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BL
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NOVEMBER 2012
Mobile Gadgets For Business
WEALTH FOR LIFE
VENUS’Sweet Returns
255GreatFranchisingOpportunities
www.blackenterprise.com
The New Vetpreneurs
America’s Military
Thriving In Business
Résumé
Makeover:Adoption:Why Does It Cost So
Much?Get Noticed& Get Hired
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10.22.2012 17:49 BE3539RHP_1112.pdf
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WEALTH FOR LIFE
54 Junior Achievement CynthiaNevelsteachesherchildrenthe valueofsavingandspendingwisely ByTamaraE.Holmes
57 Escaping the Paycheck to Paycheck Life TalishaWhiteseekstochangebehavior thatwillsabotageher�nancialfuture ByLatoyaM.Smith
POWER PLAYER
60 Managing Safety Aformerspecialagenttransfers hisskillstocorporatesecurity BySoniaAlleyne PERSONAL FINANCE
62 The Real Cost of Adoption It’snotcheaptoadoptachildfroma privateagency.Here'showto�nance thegrowthofyourfamily ByTamaraE.Holmes&SheiresaNgo
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NOVEMBER 2012 • WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM
SEE HOW A FOOD
SCIENCE DEGREE
WAS THE SEED
OF JUDSON TODD
ALLEN'S SUCCESS IN
“BOUNTIFUL CAREERS
IN AGRICULTURE.”
2
Features
CAREERS
68 Bountiful Careers in Agriculture Howfourprofessionalsfoundlucrative opportunitiesinagrowing�eld ByMarciaWadeTalbert
SMALL BUSINESS [PART 1 OF A SERIES]
78 Winning Battles For Vetpreneurs ReturningGIsaccesscapitalandothersupport togrowthrivingbusinessesonthehomefront ByCli�Hocker
FRANCHISING
86 Great Franchise Opportunities for African Americans Anewclassofentrepreneursistakingadvantage ofprogramsforminorities,athletes,andveterans ByCarolynM.Brown&Je�reyMcKinney
42 MOBILE GADGETS FOR BUSINESS
50 RÉSUMÉ MAKEOVER: GET NOTICED AND GET HIRED
78 THE NEW VETPRENEURS: AMERICA'S MILITARY THRIVING IN BUSINESS
86 25 GREAT FRANCHISING OPPORTUNITIES + VENUS' SWEET RETURNS
NOVEMBER 2012 VOL. 43 ISSUE 4
11 TOC.indd 2 10/23/12 6:04 PM
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IBM
, the
IBM
logo
, ibm
.com
, Sm
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anet
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man
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and
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trad
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com
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cur
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ava
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the
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© In
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11.
Food is nowfollowed fromfarm to fork.
IBM is helping Manitoba tackle Canada’s 13 million cases
of food poisoning every year by tracking the freshness of meat.
ibm.com/smarterplanet
10.23.2012 16:34 BE3550_1112.pdf
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Columns
WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM • PHOTOGRAPHS BY KEVIN ALLEN (TOP), LONNIE C. MAJOR (BOTTOM) • NOVEMBER 20124
46
30
12 PUBLISHER’S PAGE Let'shonorourtroopswith
thesupporttheydeserve
14 EXECUTIVE MEMO Thevalueofbusiness
partnerships:1+1=3
16 ABOUT THIS ISSUE Smallbusiness:backbone
ofAmerica
23 IN MEMORIAMAndrewBrimmer
CORRECTION: In "Drink to Your Health," Life, October, 2012, the website for
21 Pounds 21 Days: The Martha's Vineyard Diet Detox is www.21pounds21days.com.
40
24 Money YOUR FINANCIAL ADVISER INVESTMENT STRATEGIES 5 tips to make sure
you don’t fall short and outlive your retirement savings
STOCK PICKS Three stocks that may raise
investor optimism and return on investment
CREDIT MANAGEMENT Here’s how to get your credit
report complaints addressed in a timely fashion
35 Small Biz YOUR SMALL BUSINESS EXPERT MAKING IT The ELOCEN Group helps government
agencies stay on schedule and on budget
MANAGEMENT ADVICE Small Business University
grand prize winner puts business lessons to good use
42 Tech YOUR TECHNOLOGY CONSULTANT EXECUTIVE GIFT GUIDE Gifts for those
on the go
46 Work YOUR CAREER COACH THE WORK I DO A seasoned TV
professional focuses on longevity
STRATEGY How to effectively present
your experience and skills to a
prospective employer on your résumé
98 Life YOUR ENTRÉE TO GOOD LIVING CONCIERGE SELECT Basketball legend Walt “Clyde” Frazier
is developing his chops in the restaurant business
EXECUTIVE GIFT GUIDE Suggestions for
connoiseurs, enthusiasts, and eclectic
professionals on your list
104 BACKTALK withRandyJackson
In Every Issue
11 TOC.indd 4 10/23/12 6:37 PM
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In the Nation, safe drivers are rewarded.
Becoming a Nationwide Insurance member is rewarding. Members can add Vanishing
Deductible.® You could get $100 off your deductible for every year of safe driving. It
could even go down to zero. We put members first, because we don’t have shareholders.
Join the Nation where protection is personal.
To Join the Nation today, visit us at JoinTheNation.com or call 1-877-Nationwide.
Products underwritten by Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company and Affiliated Companies, Columbus, Ohio. Not all Nationwide affiliated companies aremutual companies and not all Nationwide members are insured by a mutual company. Vanishing Deductible is an optional feature. Annual credits subjectto eligibility requirements. Max. credit: $500. Details and availability vary by state. Nationwide, the Nationwide framemark, Nationwide is on Your Side, OnYour Side and Join the Nation and design, are service marks of Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company. © 2012 Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company.
®
10.24.2012 15:16 BE3560_1112.pdf
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WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM • NOVEMBER 20126
W i t h C h r i s t m a s
around the corner, get
ideas on what to give
the tech lover in your
life. See more at www.
blackenterprise.com/
holidaygiftideas
Cool JobsStylist to the stars. Digital mastermind.
Artistic genius. C-suite gatekeeper.
They’re not just jobs—they’re brands
with purpose-driven motivation. You
don’t have to be stuck in a career rut.
Be inspired by those who followed their
dreams and make boss moves of your
own. www.blackenterprise.com/cooljobs
How Mexicue’s CFO Keeps Fast Growing Company Rolling [Q&A]
Julia Collins tells BLACK ENTERPRISE how she helped turn
a single NYC food truck into a multimillion-dollar business.
www.blackenterprise.com/mexicueCFO
black enterprise Senior Vice President and
Multimedia Editor-at-Large Alfred Edmond
Jr. will appear in a series of bimonthly videos
where he will guide and inform entrepre-
neurs and aspiring business owners on how
to launch and grow profitable, competitive
companies. Get tools, advice, and resources
to gain the necessary advantage to continue
your journey to entrepreneurial success.
www.blackenterprise.com/sba
Check out the winners of our Small Business University
powered by Dell, grand prize winner Lisa Marie Jackson and
runner-up Kristina Parker, as they discuss how their busi-
nesses have changed since winning the highly contested
competition. www.blackenterprise.com/sbuJACKSON PARKER
CHECK US OUT
EVERY Tuesday for profiles of
out-of-the-box professionals who actually love
what they do to bring home the
bread.
‘Tis the Season
for Giving
sponsored by WELLS FARGO
powered by DELL
11 DIGITAL TOC.indd 6 10/22/12 2:53 PM
11 DIGITALTOC_006.pgs 10.22.2012 13:54 BLACK YELLOW MAGENTA CYAN
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1.866.MOBILITY | ATT.COM | VISIT A STORE
4G speeds not available everywhere. Talk and surf requires mobile broadband, not available in all areas. Screen images simulated. ©2012 AT&T Intellectual Property. All rights reserved.
The nation’s largest 4G network.
Talk and surf the Web at the same time.
Fairest and most fl exible rate plans.
for their smartphones.
More people choose AT&T
09.26.2012 09:30 BE3513_1012.pdf
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WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM • NOVEMBER 2012 8
BLACK ENTERPRISE takes a look at three
athletes and their journeys into the world
of business after they retired from pro sports.
www.blackenterprise.com/lifeaftersports
Life Pro SportsAfter
An exploration of the entry of hip-hop moguls such as Jay-Z, Ludacris,
and P. Diddy into the spirits industry and how both the liquor companies
and artist brands have benefitted from these unions.
www.blackenterprise.com/hiphopentrepreneurs
HIP-HOP ENTREPRENEURS & the Spirits Industry
Wellnessworkplace
thein
Get into power diva Kela Walker as she shares tips and look books to
upgrade your office fab on a budget. Whether you’re the diva who
wears Prada or the apprentice with limited apparel, the Style Suite has
everything to suit your needs. www.blackenterprise.com/stylesuite
Style Suite
NBA’s Behind-the-scenes
STARS
be explores the connection between good
health and optimum job performance
with our content series
Workplace Wellness.
We go beyond the usual nutrition and exer-
cise tips by covering subjects such as dieting
at work, the trend of fitness networking, and
more. See all the topics at www.blackenter
prise.com/workplacewellness
The NBA is back and black enter-
prise is taking you behind the
scenes to uncover the individu-
als who craft the brands of the
league’s biggest stars.
www.blackenterprise.com/
nbadealmakers
Maverick Carter Rich Paul
TIM BIAKABUTUKA KEYSHAWN JOHNSON JAMAL MASHBURN
Check us out:every Tuesday and Thursday to see the hottest
trends—from corporate chic to boho boss—and
even shop the looks to add to your wardrobe.
step out bold and confident today!
11 DIGITAL TOC.indd 8 10/22/12 1:08 PM
11 DIGITALTOC_008.pgs 10.22.2012 13:27 BLACK YELLOW MAGENTA CYAN
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W E D I D N ’ T S T A R T W I T H L A S T Y E A R ’ S M O D E L : W E S T A R T E D F R O M S C R A T C H . W E B U I L T T H E I N T E R I O R
A R O U N D T H E C U S T O M I Z A B L E , F U L L Y * D I G I T A L D A S H B O A R D A N D T H E 8 . 4 - I N C H T O U C H S C R E E N , A N D W E
S U R R O U N D E D T H E M B O T H W I T H R A C E T R A C K L I G H T I N G . O U R P E R F O R A T E D L E A T H E R S E A T S C O M P L E M E N T
T H E L I N E R S A N D D O O R P A N E L S . T H I S I S N ’ T A P A T C H W O R K O F U P G R A D E S . I T ’ S O N E C A R , D E S I G N E D I N O N E
G O . I T ’ S W H A T H A P P E N S W H E N Y O U D O T H I N G S R I G H T . R I G H T N O W .
W E S W E A T E D T H E S M A L L S T U F F.
