The most successful business leaders always have their own compelling philosophies, but all too often the thoughts and ideologies of high-profile African American leaders are forgotten or passed over. This exciting new study reflects on some of the leading black business pioneers of the late 19th and early 20th century.

Born to enslaved parents, Anthony Overton became one of the leading African American entrepreneurs of the twentieth century. Overton's Chicago-based empire ranged from personal care products and media properties to insurance and finance. Yet, despite success and acclaim as the first business figure to win the NAACP's Spingarn Medal, Overton remains an enigma. Robert E. Weems Jr. restores Overton to his rightful place in American business history. Dispelling stubborn myths, he traces Overton's rise from mentorship by Booker T. Washington, through early failures, to a fateful move to Chicago in 1911. There, Overton started a popular magazine aimed at African American women that helped him dramatically grow his cosmetics firm. Overton went on to become the first African American to head a major business conglomerate, only to lose significant parts of his businesses—and his public persona as ”the merchant prince of his race”—in the Depression, before rebounding once again in the early 1940s. Revealing and panoramic, The Merchant Prince of Black Chicago weaves the fascinating life story of an African American trailblazer through the eventful history of his times.

A timely resource for Black professionals on how to rise to the top of their organizations or industries and, just as importantly, to stay there. Black Faces in High Places is the essential guide for Black professionals who are moving up through their organizations or industries but need a roadmap for how to get to the top and stay there. Based on the authors' considerable experiences in business, in the public eye, and as a minority, the book shows how African-American professionals can (and must) think and act both entrepreneurially and "intrapreneurially". In this book, you will: Expand yourself beyond your comfort zone Recognize and demonstrate the four facets of excellence Build beneficial relationships and powerful networks Identify different mentors and learn from others' experiences Discover ways of working with others to facilitate collective action Black Faces in High?Places highlights the experiences of other Black faces in high places who were able to navigate various crossroads, reach the top, and stay there, including insights from President Barack and First Lady Michelle Obama, Oprah Winfrey, Cathy Hughes, Angela Glover Blackwell, Ken Chenault, Senator Cory Booker, Geoffrey Canada, and others.

History confirms that wealth equates to power. Author, entrepreneur, and management consultant, Robert Wallace contends that wealth is the one remaining ingredient still missing from the African-American power base. In Black Wealth: Your Road to Small Business Success, Wallace argues that the best way to create black wealth is through entrepreneurship-the establishment, growth, and institutionalization of black-owned businesses that keep money within the community. But where do you start? How do you create a business? How will you make it grow? How do you overcome such obstacles as racism and sexism? In this indispensable book, you will learn how to maximize your abilities and capacities, develop a plan for success, ensure that your plan conforms with the hard realities of the business world, and gain know-how from the successes and failures of those who have gone before you. Start your journey toward your dreams by reading Black Wealth.

"Money has no color. If you can build a better mousetrap, it won't matter whether you're black or white. People will buy it." —A. G. Gaston Black Enterprise's 1992 Entrepreneur of the Century. For more than 25 years, Black Enterprise, the premier African American business magazine, has ranked and chronicled the B.E. 100s—its exclusive listing of the nation's top-grossing, black-owned businesses. Generating more than $14 billion in annual revenue and employing more than 55,000 people, these companies represent a vibrant and often overlooked segment of the American economy. Their CEOs, among the wealthiest and most powerful players in the black business community, have been the vanguard of an entrepreneurial revolution. They achieved greatness despite a lack of capital, diminished access, and even outright racism, using their imagination and drive to seize opportunities and break through barriers. First in the new Black Enterprise series, Titans of the B.E. 100s profiles eleven of these remarkable leaders of the largest black-owned businesses. Covering a broad cross-section of companies and industries, this compelling book features both today's emerging entrepreneurs and the established CEOs, revealing the secrets of how they beat the odds and the hard truths about the myriad challenges they've faced. No other book brings together so many contemporary black business success stories. Through in-depth, first-person interviews, you'll meet the titans who started their companies from the ground up and were relentless in doing so; who filled a void in the consumer market and, in turn, revolutionized whole industries; and who love the companies that they run and are energized by new ventures. Each chapter profiles a different business legend: From John H. Johnson, founder of Ebony and Jet magazines; to Herman J. Russell, who used $125 to create the nation's largest black-owned construction firm; to Emma C. Chappell, the People's Banker, who launched the United Bank of Philadelphia; to Robert L. Johnson, who created Black Entertainment Television and then transformed BET Holdings, Inc. from a single cable network to an entertainment monolith that became the first black-owned business listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Inspiring and motivating, Titans of the B.E. 100s will introduce you to an incredible group of men and women who made a profound impact upon global business, symbolizing a spectacular realization of the American Dream. Praise for TITANS OF the B.E. 100s. "Titans of the B.E. 100s challenges the vintage profile of the entrepreneur by showcasing the impressive and dynamic careers of African American executives who surmounted social, economic, and political barriers to gain their deserved place in today's world of the business elite."—Kweisi Mfume, President and CEO, NAACP. "Titans of the B.E. 100s aptly documents the achievements of African American entrepreneurs who embody the legacy of the twentieth century and the hope of the twenty-first century. The principles espoused by these esteemed business leaders are essential to the future of the civil rights movement as we prepare our children for self-reliance and our adults for economic self-sufficiency in the next century.—Hugh B. Price, President, National Urban League. The intriguing profiles in this book tell the stories of a group of people who started with nothing and went straight to the top, overcoming obstacles with tenacity, ingenuity, and sheer bravery: Don H. Barden Emma C. Chappell Mel Farr Sr. Charles H. James III John H. Johnson Robert L. Johnson Byron E. Lewis Herman J. Russell Russell Simmons Clarence O. Smith Percy E. Sutton.

