public Relations Society of America, Houston Chapter, Only In Houston, and was a charter advisory board member of the national eMarketing Association. He also served as Entrepreneur in Residence with the Houston Technology Center. Hayden earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Advertising from Texas Tech University.

Mark Hayden