RRRRRRRR //// TTTT MMMM OOOO DDDD EEEE LLLL SSSS HHHH OOOO WWWW NNNN WWWW IIII TTTT HHHH OOOO PPPP TTTT IIII OOOO NN AA LL FF EE AA TTTT UUUU RRRRRR EEEEEEEE SSSSSSSS ........ AAAAAAAA VVVVVVVV AAAAAAAA IIIIIIII LLLLLLLL AAAAAAAA BBBBBBBB LLLLLLLL EEEEEEEE 11111111 SSSSSSSS TTTTTTTT QQQQQQQQ TTTTTTTT RRRRRRRR 22222222 00000000 11111111 33333333 ........ ******** AAAAAAAA NNNNNNNN AAAAAAAA LLLLLLLL OOOOOOOO GGGGGGGG TTTTTTTT AAAAAAAA CCCCCCCC HHHHHHHH OOOOOOOO MMMMMMMM EEEEEEEE TTTTTTTT EEEEEEEE RRRRRRRR AAAA NN NN DDDD FFFF UUUU EEEE LLLL GGGG AAAA UUUU GGGG EEEE SSSS .... DDDD OOOO DDDD GGGG EEEE
IIIIIIII SSSS AA AA RRRR EEEE GGGG IIII SSSS TTTT EEEE RRRR EEEE DDDD TTTT RRRR AAAA DDDD EEEE MMMM AAAA RRRR KKKK OO FF CC HH RR YY SS LL EE RR GG RR OO UU PP LL LL CC ....
10.22.2012 17:49 BE3540_1112.pdf
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The International
Renaissance Artist
As an artist you need to connect with
local urban art lovers as well as affluent
international collectors, so you have to
make sure everything is on point. From
your facial grooming to your style of
dress. For your street mural unveiling,
nothing says “swag” like a custom
beard paired with a classic denim
jacket, a crisp white soft cotton tee, a
snapback, khaki cargo pant and high-
top vintage sneakers. In the evening,
you are ready for your gallery opening.
Change into a tailored pair of navy blue
dress pants and matching vest, a light
grey wrinkle free button up with the
sleeves rolled up, a pair of tan brogues
shoes and a newsboy cap.
The New Millennium
Ad Man
You need a style that will take you
from day meetings and brainstorming
sessions to entertaining clients and
networking after work. Be ready to
entertain in style with a precision cut
chin strap–goatee combo, a lavender
or gingham checkered button up shirt
worn under a light wool solid color
v-neck sweater paired with fitted brown
trousers. Accessorize the look with
a pair of black leather penny loafers,
a simple black band watch and a
distressed leather satchel. After work,
leave the bag at the office, take off the
sweater and roll up your sleeves for a
more relaxed yet professional look.
The Accomplished
Tech Entrepreneur
You are about to close on a major
round of funding and you need to show
your investors you mean business.
Remember, first impressions are lasting
impressions. Come prepared to close
the deal with a defined full beard, fitted
straight leg dark denim jeans, a classic
v-neck t-shirt, an unstructured 3 button
navy blazer and brown leather oxford
shoes. Your look will convey a laid back
demeanor, but with a business attitude.
Once the deal is done and you’re ready
to celebrate by spending the night out
on the town, neatly roll up your jean cuff
and hang the blazer.
Utilize these simple styling tips and you
will definitely be dressed to impress!
Your style has been defined.
A successful man is not defined by the norms of years past. Today there are
multi-millionaires under 30 embodying the new definition of the “look of
success.” The international renaissance artist, the new millennium ad man and
the accomplished tech entrepreneur are on the quest for the same thing: a look
and a style that exudes confidence and speaks to who they are. The long-lasting,
versatile Braun 3-in-1 cruZer will help you define your style.
Define Your
EXECUTIVE STYLEwith Braun cruZer
Available at
Special Advertisement
08.16.2012 08:40 BE3434_0912.pdf
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Ronnie Abaldonado, 27, B-Boy
cruZerwww.braun.com/cruZer
3-in-1 full size shaver.Goatee, stubble, clean-shaven.
Shave your style.
08.09.2012 16:12 BE3433_0912.pdf
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Let’s Honor Our Troops With the Support They Deserve
I AM A VETERAN OF
THE U.S. ARMY, HAVING
SERVED WITH THE 19TH
SPECIAL FORCES GROUP,
THE GREEN BERETS.
Thousands of veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan
have either come home, or are on their way, with their loved
ones praying every day that their sons and daughters, hus-
bands and wives, and moms and dads return safely. As they
return, we must honor their sacri�ce in a manner be�tting a
great and sincerely grateful nation.
That must mean more than medals and proclamations,
praise and parades, though our heroes are truly deserving
of such accolades. We must be prepared to marshal our
resources, as individual communities and as a nation, to
do everything we can to bring them and their families to
healthy wholeness. This mission is of critical importance to
both the body and the spirit of America. Indeed, the hope of
our continued economic recovery lies largely with our ability
to e�ectively equip our military heroes to win the peace as
they return to civilian life.
black enterprise has honored and supported military
veterans since the magazine was founded in 1970. For me,
as the founder and chairman of black enterprise, it is and
always will be personal. AȎer joining the ROTC program
at Morgan State University as an undergraduate student, I
entered the Army aȎer graduation in 1957, where I attended
Airborne and Ranger School and completed my career with
the rank of Captain, as a member of the 19th Special Forces
Group, the Green Berets.
The discipline and structure of my military service experi-
ence was key to my development as a leader, as well as to my
success as an entrepreneur. That’s why honoring our military
men and women, and investing in their success once they’ve
completed their service and returned home, will always be
fundamental to the mission of black enterprise. It’s the least
we can do for those who’ve honorably served and sacri�ced
on our behalf, and it’s what’s best for the health and vitality
of our nation.
It is with these sentiments in mind that I invite you to join
black enterprise as we expand our media o�erings and
initiatives aimed at empowering our military veterans, in
particular those returning from Iraq and Afghanistan, to suc-
cessfully transition back to civilian life, and to help them to
prosper as entrepreneurs, professionals, and wealth builders.
NOVEMBER 2012 • WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM • PHOTOGRAPH (TOP LEFT) BY SARAH J. GLOVER12
We will help our veterans build pro�table businesses, using the
training and leadership experiences gained during their military
service. We will show them how to best transfer the discipline
and training of their military experience to successful profes-
sional careers. And, perhaps most importantly, we will provide
the critical money management resources and skills necessary
for them and their families to gain �nancial security.
Simply put, we are committed to the mission of ensuring that
our military men and women and their families achieve Wealth
for Life, black enterprise’s de�nition of the American dream
which they so bravely and honorably risked their lives to defend.
P Publisher’s age
11 PUB PAGE.indd 12 10/24/12 4:04 PM
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COLONEL BENJAMIN ALVIN DREWSpace Shuttle Astronaut
U.S. Air Force
For more information, visit
AIRFORCE.COM
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01.06.2012 16:19 BE3114_0212.pdf
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AThe Value of Business Partnerships: 1+1=3
proud entrepreneur hangs out his shingle and launches a new business. He’s smart, energetic, and customer-focused, quickly gaining a rep for top-notch service. Content with just one major client, he learns a brutal math lesson within the first few years of operation. His prime customer shifts accounts to a larger entity, forcing that small business owner to close shop. One minus one equals zero.
I’ve come to witness that tragic scenario play out many times. The cold, hard facts are that too often small business owners tend to subsist with just one product, service, or client. When revenues flow into company coffers, they see no reason to adjust the business model. Limited in size and scope, these doomed micro-companies eventually wind up among the heap of business failures. Over several decades that has been the sad history of many black-owned companies that once dominated targeted segments of hair care, entertainment, advertising, and financial services, among others.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not here to bash small business. When my father started black enterprise, it was a husband and wife with an office and a vision. Over the course of 42 years, be has championed such ventures, providing them with information and services so they can realize their full potential. We don’t want any African Ameri-can enterprise to be stuck forever operating on the margins of the business mainstream.
To compete and thrive today you must make your business scalable. For corporate America, less is more. Why? Major corpora-tions no longer dole out a series of contracts to a collection of small vendors. For greater efficiency, they have bundled contracts, shrinking their supplier base and mandat-ing that corporate procurement offices identify long-term partners.
For your company to achieve that status, it’s imperative that you embrace the same mindset. By developing the right strategic alliances or joint ventures, your company can, in many cases, increase market share, as well as gain additional financial and
human resources to meet client demands. Keep in mind that the major reason large companies grow while small firms often fail—according to the Small Business Administration, more than 50% in the first five years—is that big businesses have deep pockets and powerful relationships that bring opportunities, contacts, and support. You must realize that partnership has such privileges and adopt the new business math: One plus one equals three.
This is not the first time I’ve advocated such arrangements as a means of growth, especially for black entrepreneurs. Such advice, however, has often been met with resistance. For example, a founder of a black-owned investment bank—one of
the sharpest business minds I’ve ever come across—could not bring himself to merge with another black financial services firm for well over a decade, even though the union would have brought new market opportunities, executive talent, lucrative contracts, and increased profitability.
The reason was simple: ego. Now that company is fighting for its life in an industry in which even the biggest players join forces. Conversely, two
black tech companies merged a few years ago and the result was eventually bought out by a major competitor. Its CEO used the proceeds to start an even larger business.
I’m not saying one should enter into such partnerships lightly. You must establish whether
the collaboration presents a stronger value proposition than your company as a
solo act. For example, will such a partnership provide cost savings through eliminating duplica-
tion of resources? If orchestrated correctly, these partnerships offer
myriad benefits: financial stability, scalability and longevity.
I urge us all to adapt, take calcu-lated risks, and, most importantly,
check our egos at the negotiation table. It’s far better to own 50% of a $50 million
juggernaut than 100% of a $500,000 mom-and-pop. Forging such alliances is a matter of simple arithmetic.
14 @EARLBUTCHGRAVES • PHOTOGRAPH BY LONNIE C. MAJOR • NOVEMBER 2012
“TO COMPETE AND THRIVE TODAY YOU MUST MAKE YOUR
BUSINESS SCALABLE. FOR CORPORATE AMERICA, LESS IS MORE.”
Executive Memo
11 EXEC MEMO-LAYOUT.indd 14 11/7/12 12:48 PM
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This is Vonda Simmons.
She powers the world by building
advanced gas turbines that
are a key part of GE delivering
over a quarter of the world’s energy.
She also empowers children
in her community by mentoring
them in her free time.
She’s just one of the many talented
people that we’re proud to call
one of our own.
GE works.
GE.com/diversity
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ASmall Business: Backbone of America
ll of us have heard horror stories about athletes who made
enormous amounts of money during their careers only to
wind up with nothing afer they retire. In fact, recent stud-
ies show roughly 70% of professional athletes will go broke
within a few years of hanging up their
jerseys. So it was refreshing to drink
Jamba Juice smoothies with Grand Slam
tennis pro Venus Williams talking about
franchise ownership. The 32-year-
old Williams signed a joint venture
deal with Emeryville, California-based
Jamba Juice to open five stores in the
Washington, D.C.-Maryland area in
the next two years. She currently has
three locations, including one in the
District’s Union Station. “[Jamba Juice
CEO] James White was very involved
in spearheading the opportunity for me
to do this,” says Williams. “He sat down
with me and talked about the benefits
of being a franchise owner.”
Franchising continues to be a flour-
ishing industry, with more people like
Williams starting businesses with a
trusted brand. In this issue, black
enterprise spotlights franchise edu-
cation and recruitment programs target-
ing athletes, veterans, and minorities. For anyone looking to
purchase a franchise, our “25 Best Bets for African Americans”
lists those franchises with brands and concepts in the hottest
growth sectors with low-to-medium startup costs and a sig-
nificant number of black-owned stores because of diversity
initiatives and incentives.