The 20th Century has been marked by enormous change in terms of how we define race. In large part, we have thrown out the antiquated notions of the 1800s, giving way to a more realistic, sociocultural view of the world. The United States is, perhaps more than any other industrialized country, distinguished by the size and diversity of its racial and ethnic minority populations. Current trends promise that these features will endure. Fifty years from now, there will most likely be no single majority group in the United States. How will we fare as a nation when race-based issues such as immigration, job opportunities, and affirmative action are already so contentious today? In America Becoming, leading scholars and commentators explore past and current trends among African Americans, Hispanics, Asian Americans, and Native Americans in the context of a white majority. This volume presents the most up-to-date findings and analysis on racial and social dynamics, with recommendations for ongoing research. It examines compelling issues in the field of race relations, including: Race and ethnicity in criminal justice. Demographic and social trends for Hispanics, Asian Americans, and Native Americans. Trends in minority-owned businesses. Wealth, welfare, and racial stratification. Residential segregation and the meaning of "neighborhood." Disparities in educational test scores among races and ethnicities. Health and development for minority children, adolescents, and adults. Race and ethnicity in the labor market, including the role of minorities in America's military. Immigration and the dynamics of race and ethnicity. The changing meaning of race. Changing racial attitudes. This collection of papers, compiled and edited by distinguished leaders in the behavioral and social sciences, represents the most current literature in the field. Volume 1 covers demographic trends, immigration, racial attitudes, and the geography of opportunity. Volume 2 deals with the criminal justice system, the labor market, welfare, and health trends, Both books will be of great interest to educators, scholars, researchers, students, social scientists, and policymakers.

A guide for creating a deeper relationship with the entrepreneurial journey The Self-Reliant Entrepreneur offers overworked and harried entrepreneurs, and anyone who thinks like one, a much-needed guide for tapping into the wisdom that is most relevant to the entrepreneurial life. The book is filled with inspirational meditations that contain the thoughts and writings of notable American authors. Designed as a daily devotional, it is arranged in a calendar format, and features readings of transcendentalist literature and others. Each of The Self-Reliant Entrepreneur meditations is followed by a reflection and a challenging question from John Jantsch. He draws on his lifetime of experience as a successful coach for small business and startup leaders to offer an entrepreneurial context. Jantsch shows how entrepreneurs can learn to trust their ideas and overcome the doubt and fear of everyday challenges. The book contains: A unique guide to meditations, especially designed for entrepreneurs A range of topics such as self-awareness, trust, creativity, resilience, failure, growth, freedom, love, integrity, and passion An inspirational meditation for each day of the year. . . including leap year Reflections from John Jantsch, small business marketing expert and the author of the popular book Duct Tape Marketing Written for entrepreneurs, as well anyone seeking to find a deeper meaning in their work and life, The Self-Reliant Entrepreneur is a practical handbook for anyone seeking to embrace the practice of self-trust.