At 5 feet 9 inches (and a half), Kyle Hagler looks up to his clients – 10 impossibly gorgeous, reedy women – both literally and figuratively. His deference is appropriate: His job is to ensure that they shine in the limelight.

His roster includes Heidi Klum, Liya Kebede (the first black face of Estee Lauder), Diana Dondoe (the star of Donna Karan and Emanuel Ungaro ad campaigns), and Ujjwala Raut (YSL’s and Dolce and Gabbana’s girl of the moment). Mr. Hagler has a firm foothold in the whirlwind model business as a manager at IMG Models (a division of IMG World, which runs Fashion Week).

As another hectic Fashion Week swings into town, he has arranged for his gaggle of girls to strut the runways at Marc Jacobs, Anna Sui, Calvin Klein, Steven Burrows, Oscar de la Renta, Proenza Schouler, Michael Kors, Donna Karan, Bill Blass, Ralph Lauren, Narcisco Rodriguez, Benhaz Sarafpour, Diane Von Furstenberg, Richard Chai, and BCBG.

Catwalk appearances are critical to his models’ success.

“They take up about three months of the year, but they’re an incredible catalyst for all other opportunities in the business,” Mr. Hagler said. “The runway brings a high amount of visibility in a short period of time.”

The audience is filled with editors from magazines around the world, “and if they happen to see a model on the runway, that gives them inspiration to use them in the pages of the magazine. It also gives the designers inspiration to use them in their advertising campaigns,” he added.

Of course, that inspiration may come with a little nudging from Mr. Hagler.

“I do try to get out to a lot of the shows, in New York, London. You talk to the individual stylists…you try to convince the designers, the editors, the photographers. There’s a lot of that going on during the shows, because come October, that’s when all these people go back to work and start shooting the campaigns.”

The other people to watch for at the shows are his models. One show in particular provided a humorous anecdote with a twist.

“We were in Paris – there was a really big show there. The models would come out and they were on a Plexiglas runway. The audience was holding their breath, wondering who’s going to fall – I guess there was an oily spot on the runway. One of our models comes from the entrance, walks out fast, like a shot, and falls feet first in the air, sliding on her butt. I looked at her, almost horrified, and she’s laughing hysterically.”

The lesson learned: “All in all, we’re not curing cancer. We’re not educating young people. It’s fashion. There has to be some degree of humor to it,” Mr. Hagler said.

“That taught me a big lesson. You can’t take it that seriously all the time, although I’d like to,” he added. Yet hand him his cell phone, and he’s all business, saying matter of factly, “I suss out opportunities for my clients, then determine along with them, what is the right opportunity.”

For all that professionalism, Mr. Hagler has a boyish charm. His big blue eyes light up when he smiles, which is often. He’s constantly fussing with his hair, which tends to fall across his face. But that youthful joie de vivre doesn’t drive him to model filled nightclubs.

“I go to proper events, where customers are there, to create new relationships. It’s not just about hanging out. We’re not the party agency. We’re not trying to get the girls to go out to parties and thinking of their careers second. It’s about their career first.”

He did manage a night out to celebrate his 30th birthday in June – at a party at the Roxy.

His client Ms. Kebede, who he has managed since she came to New York five years ago, was one hostess. “I tested her, booked her first major job. I saw her through her pregnancy. We’ve come through a lot together.”

Mr. Hagler’s talent for building relationships earned him a role as judge and adviser on the television reality show “America’s Next Top Model.” But, he said, “Ultimately my goal is not to be in the forefront, my goal is to be behind the scenes.”

That means sticking to what he knows he does well.

“The joy I derive from this is to help other people realize their dreams and goals, to take models from becoming brand-new to household names. Even helping models realize dreams they never thought that they had.”

He credits his mom, an internist, not only for her incredible fashion sense, but for setting an example of the kind of woman he wants to create.

“My parents divorced when I was 8, and I raised by my mom primarily – a woman who was quite strong. I love to help women get to that point, where they are self-sufficient and ruling the world.”

Growing up in New Jersey, Mr. Hagler experimented with clothes and hairstyles. But he didn’t consciously think of fashion as a career possibility until a friend at Morehouse College suggested he work at a local modeling agency.

“I went not expecting much,” said the business management major. But he found much to interest him. “I realized there’s a real business behind this. I realized, it’s not really about the glamour, the glitz, enormous amounts of money. It’s about business. It’s just like anybody who goes to work in a bank or the stock market.”

Like any stockbroker, Mr. Hagler knows dress is important. “Working in fashion, you should be fashionable. You can’t walk into a major meeting and not be fashionable.”

He calls his style “rock-chic meets bohemian.”

“My friends joke: There may be something that pops up and I say I can’t go, I have to be dressed appropriately. Sometimes I go back to Brooklyn just to change. I’m really neurotic about that.”

Mr. Hagler lives in Fort Greene. “It’s gorgeous, with tree-lined streets, and a mix of people – families, straight, gay, artistic, professional.”

He’s often working late in the city, so weekends are when he goes out to eat in his neighborhood, often at the French restaurant Chez Oscar on DeKalb Avenue. “I also love the River Cafe – that’s more for intimate dinners.”

Mr. Hagler is also committed to charitable work. He lost an uncle to AIDS in 1997. “I’ve done anything in my power to bring attention to the issue and raise money for it,” he said. He’s working on organizing a world tour of singers who all have HIV or AIDS. He’s also looking to become a mentor, in part inspired by the summer interns at IMG.

“I feel I’ve been very fortunate in my life and I’d like to be able to give back to young kids, give them some sort of inspiration.”

There’s little time to rest.

“My mom always says, ‘slow down.’ We went on vacation to Jamaica – and I was planning every minute of the day: Let’s go horseback riding, let’s go scuba diving, let’s go climb this mountain. She said, sit by the beach!”