Our annual small business issue also contains the first of
a two-part series on veterans as entrepreneurs. We feature
federal and statewide programs designed to help GIs return-
ing from the war to transition back into civilian life and to
start their own businesses. In addition, we highlight major
corporations that have special programs dedicated to buying
products and services from veteran-owned small businesses.
Small businesses are the backbone of the American
economy—a sentiment that resonated throughout the presi-
dential elections. As the co-founder of a theater company, I
am among the 27 million-plus small businesses operating in
the U.S. Studies show that starting a business in this country
is easier compared to other regions in the world. But on the
flip side, there is a troubling success rate for small businesses,
with new firms having a 49% chance
of failing within the first five years.
But for vetpreneurs like Vernice
“FlyGirl” Armour, the belief is that
many businesses don’t fail but that
the owners give up. “One compo-
nent veterans bring to the fight is a
breakthrough mentality. Accomplish the mission—failure is
not an option,” says the former U.S. Marines Captain and first
African American female combat pilot.
Innovation, creativity, determination, and perseverance are
just a few of the essential qualities successful small-business
owners demonstrate every day. At black enterprise, we
strive to provide the tools and resources entrepreneurs need
to keep their doors open and to grow their businesses.
—Carolyn M. Brown
16 EDITED BY DEREK T. DINGLE @DTDINGLE • PHOTOGRAPH BY LONNIE C. MAJOR • NOVEMBER 2012
“Small business represents the engine of commercial innovation and employment opportunities. As the state of the economy gives birth to a virtual nation of entre-preneurs, we will all benefit immensely from that transformative development.” —Derek T. Dingle, Editor-In-Chief
WILLIAMS
AND I DISCUSS
SCORING IN
FRANCHISING.
About This Issue
11 ABOUTTHISISSUE.indd 16 10/22/12 1:13 PM
11 ATI_016.pgs 10.22.2012 13:26 BLACK YELLOW MAGENTA CYAN
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NOVEMBER 2012 • WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM
PUBLISHING
S.V.P./Editor-In-Chief DerekT.Dingle
S.V.P./Multimedia Editor-At-Large AlfredA.EdmondJr.
Multimedia Editorial Directors Sonia Alleyne, Alan Hughes
Managing Editor Alisa Gumbs
Senior Multimedia Content Producer Carolyn M. Brown
Multimedia Content Producers Sheiresa Ngo, LaToya M. Smith,
Marcia Wade Talbert
Contributing Writers Renita Burns, Shandra Hill Smith, CliƑ Hocker,
Tamara E. Holmes, Frank McCoy, JeƑrey McKinney
Editorial Business Supervisor Arletha Allen
DIGITAL
V.P./Director of Digital ShellyJonesJennings
Digital Media Manager Suncear Scretchen
Audience Development/Marketing Manager Claudio Cabrera
Associate Producer Janell P. Hazelwood
Producers Janel Martinez, Darren L. Sands
BROADCAST
V.P./Broadcast Director GenevieveMichel-Bryan
Host, BEBR & Executive Editor Caroline V. Clarke
Host, Our World with Black Enterprise Marc Lamont Hill
Senior Producer/Correspondent Shannon Antonio Lanier
Syndication Manager Rhonda J. Jackson
Supervising Editor/Producer Kenneth Meeks
CREATIVE
V.P./Creative Director TerenceK.Saulsby
Director of Photography Lonnie C. Major
Senior Designer Todd A. Chapman
Junior Designer Shay L. Chinhengo
COPY
Copy Chief SeimondLondon
Copy Editors Ashley Calloway, Joel Lyons,
Robin White Goode
PRODUCTION
Production Manager Darcel J. Church
EarlG.GravesSr.Chairman & Publisher
EarlG.GravesJr.President & Chief Executive Officer
Printed in the U.S.A.
WHAT IS
THE SIGN
OF A GOOD
DECISION?®
Benef ting from long-termplanning when big changes come on short notice.
Life is wonderful when you have a loving, trusted partner there by your side to share every moment. In their absence, things are never quite the same. But you know they would want you to carry on without them and that they’d have done everything possible to see that through. Carolyn Turner lost her husband, Garlon, in a tragic motorcycle accident. Long before, though, the two of them had been carefully making a plan for her to live comfortably in his absence. A MassMutual f nancial professional was there for the Turners every step of the way, to help ensure her future stability. It may be benef cial to have one there for you, too. To f nd a f nancial
professional, hear Carolyn’s story and
learn more about MassMutual, visit
MassMutual.com/AfricanAmerican
MassMutual Financial Group refers to Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company (MassMutual), its afÀ liated companies and sales representatives. Insurance products are issued by MassMutual, SpringÀ eld, MA 01111, and its subsidiaries, C.M. Life Insurance Company and MML Bay State Life Insurance Company, EnÀ eld, CT 06082. CRN 201306-149176
LIFE INSURANCE + RETIREMENT/401(K) PLAN SERVICES
+ DISABILITY INCOME INSURANCE + LONG TERM CARE
INSURANCE + ANNUITIES
11 MASTHEAD.indd 18 10/23/12 7:44 PM
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NOVEMBER 2012 • WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM
MULTIMEDIA SALES
S.V.P./National Director of Multimedia Sales DirkJ.Caldwell
Vice President of Multimedia Sales GraceSpellman-Castro
Vice President of Strategic Sales & Marketing VladimirLeveque
Senior Director of Multimedia Sales Gerard Simmons
Directors of Multimedia Sales Kyle Allman,
Maximillian L. Hamilton
Multimedia Sales Managers Jack Clark,
Anthony K. Mootry,
Nauja Schuckert
Multimedia Sales Account Executive Fabiola D. Roman
Advertising Production Manager Juan Diaz
EVENTS
Senior Director of Events SherryB.Herbert
Events Program Director Alyssa Fant
Events Coordinators Veronica Buapim, Natasha Gore
EXECUTIVE
Executive V.P./COO & CFO JacquesJiha
S.V.P./Finance & MIS AngelaMitchell
V.P./Human Resources & Corporate Operations Director NatalieM.Hibbert
Executive Assistant to President & CEO Yolanda Cook
Executive Assistant to EVP/COO & CFO Kisha Grant-Bodden
Executive Administrator to Multimedia Sales Yvianne Hyacinthe
New York Office 130 FiŽh Avenue, New York, New York 10011 n 212-242-8000 n Fax: 212-886-9618
Chicago Office 625 North Michigan Avenue, Chicago, Illinois 60611 n 312-664-8667 n Fax: 312-988-9770
Pacific South Sales Scean Ellis, Leverage Media Sales n 310-301-2371
Pacific North Sales Suzanne Coppola, Coppola Media Sales n 415-839-9505
Circulation ProCirc, 1450 Broadway, 23rd Floor, New York, NY 10018 n 212-840-2161 n Fax: 212-370-9610
SUBSCRIPTIONSTo subscribe, renew, buy a giȎ subscription, or check your account status,
call 800-727-7777 or log on to www.blackenterprise.com/sub.
Questions about your subscription? E-mail us at
blackenterprise@cdsful�llment.com
DIGITAL EDITIONTo subscribe to Black Enterprise Digital, the electronic version of the
magazine, log on to www.blackenterprise.com/digital.
REPRINTS & PERMISSIONSTo order reprints of any be article, call Wright’s Media at 877-652-5295,
or e-mail sales@wrightsmedia.com.
To get permission to reproduce an article appearing in be,
call Copyright Clearance Center at 978-750-8400.
BACK ISSUESTo order back issues, call 800-987-6233.
OTHER WAYS TO TAP INTO BLACK ENTERPRISE
11 MASTHEAD.indd 20 10/23/12 4:12 PM
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Having trouble paying for your Merck medicine?Merck may be able to help. www.merck.com/merckhelps
Decreases
Sugar Made
In Liver
Increases
Insulin
For a free 30-day trial supplyb of JANUVIA,visit Januvia.com.
b Not all patients are eligible. Restrictions apply. See Terms and Conditions.
JANUVIA works to lower blood sugar in 2 ways. Talk to your doctor about JANUVIA today.
Today, I took steps to balance my
TYPE 2 DIABETES.
Today, I chose
exercise and
talked to my doctor.
Please read the Medication Guide on the adjacent page for more detailed information.
Copyright © 2012 Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp., a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc. All rights reserved. DIAB-1050517-0003 08/12
• JANUVIA is a once-daily prescription pill that helps your body increase the insulin made in your pancreas and decrease the sugar made in your liver.
• Along with diet and exercise, JANUVIA helps lower blood sugar levels in adults with type 2 diabetes.
• By itself, JANUVIA is not likely to cause weight gain or low blood sugar (hypoglycemia).
aFormulary data provided by Pinsonault Associates, LLC, August 2012.
If you take JANUVIA with another medicine that can cause low
blood sugar (hypoglycemia), such as a sulfonylurea or insulin,
your risk of getting low blood sugar is higher. The dose of your
sulfonylurea medicine or insulin may need to be lowered while you
use JANUVIA. Signs and symptoms of low blood sugar may include
headache, drowsiness, weakness, dizziness, confusion, irritability,
hunger, fast heart beat, sweating, and feeling jittery.
Your doctor may do blood tests before and during treatment with
JANUVIA to see how well your kidneys are working. Based on
these results, your doctor may change your dose of JANUVIA. The
most common side effects of JANUVIA are upper respiratory tract
infection, stuffy or runny nose and sore throat, and headache.
You are encouraged to report negative side effects of
prescription drugs to the FDA. Visit www.fda.gov/medwatch,
or call 1-800-FDA-1088.
JANUVIA (jah-NEW-vee-ah) should not be used in patients with
type 1 diabetes or with diabetic ketoacidosis (increased ketones in
the blood or urine). If you have had pancreatitis (infl ammation of the
pancreas), it is not known if you have a higher chance of getting it
while taking JANUVIA.
Selected Risk Information About JANUVIASerious side effects can happen in people who take JANUVIA,
including pancreatitis, which may be severe and lead to death.
Before you start taking JANUVIA, tell your doctor if you’ve ever had
pancreatitis. Stop taking JANUVIA and call your doctor right away if
you have pain in your stomach area (abdomen) that is severe and
will not go away. The pain may be felt going from your abdomen
through to your back. The pain may happen with or without
vomiting. These may be symptoms of pancreatitis.
Do not take JANUVIA if you are allergic to any of its ingredients,
including sitagliptin. Symptoms of serious allergic reactions to
JANUVIA, including rash, hives, and swelling of the face, lips,
tongue, and throat that may cause diffi culty breathing or swallowing,
can occur. If you have any symptoms of a serious allergic reaction,
stop taking JANUVIA and call your doctor right away.
Kidney problems, sometimes requiring dialysis, have been reported.
JANUVIA® (sitagliptin) tablets are widely available on most insurance plans.a
Actor portrayal.
08.21.2012 16:39 BE3446_0912.pdf
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Medication Guide
JANUVIA® (jah-NEW-vee-ah) (sitagliptin) Tablets
Read this Medication Guide carefully before you start taking JANUVIA and each time you get a refill. There may be new information. This information does not take the place of talking with your doctor about your medical condition or your treatment. If you have any questions about JANUVIA, ask your doctor or pharmacist.
What is the most important information I should know about JANUVIA?
Serious side effects can happen in people taking JANUVIA, including inflammation of the pancreas (pancreatitis) which may be severe and lead to death.
Certain medical problems make you more likely to get pancreatitis.
Before you start taking JANUVIA:
Tell your doctor if you have ever had
� s�PANCREATITIS
� s�STONES�IN�YOUR�GALLBLADDER��GALLSTONES
� s�A�HISTORY�OF�ALCOHOLISM
� s�HIGH�BLOOD�TRIGLYCERIDE�LEVELS�
� s�KIDNEY�PROBLEMS
Stop taking JANUVIA and call your doctor right away if you have pain in your stomach area (abdomen) that is severe and will not go away. The pain may be felt going from your abdomen through to your back. The pain may happen with or without vomiting. These may be symptoms of pancreatitis.
What is JANUVIA?
� s��*!.56)!�IS�A�PRESCRIPTION�MEDICINE�USED�ALONG�WITH�DIET�AND�EXERCISE�TO�LOWER�BLOOD�sugar in adults with type 2 diabetes.
� s�*!.56)!�IS�NOT�FOR�PEOPLE�WITH�TYPE���DIABETES��
� s��*!.56)!�IS�NOT�FOR�PEOPLE�WITH�DIABETIC�KETOACIDOSIS��INCREASED�KETONES�IN�YOUR�BLOOD�or urine).
� s��)F�YOU�HAVE�HAD�PANCREATITIS��INmAMMATION�OF�THE�PANCREAS�IN�THE�PAST��IT�IS�NOT�known if you have a higher chance of getting pancreatitis while you take JANUVIA.
� s��)T�IS�NOT�KNOWN�IF�*!.56)!�IS�SAFE�AND�EFFECTIVE�WHEN�USED�IN�CHILDREN�UNDER����YEARS�of age.
Who should not take JANUVIA?
Do not take JANUVIA if:
� s��YOU�ARE�ALLERGIC�TO�ANY�OF�THE�INGREDIENTS�IN�*!.56)!��3EE�THE�END�OF�THIS�-EDICATION�Guide for a complete list of ingredients in JANUVIA.
Symptoms of a serious allergic reaction to JANUVIA may include:
� s�RASH
� s�RAISED�RED�PATCHES�ON�YOUR�SKIN��HIVES
� s��SWELLING�OF�THE�FACE��LIPS��TONGUE��AND�THROAT�THAT�MAY�CAUSE�DIFlCULTY�IN�BREATHING�or swallowing
What should I tell my doctor before taking JANUVIA?
Before you take JANUVIA, tell your doctor if you:
� s�HAVE�OR�HAVE�HAD�INmAMMATION�OF�YOUR�PANCREAS��PANCREATITIS��
� s�HAVE�KIDNEY�PROBLEMS��
� s�HAVE�ANY�OTHER�MEDICAL�CONDITIONS��
� s��ARE�PREGNANT�OR�PLAN�TO�BECOME�PREGNANT��)T�IS�NOT�KNOWN�IF�*!.56)!�WILL�HARM�YOUR�unborn baby. If you are pregnant, talk with your doctor about the best way to control your blood sugar while you are pregnant.
Pregnancy Registry: If you take JANUVIA at any time during your pregnancy, talk with your doctor about how you can join the JANUVIA pregnancy registry. The purpose of this registry is to collect information about the health of you and your baby. You can enroll in THIS�REGISTRY�BY�CALLING�� ��� ��� ������
� s��ARE�BREAST FEEDING�OR�PLAN�TO�BREAST FEED��)T�IS�NOT�KNOWN�IF�*!.56)!�WILL�PASS�INTO�your breast milk. Talk with your doctor about the best way to feed your baby if you are taking JANUVIA.
Tell your doctor about all the medicines you take, including prescription and NON PRESCRIPTION�MEDICINES��VITAMINS��AND�HERBAL�SUPPLEMENTS��
Know the medicines you take. Keep a list of your medicines and show it to your doctor and pharmacist when you get a new medicine.
How should I take JANUVIA?
� s�4AKE�*!.56)!���TIME�EACH�DAY�EXACTLY�AS�YOUR�DOCTOR�TELLS�YOU��
� s�9OU�CAN�TAKE�*!.56)!�WITH�OR�WITHOUT�FOOD�
� s��4AKE�*!.56)!�TABLETS�WHOLE��$O�NOT�SPLIT��CRUSH��OR�CHEW�*!.56)!�TABLETS�BEFORE�swallowing. If you cannot swallow JANUVIA tablets whole tell your doctor.
� s��9OUR�DOCTOR�MAY�DO�BLOOD�TESTS�FROM�TIME�TO�TIME�TO�SEE�HOW�WELL�YOUR�KIDNEYS�ARE�working. Your doctor may change your dose of JANUVIA based on the results of your blood tests.
� s��9OUR�DOCTOR�MAY�TELL�YOU�TO�TAKE�*!.56)!�ALONG�WITH�OTHER�DIABETES�MEDICINES��Low blood sugar can happen more often when JANUVIA is taken with certain other diabetes medicines. See “What are the possible side effects of JANUVIA?”.
� s��)F�YOU�MISS�A�DOSE��TAKE�IT�AS�SOON�AS�YOU�REMEMBER��)F�YOU�DO�NOT�REMEMBER�UNTIL�IT�IS�TIME�FOR�YOUR�NEXT�DOSE��SKIP�THE�MISSED�DOSE�AND�GO�BACK�TO�YOUR�REGULAR�SCHEDULE��$O�NOT�TAKE�TWO�DOSES�OF�*!.56)!�AT�THE�SAME�TIME��
� s���)F�YOU�TAKE�TOO�MUCH�*!.56)!��CALL�YOUR�DOCTOR�OR�LOCAL�0OISON�#ONTROL�#ENTER�RIGHT�away.
� s��7HEN�YOUR�BODY�IS�UNDER�SOME�TYPES�OF�STRESS��SUCH�AS�FEVER��TRAUMA��SUCH�AS�A�CAR�accident), infection or surgery, the amount of diabetes medicine that you need may change. Tell your doctor right away if you have any of these conditions and follow your doctor’s instructions.
� s��#HECK�YOUR�BLOOD�SUGAR�AS�YOUR�DOCTOR�TELLS�YOU�TO��
� s��3TAY�ON�YOUR�PRESCRIBED�DIET�AND�EXERCISE�PROGRAM�WHILE�TAKING�*!.56)!��
� s��4ALK�TO�YOUR�DOCTOR�ABOUT�HOW�TO�PREVENT��RECOGNIZE�AND�MANAGE�LOW�BLOOD�SUGAR�(hypoglycemia), high blood sugar (hyperglycemia), and problems you have because of your diabetes.
� s��9OUR�DOCTOR�WILL�CHECK�YOUR�DIABETES�WITH�REGULAR�BLOOD�TESTS��INCLUDING�YOUR�BLOOD�SUGAR�LEVELS�AND�YOUR�HEMOGLOBIN�!�#�
What are the possible side effects of JANUVIA?
Serious side effects have happened in people taking JANUVIA.
� s��3EE�“What is the most important information I should know about JANUVIA?”.
� s��Low blood sugar (hypoglycemia). If you take JANUVIA with another medicine that can cause low blood sugar, such as a sulfonylurea or insulin, your risk of getting low blood sugar is higher. The dose of your sulfonylurea medicine or insulin may need to be lowered while you use JANUVIA. Signs and symptoms of low blood sugar may include:
� s��HEADACHE� s��IRRITABILITY
� s��DROWSINESS�� s��HUNGER
� s��WEAKNESS�� s��FAST�HEART�BEAT
� s��DIZZINESS�� s��SWEATING
� s��CONFUSION�� s��FEELING�JITTERY
� s��Serious allergic reactions. If you have any symptoms of a serious allergic reaction, stop taking JANUVIA and call your doctor right away. See “Who should not take JANUVIA?”. Your doctor may give you a medicine for your allergic reaction and prescribe a different medicine for your diabetes.
� s��Kidney problems, sometimes requiring dialysis
The most common side effects of JANUVIA include:
� s��UPPER�RESPIRATORY�INFECTION
� s��STUFFY�OR�RUNNY�NOSE�AND�SORE�THROAT
� s��HEADACHE�
JANUVIA may have other side effects, including:
� s��STOMACH�UPSET�AND�DIARRHEA
� s��SWELLING�OF�THE�HANDS�OR�LEGS��WHEN�*!.56)!�IS�USED�WITH�ROSIGLITAZONE��!VANDIA®). 2OSIGLITAZONE�IS�ANOTHER�TYPE�OF�DIABETES�MEDICINE��
These are not all the possible side effects of JANUVIA. For more information, ask your doctor or pharmacist.
Tell your doctor if you have any side effect that bothers you, is unusual or does not go away.
#ALL�YOUR�DOCTOR�FOR�MEDICAL�ADVICE�ABOUT�SIDE�EFFECTS��9OU�MAY�REPORT�SIDE�EFFECTS�TO�&$!�AT�� ��� &$! �����
How should I store JANUVIA?
3TORE�*!.56)!�AT��� &�TO��� &���� #�TO��� #��
Keep JANUVIA and all medicines out of the reach of children.
General information about the use of JANUVIA
Medicines are sometimes prescribed for purposes that are not listed in Medication Guides. $O�NOT�USE�*!.56)!�FOR�A�CONDITION�FOR�WHICH�IT�WAS�NOT�PRESCRIBED��$O�NOT�GIVE�*!.56)!�TO�other people, even if they have the same symptoms you have. It may harm them.
4HIS�-EDICATION�'UIDE�SUMMARIZES�THE�MOST�IMPORTANT�INFORMATION�ABOUT�*!.56)!��)F�you would like to know more information, talk with your doctor. You can ask your doctor or pharmacist for additional information about JANUVIA that is written for health professionals. For more information, go to www.JANUVIA.com�OR�CALL�� ��� ��� �����
What are the ingredients in JANUVIA?
Active ingredient: sitagliptin.
Inactive ingredients: microcrystalline cellulose, anhydrous dibasic calcium phosphate, croscarmellose sodium, magnesium stearate, and sodium stearyl fumarate. The tablet film coating contains the following inactive ingredients: polyvinyl alcohol, polyethylene GLYCOL��TALC��TITANIUM�DIOXIDE��RED�IRON�OXIDE��AND�YELLOW�IRON�OXIDE�
What is type 2 diabetes?
Type 2 diabetes is a condition in which your body does not make enough insulin, and the insulin that your body produces does not work as well as it should. Your body can also MAKE�TOO�MUCH�SUGAR��7HEN�THIS�HAPPENS��SUGAR��GLUCOSE�BUILDS�UP�IN�THE�BLOOD��4HIS�can lead to serious medical problems.
(IGH�BLOOD�SUGAR�CAN�BE�LOWERED�BY�DIET�AND�EXERCISE��AND�BY�CERTAIN�MEDICINES�WHEN�necessary.
Manufactured by:
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#OPYRIGHT�©������-ERCK�3HARP���$OHME�#ORP���A�SUBSIDIARY�OF�
Merck & Co., Inc.
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This Medication Guide has been approved by the U.S. Food and
$RUG�!DMINISTRATION�
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A
Dean of Black Economists
Dr. Andrew F. Brimmer
s one of America’s most in�uential economists, Dr. Andrew
Brimmer used his acumen and authority to implement monetary
policy and promote �nancial stability as the �rst African Ameri-
can to serve on the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, and to
guide development of countries, cities, and corporations as a
leading economic consultant. Appointed by President Bill Clinton
to head Washington, D.C.’s Financial Control Board in the 1990s,
he was largely responsible for rescuing the nation’s capital from
bankruptcy during a crippling �scal crisis. And throughout his
career he became a catalytic force for black economic develop-
ment and a powerful role model in the �eld. Brimmer died Oct.
7, 2012, at the age of 86.
“He was considered the dean of black economists and a tireless
advocate for black business development and African American
participation in the �nancial markets,” says black enterprise
Chairman and Publisher Earl G. Graves Sr. “Among his greatest
accomplishments has been his mentorship of a generation of
black economists and signi�cantly raising the bar for all who
operate in economics and �nance.” In fact, he advised scores
of powerful business leaders, including be 100s CEOs such as
Graves, who recruited him for be’s �rst Board of Advisors and,
in 1982, as a founding member of be’s Board of Economists. Vital
to the advancement of African American enterprise for more
than a half century, he was bestowed be’s highest honor, the A.G.
Gaston Lifetime Achievement Award, in 2007.
“Andrew Brimmer was a giant,” says Dr. William E. Spriggs,
a former assistant secretary at the U.S. Department of Labor for
the Obama administration. “From his groundbreaking work at
the Department of Commerce to give a �rm foundation to ending
discrimination in interstate travel, to trailblazing [at the Fed,] to
overseeing the restoration of �nancial stability to Washington,
D.C.’s government, his expertise touched so many people and
truly shaped American history.”
The son of a sharecropper, the University of Washington gradu-
ate became a highly respected macroeconomist who studied in
India through the Fulbright Program in 1951, earned his doctorate
from Harvard in 1957, and became an expert on the �nancial sector
and international banking, helping to establish a central bank in
Khartoum, Sudan. As assistant secretary for economic a�airs at the
Department of Commerce, he played a large role in reversing Jim
Crow laws through the development of the economic justi�cation
that led President John F. Kennedy in 1963 to base civil rights legis-
lation on the Interstate Commerce Clause of the Constitution and
not solely the 14th Amendment. When the public accommodations
section of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was later challenged as being
unconstitutional, the U.S. Supreme Court used the congressional
testimony prepared by Brimmer as the basis for unanimously
upholding the law. His track record led to his historic appointment
to the Fed in 1966 by President Lyndon B. Johnson —a position in
which he demonstrated his prowess for 80 years.
“Andy Brimmer was a trailblazer and a role model for a gen-
eration of African Americans who aspired to be economic policy
makers. Andy’s passing will be mourned deeply,” says Roger W.
Ferguson Jr., president and chief executive o�cer of TIAA-CREF
and former Fed vice chairman.
Friend and protégé Bernard Anderson, professor emeritus at
the Wharton School of Business and former assistant secretary
of the Department of Labor under President Clinton, adds that
Brimmer was a “�ve-star general” in the battle against economic
inequality: “He had a direct impact on the development of
public policy and private actions of individuals, corporations,
and activists in a way that had a bene�cial e�ect on economic
opportunity for black people.”
Brimmer demonstrated unyielding leadership when named
director of Washington, D.C.’s Financial Control Board in 1995
to address poorly performing public services and astronomical
debt under Mayor Marion Barry’s administration. “Dr. Brimmer,
because of his no-nonsense approach, took the brunt of the
opposition,” says former D.C. Mayor Anthony A.Williams, who
worked with Brimmer to tame the city’s �nances during that
period. “The thing that most impressed me was his ability to just
stand up, take charge, and do what needed to be done in a given
situation. He was able to bring a real understanding of �nance
and economics to bear on real human problems here in the city.”
Says Margaret Simms, director of the Low-Income Working
Families Project at the Urban Institute: “He was an outstanding
example that would make people who were narrow-minded
recognize that African Americans are capable of doing many
things within the economics �eld, and for the larger profession
in terms of opening their minds to think about African Americans
in positions of power and in�uence.” —Cliff Hocker
BRIMMER ACCEPTS THE A.G. GASTON
LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD.
NOVEMBER 2012 • WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM 23
In Memoriam
11 MEMORIAM.indd 23 10/23/12 6:32 PM
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24 EDITED BY CAROLYN M. BROWN @CMBROWN_7 • PHOTOGRAPH BY CRAIG BROMLEY • NOVEMBER 2012
AS THE BABY BOOMER GENERATION ENTERS THEIR
retirement years, many may �nd themselves unprepared
to meet their �nancial needs. FiȎy-four-year-old Janice
Robinson plans to retire at age 62. She appears to be on
the right track, having faithfully contributed 10% of her
biweekly pay into her 401(k) account since starting her
career with Atlanta-based �berglass manufacturing com-
pany Owen Corning in 1984.
But not unlike many employees, Robinson has applied a
‘set it and forget it’ approach when it comes to her 401(k). “I
couldn’t tell you how much is in there or what I’m invested
in,” she admits. “I’m working hard now to pay o� my
INVESTMENT STRATEGIES
Don’t Run Out of Money
in Retirement5 tips to make sure you don’t fall short and outlive your savings
67% of workers fell behind
schedule when it
comes to planning and
saving for retirement.
The percentage of workers expecting
to retire before age
65 has decreased
from
50% in 1991 to
24% in 2012
SOURCE:
EMPLOYEE BENEFIT
RESEARCH
INSTITUTE AND
MATTHEW
GREENWALD &
ASSOCIATES
11 MONEY.indd 24 10/23/12 6:30 PM
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neverstopneversett le.com
It ’s there. In the back of your head.
On your shoulder. Behind your eyes. Lurking in the corner of the room.
The voice that keeps you up at night. The song you haven’t yet sung.
The story you have yet to tel l . The idea that refuses to die.
And it whispers: never, ever stop. Few hear it . Even fewer chase it .
03.08.2012 14:49 BE3201_0412.pdf
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WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM • NOVEMBER 201226
mortgage so I won’t have that expense aȎer I retire, but I don’t know if what I
saved will be enough.” She adds, “I just know that I’m saving toward retirement
and I thought that would be good enough.”
Robinson exempli�es millions of Americans who put their 401(k) plans on
autopilot. They are saving in an employer-sponsored retirement plan, but have
limited knowledge about how and where their funds are invested. Add to that the
concern that they’ll experience an asset shortfall when the time comes to retire.
According to the Employee Bene�t Research Institute, “early” baby boomers,
meaning people 58 to 64, have a 44% chance of not having enough money to pay
basic retirement costs and uninsured medical expenses. “Late” boomers, ages 48 to
57, and Generation X workers, ages 38 to 47, have about a 45% chance of running
short, the study concluded. Taking the time to set up a good strategy and plan for
your retirement can be your best ally. A lousy plan could destroy your chance of
a decent and secure retirement, notes Clyde Anderson, a �nancial lifestyle coach.
HERE ARE A FEW CALCULATORS
TO HELP YOU FIGURE OUT IF YOU
ARE ON THE RIGHT TRACK.
3. ing.us/individuals/
tools-calculators/retirement
1 Determine your needs. The rule of thumb is that you’ll need about
70% to 80% of your pre-retirement income to live on in retirement,
depending on your lifestyle. Get a snapshot of your current lifestyle or
“bank statement bio.” This means looking at the last 12 months of bank
statements to identify what you currently spend your money on. Next,
separate your spending into categories such as housing, entertainment,
and meals. (Programs such as Mint.com will do this for you.) You will
have to project what expenses you will no longer have come retirement
and which ones will remain the same or increase, notes Anderson.
2 Do the math. While they may di�er for everyone, there are three
areas that are crucial to determining how much money you will need
in retirement:
A: Your current age, current annual income, current take-home pay,
and current monthly expenses. Don’t forget about variable costs such
as recreation, home improvements, and vehicle repairs.
B: Your goals. What age would you like to retire? How much retirement
income would you like to have? Will your current salary be your goal
or will a fraction of that amount su�ce?
C: Your projected life expectancy. Most calculators assume age 90. If you
retire at 65, you may live another 20 or 30 years. Also, take into account
what your projected annual pension (if applicable) and expected Social
Security payments will be.
For example, a 50-year-old earning $80,000 a year and planning to
retire at age 65 will need an estimated $2 million to last them about 30
years in retirement if they plan to live on 70% of their former income.
This is in addition to their expected monthly Social Security bene�t.
AȎer reviewing each of these areas, write down your anticipated
monthly income in retirement that will come from a pension, Social
Security, and 401(k)/IRA withdrawals. If this number is close to your
current take-home pay, you may be in good shape. But if it isn’t you,
have four choices: 1) spend less in retirement; 2) save more money; 3)
push back your retirement timeframe; or 4) earn a higher rate of return
on your investments. You will need to make up the gap between how
much you need to retire and the amount provided by guaranteed sources
of income. Don’t forget to account for in�ation in your calculations.
1. http://apps.finra.org/Inves-
tor_Information/Calcula-
tors/1/RetirementCalc.aspx
2. http://finance.yahoo.com/
calculator/retirement/ret02/
Anderson provides the following tips for Robinson to follow:
11 MONEY.indd 26 10/23/12 3:51 PM
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neverstopneversett le.com
It l ives inside my heart.
I fol low it whether it ’s moving wildly through being in love,
recklessly creating a piece of art or making music.
I have to chase it . And I wil l never give up.
To constantly bring something new into this world.
That’s my Wild Rabbit.
— E R Y K A H B A D U
03.08.2012 14:50 BE3203_0412.pdf
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3 Don’t set it and forget it. Be actively involved
when it comes to your retirement account. The asset
allocation that you set when you �rst started work-
ing and began investing will need to be adjusted.
Meaning, you want to diversify your 401(k) by
allocating your investments among di�erent asset
classes, which include stocks (large-cap, small-cap,
growth, international, etc.), bonds, cash, and real
estate investment trusts (REITs). Since di�erent
asset classes react in di�erent ways to changing
market conditions, the right asset allocation mix
according to your risk tolerance and retirement
time horizon can possibly increase your potential
for better returns. For instance, you may have less of
your retirement funds allocated to stocks as you get
closer to retirement age, as the risk of losing money
increases with less time to recoup from losses.
4 Rebalance. There are two general approaches
to when you should rebalance your 401(k)
account. One is to rebalance on a regular time
schedule, such as quarterly, semi-annually, or
annually. The other approach is to rebalance
when the allocation is a certain number of per-
centage points away from its target due to the
difference in performance between funds in
your 401(k) account over time. For example, a
401(k) participant with a 50% stocks, 50% bonds
target allocation might rebalance when stocks are
more than 55% or less than 45% due to changing
market conditions. You need to closely monitor
fund balances in your account for this approach,
comparing ending balances to the target alloca-
tion for each fund. To rebalance means to sell
enough of the funds above your target and buy
enough of the funds that are below your target.
5 Read your statements. “Not looking at your
statement is like throwing money away,” says
Anderson. “These statements contain a lot of
information and plenty of numbers, so it can be
all too easy to just look at the bottom-line �gure
and ignore everything else.” Some key things to
pay attention to are your expense ratio and fees
for each mutual fund in your account. Did you
know that just 1% in fees and expenses reduces
your account balance at retirement by 28%, eating
away at your returns? If you �nd you are paying
more than 1% a year in expense ratios or high
fees, you need to get an explanation from your
401(k) manager, and consider possibly moving
your money to another fund.
—LaToya M. Smith3100 Walnut Grove Road, Suite 603 • P.O. Box 11749 • Memphis, TN 38111-0749
THE
STUTTERINGFOUNDATIONA Nonprofit OrganizationSince 1947—Helping Those Who Stutter
Stuttering Didn’tKeep Him On the Bench.
Chicago Bulls’ legend Bob Love never let
his stuttering keep him out of the game.
Today fans recognize his voice as
an inspirational speaker. Bob Love got
in the game, and so can you.
For more information about stuttering and what
you can do, write, visit our web site, or call:
®
1-800-992-9392
Visit us at
www.stutteringhelp.org
11 MONEY.indd 28 10/24/12 6:24 PM
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Black Enterprise Women of Power Summit
Hosted by STATE FARM®
Claim it,Own it,Live it!
Lives her power
through leadership.
BrewerPresident & CEO
Sam’s Club
Don’t miss this unparralleled opportunity to
meet and learn from hundreds of industry
power brokers. This exciting, four-day ex-
ecutive leadership summit is your chance
to focus on you! Learn career strategies
and explore work–life balance strategies.
It’s time to start creating—and living—
the life you really want.
For more information and to Register Today, visit www.blackenterprise.com/wps
Feb. 27-Mar. 2, 2013Waldorf Astoria Orlando Orlando, Florida
Follow us on: @BlackEnterprise #WOMENOFPOWER
Like us on: www.facebook.com/womenofpowersummit
Join our community: beinsider.ning.com
10.23.2012 20:14 BE3557_1112.pdf
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WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM • NOVEMBER 201230
STOCK PICKS
Building, Planting, and Moving AheadThree stocks that may raise investor optimism and return on investment
DANNY FREEMAN
AT DARDA FINANCIAL SERVICES L.L.C., A FEE-BASED WEALTH MANAGEMENT
services �rm in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, founder and CEO Danny Freeman’s stock-
watching philosophy is blunt. The �nancial adviser says that the truism of investing “is the
simple fact that capital will always �ow to where it can earn the highest rate of return at some
acceptable level of risk.” Freeman knows that the impact of Europe’s ongoing �scal melee
and political gridlock in Washington, D.C., have dampened investor optimism. He intends
to reassure skittish investors that there are well-established, �nancially sound �rms that are
growing and some that sport dividend yields. The market is making a grinding escalation,
he says, but one that could continue for the next three to �ve years. With that in mind,
he o�ers the following three stocks he believes are poised for growth during that period.
—Frank McCoy
1 Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) Even from a
distance, many Americans see black
lettering on the sides of big yellow
construction machines and know it spells
CAT. The $60 billion Peoria, Illinois-based
company is the world’s largest maker of
construction and mining equipment and
other heavy machinery. It had strong
growth up until housing collapsed, Euro-
pean markets imploded, and China and
India sputtered. But CAT is now springing
back, Freeman says. In 2011, revenues
grew 41%; much of that growth came from
foreign sales, which are likely to continue.
Earnings per share could grow from $7.40
to $15 by 2015, and CAT has a dividend
yield of about 2.2%. It is an attractive invest-
ment opportunity because it is so deeply
intertwined with the global recovery, says
Freeman. He predicts that several factors
could boost the share price, including
renewed orders from builders benefiting
from a U.S. housing market recovery. In
April, CAT opened its fourth manufacturing
facility in India as South Asia’s giant builds
new roads and other infrastructure. Free-
man says China, which announced a $150
billion infrastructure investment program
in September, will push CAT’s growth as
the country “uses CAT equipment that
helps convert farmland to urban and com-
mercial uses.”
PRICE: $82.81 • P/E: 9.46
2 Agrium Inc. (AGU) The Alberta,
Canada-based firm (whose stock
is sold on the NYSE) is the larg-
est agricultural retailer of fertilizers, crop
chemicals, and seed to U.S. farmers.
In August, Agrium—which also whole-
sales key crop nutrients nitrogen, potash,
and phosphate—posted record second-
quarter sales, beating analysts’ forecasts.
“Basically, anything you need to make
crops grow and keep bugs from eating
them, Agrium can provide,” says Free-
man. That’s crucial, he says, as a decline in
the percentage of arable land worldwide
is forcing farmers to find other means,
typically through the use of fertilizers and
other chemicals, to increase crop yields.
Agrium is positioned to better serve the
demand in emerging markets for grain to
feed cattle and other livestock. The $16
billion company, which has seen its share
price rise from $30 to more than $100
since 2009, is cash flow positive, has low
debt, about a 0.71% dividend yield, and
is projected to grow revenues at 15% or
better over the next three to five years.
Freeman says, “As countries continue to
grapple with feeding their people and
global demand for biofuels continues to
rise, Agrium should continue to exhibit
strong growth and profitability.”
PRICE: $104.02 • P/E: 10.08
3 CSX Corp. (CSX) CSX Corp. is an
international transportation company
offering a variety of rail-based trans-
portation services, including the shipping of
intermodal containers and trailers to major
population centers east of the Mississippi
River. If you have a product that needs to be
moved in large quantities, CSX is likely to be
involved. The transportation supplier helps
transport food, automobiles, gravel, and coal,
among other items. In September, Goldman
Sachs labeled CSX a buy, and investors would
benefit from a cold winter, which would
increase coal shipments for heating. “The
primary reason CSX is so attractive is because
it is a proxy on economic demand,” Freeman
says. The $11 billion Jacksonville, Florida-based
company ships to more than 70 ports and has
more than 21,000 miles of track in 23 states,
the District of Columbia, and two Canadian
provinces. Although rising fuel prices have
hurt CSX’s margins, volumes are recovering
as the U.S. economy regroups. Strong growth
from the automotive industry has helped sales
volume, and Freeman believes investors may
see 12% earnings growth between now and
2015 and improved profit margins. The stock
currently has a 2.46% dividend yield. “This is
a stock that can easily trade 50% higher on
[a] continued moderate recovery of the U.S.
economy,” he says.
PRICE: $21.45 • P/E: 12.07
11 MONEY.indd 30 10/23/12 12:17 PM
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YOU SAY LEFT.
SHE SAYS RIGHT.
WHOOPS, IT’S
STRAIGHT.
Corolla. WITH AVAILABLE NAV.*
Simple directions to get you wherever you need to go. Another reason you can
always count on Corolla. Learn more at toyota.com/corolla
Options shown. *Availability and accuracy of the information provided by the navigation system or any XM services mentioned (if installed) are dependent
upon many factors. Use common sense when relying on information provided. Services not available in every city or roadway. Periodic navigation updates
available at additional cost. See your Navigation System Owner’s Manual or contact XM for details. ©2012 Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc.
09.24.2012 09:43 BE3497_1012.pdf
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WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM • PHOTOGRAPH BY KEVIN ALLEN • NOVEMBER 201232
IF YOU FIND A MISTAKE ON YOUR CREDIT REPORT,
a letter disputing the error should be your �rst course of
action. Your credit report a�ects most areas of your life.
It’s reviewed by lenders, landlords, utility and insurance
companies, and sometimes even evaluated by employers
considering you for a job. Roughly 80% of reports contain
errors—and 25% are serious enough to cause a denial of
credit, according to a survey of 197 credit reports by the
U.S. Public Interest Research Group. It’s important for
your dispute letter to contain the right information so
your complaint can be addressed properly. Here are �ve
keys to an e�ective credit report dispute letter:
Know what to include in your letter.
Keep it simple and direct, advises Gerri Detweiler, director of
consumer education for Credit.com. Stick to the basics such as
identifying information (name, address, last four digits of your
Social Security number, etc.) and “a credit report reference num-
ber, which should be included in the copy of the credit report you
received from the credit reporting agency.”
Ulzheimer also recommends that you “clearly identify the item
you disagree with, why you disagree, and what you would like
to have happen.” And, he adds, send supporting documentation
as needed.
It’s also smart to make a copy of the letter aȎer you’ve signed
it and keep all original copies of supporting documentation, says
Sonya Smith-Valentine, who fought personal credit reporting
issues in 2009 and 2010.
The Largo, Maryland, resident says she wrote letters to Equi-
fax, Experian, and TransUnion—the three major credit reporting
agencies—about two matters. She says one creditor mistakenly
reported her 30 days late on a payment, and a collection agency
tried to collect on charges for a gym membership that didn’t belong
to her. There was a gym customer with Smith-Valentine’s �rst and
maiden names who also lived at an address that was similar to a
previous New York address for the 43-year-old attorney.
In addition to writing letters to each of the bureaus, Smith-
Valentine—CEO and founder of Financially Fierce L.L.C., a
consumer personal �nance education company—wrote a letter
to the gym. She provided a copy of her letter, as well as the gym’s
response, to the credit reporting companies.
Smith-Valentine says the process with the credit card company
involved more steps: initially calling the company to report the
error, writing a letter to the o�ce of the president of the card com-
pany when the error wasn’t removed as promised, and writing
the credit reporting agencies once she received a response from
the president’s o�ce. She was able to share that letter with the
bureaus, along with a new written appeal asking for the correction.
3
Know what you can dispute.
You have the right to dispute anything in the trade sec-
tion, such as information regarding credit cards, student
loans, auto and personal loans, and items in the sections
for collections and public records. You may also challenge
fraudulent credit inquiries and “anything that’s not correct
or that’s outdated and only allowed to stay on your credit
report for a certain period of time, such as bankruptcy,”
says John Ulzheimer, president of consumer education
at SmartCredit.com, a credit education website.
You can’t, however, dispute negative information if it is
indeed correct and if it is still within the statute of limitations
for reporting. For example, a Chapter 7 bankruptcy will
stay on your report for 10 years; a foreclosure, for seven.
1
Consolidate disputes.
To avoid lengthening the response time, consolidate all
disputes in one letter; don’t send a letter for each issue.
Also, send the letter via certi�ed mail, with a return
receipt requested.
2
1
CREDIT MANAGEMENT
5 Keys to an Effective Credit ReportDispute LetterHere’s how to get your complaints
addressed in a timely fashion
SMITH-VALENTINE
USED THE POWER
OF THE PEN TO
CORRECT CREDIT
REPORT ERRORS.
11 MONEY.indd 32 10/23/12 12:17 PM
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Stick to the facts.
“Don’t write an angry, rambling letter,” says Smith-Valentine. You’re likely
to get a better response if you write a polite letter that states the facts clearly.
While Smith-Valentine says it took approximately four months for the credit
card issue to be resolved and about three months to �x the gym error, you
should expect inaccurate or incomplete information or information that can’t
be veri�ed to be removed or corrected usually within 30 days, as required
by the Fair Credit Reporting Act.
Take a two-pronged approach. File disputes with each of the major
nationwide credit reporting agencies. As a
second step, also submit disputes directly
to the creditor or collection agency. “Dis-
puting it directly with the source might
be faster since they’re required to share
corrections with any credit reporting
agency to which they have reported the
mistake,” says Detweiler.
—Shandra Hill Smith
4 5
NOVEMBER 2012 • WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM 33
DateYour NameYour AddressYour City, State, Zip Code
Complaint DepartmentName of Credit BureauAddressCity, State, Zip Code
Dear Sir or Madam:
I am writing to dispute the following information in my file. The
items I dispute also are encircled on the attached copy of the
report I received.
This item (identify item(s) disputed by name of source, such
as creditors or tax court, and identify type of item, such as
credit account, judgment, etc.) is (inaccurate or incomplete)
because (describe what is inaccurate or incomplete and why).
I am requesting that the item be deleted (or request another
specific change) to correct the information.Enclosed are copies of (use this sentence if applicable and
describe any enclosed documentation, such as payment
records, court documents) supporting my position. Please
reinvestigate this (these) matter(s) and (delete or correct) the
disputed item(s) as soon as possible.Sincerely,
Your name
Enclosures: (List what you are enclosing)
1
2 I dispute also are encircled
(3
4
Do’s and Don’ts of
Writing a Credit Report
Dispute Letter
Do avoid online dispute resolution.
Your dispute may end up being processed
through a computer system with no
human intervention, says Ulzheimer of
SmartCredit.com.
Do keep it short and to the point. “Keep in mind the person who reviews
your letter is going to spend very little time
reading it and will be primarily trying to
enter your dispute into a computer,” says
Credit.com’s Detweiler. For help crafting
your request, you’ll find a sample credit
report dispute letter at Credit.com (www.
credit.com/blog/2012/05/how-to-write-
an-effective-credit-report-dispute).
Do make copies. Make a copy of the letter after you’ve
signed it and send the original, signed let-
ter certified mail, return receipt requested.
Be sure to send only copies of any sup-
porting documentation, however.
Don’t let it go.
In the rare instance that you don’t get a
response, Detweiler suggests filing a com-
plaint with the Federal Trade Commission,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau,
and your local Better Business Bureau,
being sure to copy the credit reporting
agency. Another option is to consult a
consumer protection attorney through
the National Association of Consumer
Advocates.
Get more Money at www.blackenterprise.com/money
11 MONEY.indd 33 10/23/12 12:17 PM
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Go to business.comcast.com or Call 800.501.6000
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NOVEMBER 2012 • PHOTOGRAPH BY KEVIN ALLEN • EDITED BY CAROLYN M. BROWN @CMBROWN_7
NECOLE PARKER SPENT NEARLY TWO DECADES DESIGNING
a reputation built upon innovation as a senior project manager at top
Washington, D.C., metro area construction and design firms. But it
was her vision of a life of entrepreneurship that led her to start The
ELOCEN Group, a program and project management firm for state,
local, and federal government agencies and the commercial sector.
35
Construction management is a
$6 billion-plusindustrySOURCE: IBISWORLD
Government procurement with black firms reached a total
$7.12 billionin 2011. SOURCE: THE WASHINGTON POST
MAKING IT
Coordinating
SuccessThe ELOCEN Group helps government agencies
stay on schedule and on budget
The ELOCEN Group
Founder: Necole Parker, Principal & CEOLocation: Washington, D.C.Employees: 32 Founded: 2006What it does: Program and project manage-ment firm for state, local, and federal govern-ment, as well as the commercial sector2009 Revenues: $250,000 2010 Revenues: $9.7 million2011 Revenues: $5 million2012 Projections: $6 millionHow she made it: Parker’s company became certified as a woman-owned business and as an SBA 8(a) firm allowing it to land more lucrative federal contracts.
11 SMALL BIZ.indd 35 10/22/12 1:24 PM
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5WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM • NOVEMBER 201236
Launched in 2006, The ELOCEN Group provides services that range from real estate support, construction management, and interior design to information technology, and facilities and logistics support. “We’re called the ‘tenant rep’ on behalf of the government,” says Parker. “We manage all of the trades on the interior side from start to finish.” In short, her team leverages its knowledge of construction, IT, design, and management to ensure contractors remain on schedule and within budget.
The 42-year-old entrepreneur says the company generated revenues of $5 million in 2011 and expects to generate nearly $6 million this year. She further estimates that figure will rise more than 60% to $10 million in 2013 as the company ventures further into the commercial sector and the Southeast region. Contracts typically range from $20,000 to $7 million. Current clients include the General Services Administration and the Department of Defense, and a deal recently closed with the Army’s Real Estate and Facilities program is valued at more than $350,000.
Parker’s beginnings were born of resilience, perseverance, and sacrifice. The single mother of one son was living with her parents when she set up shop in their basement. She spent much of her time between 2006 and 2009 laying the groundwork for the company, establishing a business structure, gaining certifications, and building a client base. “I was able to pick up my initial business with repeat clients I had done business with in the past [work-ing at] other companies,” says Parker.
According to USASpending.gov, which was launched by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget to allow the public to view federal awards, there were $536.7 billion in federal contracts awarded in fiscal year 2011. Around 17% of that money, or $91.5 billion, was awarded to small businesses, according to the Small Business Administration. Government procurement for black-owned firms totaled $7.12 billion in 2011, dropping 8% from fiscal year 2010.
Parker’s transition into entrepreneurship was calculated, as she decided to work part time rather than give up full-time employment during that period in an effort to gain the flexibility needed to focus on building the business while still bringing in a steady income. “[My employer] knew I started my company and we had an agreement I would not take existing business from them,” says Parker. “But if a new contract came up, I could compete.”
She applied for and was granted certifications as a woman-owned busi-ness and as a socially and economically disadvantaged business under the SBA’s nine-year 8(a) Business Development Program. The 8(a) program helps designated firms develop and grow their businesses through one-on-one coun-seling, training workshops, management guidance, and technical assistance.
For Parker, 8(a) certification—paired with her experience—was crucial in getting her business off the ground. But the process wasn’t without a hitch. Her certification was initially rejected. The reviewer noted that Parker was missing documentation, a claim Parker vehemently denies. She immediately jumped into action, spending that weekend re-sorting her application and research-ing the chain of command, which eventually led her to one of the SBA’s main branches in Philadelphia. Parker resubmitted her application, going up the chain of command to ensure it was properly reviewed the second go-round.
“Once I received my certifications, I was able to market the company more,” says Parker, who was then able to quit her day job. 2010 was a landmark year as revenues jumped to $9.7 million, spurred by a one-time product order valued at $6 million and a contract with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers valued at $3.5 million.
Expansion into the Atlanta region is already under way, as ELOCEN has inked deals with the Internal Revenue Service for project management and interior design, and with the Georgia Minority Supplier Development Council to provide relocation planning services. —Renita Burns
Register with the System for Award Man-agement (SAM). To do business with the government, register your company in the SAM database (www.sam.gov). There are several ways to be certified. If you want to access the 8(a) application online, visit www.sba.gov/8abd.
5 Tips to Successfully Gain
8(a) CertificationObtaining certification can be a rigorous and daunting process, though not impossible. The ELOCEN Group’s Necole Parker learned this when she had to apply for 8(a) certification a second time. For Parker and other entre-preneurs, the potential benefits far outweigh the challenges, as 8(a) designation helps minority-owned businesses gain access to government contracting opportunities. Here are five tips for successfully navigating the 8(a) certification process:
Get financial documents in order. To complete the application you will need your federal tax returns, balance sheets, and profit and loss statements from the past three years, among other documents. You can find the entire list within the 8(a) application.
Seek wise counsel. Parker did not go through the 8(a) certification process alone. She worked with a trusted consultant who reviewed her application packet. There are companies that can assist you in getting 8(a) certified. Just be leery of companies that claim to be able to expedite or guarantee certifica-tion, as there is no shortcut. Contact your local SBA district office to learn more about programs or companies offering assistance.
Establish a relationship with your local SBA. If you don’t already have a strong relationship with your local SBA district office, now is the time to start building one. While it cannot fast-track your application, your local SBA branch can provide much-needed advice and direction throughout the application process.
Follow through on your application. After Parker’s initial 8(a) application was rejected, she gathered her paperwork and turned to her local SBA branch to find out who was next in command. Parker was certain she had included all the required paperwork for certi-fication. Going directly to someone ensured Parker’s resubmitted application was properly reviewed the second time around.
12
3
4For more on the SBA’s 8(a) program, see Web Extras at
www.blackenterprise.com/magazine.
11 SMALL BIZ.indd 36 11/6/12 4:35 PM
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From TheBoardroom
Red CarpetTo The
Like us
facebook.com/
BlackEnterpriseBusinessReport
Follow us
@blackenterprise #bebr
Join us weekly for a who’s who in black business andthe latest tips onwealth building and sound career advice.
Watch usNow Available In More Markets
Airing Sundays at 10:30 AM est on
Check blackenterprise.com/bebr
for your local listings
Hosted by
Caroline
Clarke
10.24.2012 13:34 BE3559_1112.pdf
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WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM • NOVEMBER 201238
MANAGEMENT ADVICE
Black Enterprise Small Business University Grand Prize WinnerLisa Marie Jackson puts business lessons to good use
LISA MARIE “PHOENIX” JACKSON
draws daily on the inspiration of her mother,
who passed away in 2007, and the advice
she received to follow her dreams at any cost.
Afer holding jobs in sales, customer service,
and accounting at companies such as Sprint,
Jackson decided to give up the stability of
a steady paycheck in 2011 to become an
entrepreneur at the ripe young age of 26.
“I had created so much for other cor-
porations, I thought why not do it for
myself?” says Jackson, now 27. The Brook-
lyn, New York, native had developed a
knack for building online relationships
and helping her employers connect with
customers using sites such as Facebook,
Twitter, and LinkedIn. So she created a
business plan to launch her social media
consulting firm, Phoenix Aficionado
(www.phoenixaficionado.com).
Jackson used personal savings of $2,500 to
cover startup costs for Web design, photogra-
phy, marketing sofware, an iPhone, a tablet,
and a professional camera. She also bartered
with local entrepreneurs. “I met with graphic
designers that were like, ‘If you help me set
up my Facebook and Twitter page, I’ll help
you with illustrations,’” she recalls.
Jackson started out with two clients found
through word-of-mouth. “I humbled myself
to work for them at no cost on a term basis so
that I could develop my portfolio,” she says.
The risk was worth it, as these two compa-
nies later became paid clients. Her third
client, bow-tie maker Modern Day Mogul
(www.moderndaymogul.com), came on at a
reduced rate; Jackson now oversees its social
media marketing, online advertising, and
media partnerships. Jackson also turned to
resources such as Mashable.com, LinkedIn
groups, Craigslist, and multiple freelance
sites to find short-term contracts doing blog
content development, social media, and
customer relationship management.
When Jackson enrolled in the black
enterprise Small Business University (SBU)
powered by Dell Inc., she was looking for
practical strategies she could put into play
immediately. The eight-week program of
online video courses (www.blackenterprise.
com/sbu) provided original tutorials featur-
ing a team of rotating business, marketing,
and technology experts. Among SBUs all-
stars were author and SmallBizLady Melinda
Emerson; Buzz Marketing Group Founder
and CEO Tina Wells; Young Entrepreneur
Council Founder Scott Gerber; The Money
Coach and personal finance author Lynnette
Khalfani-Cox; SocialPeople.tv Founder
James Andrews; digital lifestyle guru Mario
Armstrong; and technology expert Mel
Parker, vice president and general manager
of Dell consumer, small office, and member
loyalty in North America.
“Sometimes people are intimidated by the
word ‘university’ because they think there’s
going to be a massive time commitment,”
Jackson says. But the couple of hours a day
that she spent watching the videos and
applying the advice were well worth the
effort. And she was chosen out of nearly
10,000 SBU registrants as the grand prize
winner of a package that includes a $10,000
Dell office setup. Launched in January 2012,
Phoenix Aficionado has six ongoing clients
at the time of this writing, and Jackson’s
business is in the black—averaging $3,000
to $4,000 in monthly income. She’s in the
process of hiring a part-time assistant to help
her manage her blog and assist with social
media. “Small Business University gave me
confidence in growing my business that I
didn’t have before,” she says.
—Tamara E. Holmes
11 SMALL BIZ.indd 38 10/22/12 1:25 PM
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Like us
facebook.com/OurWorldWithBlackEnterprise
Follow us
@blackenterprise #ourworld
Bringing exclusive interviews, trending topics, and
community champions to a city near you ...
Now Available In More Markets
Airing Sundays at 10:00 AM on
Check blackenterprise.com/ourworld
for your local listings
NEW SEASON!
10.23.2012 20:14 BE3555_1112.pdf
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WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM • NOVEMBER 201240
CAROLYN M. BROWN’S TIP OF THE MONTH
Small business owners searching for help on SBA.gov will find a free business intel-
ligence tool to “size up” their businesses against the competition at www.sba.gov/sizeup.
SBA’s new Web tool helps business owners conduct location-based market research and
analysis, which is critical to the success of any small business owner or entrepreneur, notes
SBA Administrator Karen G. Mills. The tool is also designed to help businesses identify
new customers and compare their performance against other businesses in their industry.
Using SizeUp, it is as simple as the click of a mouse for entrepreneurs to access highly
specific data on every industry and geographic region—including revenues, salaries,
healthcare costs, supplier locations, best places to advertise, and more. The new tool is
part of SBA’s Office of Entrepreneurial Development initiatives.
contact carolyn m. brown at smallbiz@blackenterprise.com or @cmbrown_7.
Size Up Your Business
SBU was designed to assist entrepreneurs in various stages of business develop-
ment, including part-time entrepreneurs, startups, and established enterprises.
Here are some lessons that SBU grand prize winner Lisa Marie “Phoenix” Jackson
says have made a difference in her business:
The wisdom of balancing business with life. When Jackson started her
business, she worked around the clock, sometimes forgetting to eat. An SBU
session emphasized the importance of scheduling time off rather than leaving it
to chance. In doing so Jackson found that her productivity increased. “I started
spending time with loved ones, and realized that my business will still thrive as
long as I’m giving 110% and it doesn’t mean that I need to work 24 hours,” she says.
The importance of outside help. Like most entrepreneurs, Jackson wore a
variety of hats from blogger to marketer to accountant. “It’s a trust issue,” she
admits. Hiring someone would “give them access to my baby.” But one lesson
drilled into her through SBU was the importance of hiring others so she could
focus on aspects of her business that are the most profitable. She took the
advice to heart and now she’s interviewing assistants to work with her part
time to help with blog content, clerical duties, and social media maintenance
while she works on the social media campaigns, which are bringing in the bulk
of company revenues.
The virtues of creating a system. “I had a great business plan, but I didn’t have
a day-to-day plan,” she says. As a result, sometimes things would fall through
the cracks. For example, she’d spend massive amounts of time on her clients’
social media campaigns while letting her own social media accounts lapse for
days. Through SBU, she learned that a system would not only help her organize
her workload, but it would make it easier for her to communicate her business’s
priorities to others. —T.H.
Making The Grade
Which courses scored the highest
marks among SBU classmates?
1. Getting Started
Your Small Business Checklist
2. Getting Started
Establishing Your Brand
3. Getting Started
Communicating Your Message,
Knowing Your Vision
4. Financing and Investing
How to Raise Capital for Your
Business
5. Technology
Tools to Get You to the Next Level
SOURCE: BE DIGITAL
To learn more about the Small Business University, see www.blackenterprise.com/sbu.
TOP 5 Lessons:
SBU
Get more Small Biz at www.blackenterprise.com/smallbiz
11 SMALL BIZ.indd 40 10/22/12 1:25 PM
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The national unemployment rate finally budged
downward to slightly below 8 percent in September
2012, but it still remains volatile, and for African-
Americans, the jobless rate remained an astounding
14.1 percent through August 2012*.
Is there a silver lining in the sluggish job market for those who are
unemployed, graduating from college or looking to make a career
change? There just might be: financial services.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics** predicts strong growth in finance
and insurance jobs, projecting a 9 percent increase between 2010 and
2020. And there are many aspects of the career that are attractive,
including an opportunity to be your own boss, earn a solid income
and to provide a needed and valued service.
Think about a career switch
Jamar Bates began his road to a financial services career after years
in the real estate market, when that industry began to collapse in late
2008. After two years abroad in the Middle East on a temporary
assignment as a senior employee relations manager for a Fortune
500 architectural, engineering and construction firm, Mr. Bates
began his career with the Atlanta Agency of Massachusetts Mutual
Life Insurance Company (MassMutual) in May 2011. He says he
was attracted to the opportunity to “vertically integrate myself and
leverage my relationships built over the past 20 years in the Metro
Atlanta Area” while also learning how to protect and plan financially
for his and his wife’s retirement years.
After research, Mr. Bates aligned with MassMutual, saying he paid
“close attention to the company’s financial strength,” as well as its
mutual structure and the fact that it has been in business for over 160
years for its policyholders, clients and financial professionals.
Help yourself and help other people
In addition to providing the opportunity to prepare for his own and
his wife’s financial future, Mr. Bates also is attracted to his ability to
make a difference in others’ lives that a career in financial services
provides. “On a larger scale, it provides me with the opportunity
to make this my ‘magnum opus’ and become a part of the lives of
my friends, acquaintances, families, communities and all who would
listen and show them how to build and pass on generational wealth,
which is not as prevalent in the African-American community,” he
explained.
Ryan Marsh, sales manager at HF Financial, a MassMutual
general agency in Charlotte, N.C. says, “The financial services career
provides motivated individuals from all walks of life an opportunity
to run their own business and earn unlimited income, while helping
other people at the same time.” Mr. Marsh currently manages a team
of 21 financial professionals and is always looking to add more, “if
the right opportunity, or candidate, presents itself.”
To learn more about the financial services career, who is working in the field and why,
logon to massmutualcareers.com, or contact Mr. Bates at 404-521-0001 in Atlanta, Mr.
Clemons at 702-791-0200, Ext. 326 in Las Vegas, or Mr. Marsh at 800-289-1846, Ext. 671
in Charlotte. For more information about MassMutual's African American program call
Nicole Bremser at 413-744-5678.
*Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor. “The Employment Situation – September 2012.” Oct. 4, 2012.**Employment Projections: Occupational employment and job openings data and worker characteristics, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, December 9, 2010.+Financial Services Professionals are independent contractors and are not employees of MassMutual, its subsidiaries, or of General Agents with whom they contract.
S P E C I A L A D V E R T I S M E N T
Do you have what it takes?
Financial Services companies are seeking applicants for financial professional
positions from a multitude of professions. What really matters is not so much what
someone’s background or college degree is, but that the individuals possess certain
personality traits that may be common drivers of success. “We commonly see several
of the same attributes in our most successful representatives,” said Nicole Bremser,
director of Multicultural Market Development with MassMutual.
Bremser lists the following as highly sought after
personality traits for financial professionals:
A commitment to lifelong learning: Do you have a desire to improve through
ongoing coaching, mentoring and education?
A desire to help people: Do you have a strong belief in the importance of helping
others prepare financially for the future and to help clients realize their most
important life goals?
Well developed business and social network: Do you have a network of contacts
from previous careers or social involvement that can provide new opportunities?
Entrepreneurial spirit: Do you have a strong desire to own your own business
and a willingness to invest three to four years to build your practice?
Disciplined self-management: Are you self-motivated to reach personal and
professional goals?
In seeking out candidates who fit the profile above, MassMutual attempts to ensure
that the financial professional role is a proper fit for the applicant, the company
and the local office where he or she is interviewing. “A rigorous interviewing
process, including personality assessments, structured interviews and meetings
with numerous local office financial professionals, helps ensure a proper fit for the
position,” explained Bremser.
All who are interested, please DO apply+
“The power of preparing for individuals’ financial future can change the economic
state of a community. You can create your own future by having a path and the discipline
to stick to it,” said Jeff Clemons, general agent of MassMutual’s Nevada Agency in Las
Vegas. “If you want to be out in front helping people make smart financial decisions
and helping raise the economic wellbeing of your communities, one client at a time,
you should definitely look into a career in Financial Services,” he concluded.
Jamar BatesManaging Associate
with the Atlanta Agency of MassMutual.
Ryan Marsh Sales Manager at HF
Financial, a MassMutual general agency in
Charlotte, N.C.
Nicole BremserDirector of Multicultural
Market Development with MassMutual
Jeff Clemons General Agent of
MassMutual’s Nevada Agency in Las Vegas
n
n
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from Braven is perfect for those who do most of their conferencing
from the privacy of a hotel room or at home. It’s small enough to
carry in a laptop bag, yet o�ers rich, rounded audio. Listeners on
the other end of the call will hear you loud and clear through the
integrated microphone. And when you’re ready to relax, it makes
music and video sound great. The battery lasts up to 20 hours, and
it can charge your smartphone and other USB-powered gadgets
as well. $189; www.braven.com
With the advent of Windows 8, tablets are no longer entertain-
ment devices that need add-ons to get business-ready. The
ATIV Smart PC Pro 700T runs the full operating system without
compromise and easily converts to a laptop when needed. The
11.6-inch tablet has all the features you’d expect, from front-
and rear-facing cameras to an SD slot for expansion. It works
independently of the base, but once connected, it looks, feels,
and acts just like a laptop, complete with a secure, sturdy hinge;
www.samsung.com/us
EXECUTIVE GIFT GUIDE
Mobile Gadgets for BusinessGifts for those on the go
42 EDITED BY MARCIA WADE TALBERT @NEWSGYRL • NOVEMBER 2012
SCANNER: IRISCAN EXPRESS 3TABLET: ATIV SMART PC PRO 700T
(WINDOWS 8 VERSION HYBRID)
LAPTOP ACCESSORY:
BLUE MICROPHONES TIKIBLUETOOTH SPEAKER: BRAVEN 650
Being ultra-mobile gets easier each year as laptops and tablets get thinner and lighter yet more powerful,
smartphones get smarter, and batteries last longer. Whether you’re shopping for a frequent traveler or an entrepre-
neur who runs things from the corner café, these gifts will keep those on your gift list productive wherever they are.
—K.T. Bradford
11 TECH.indd 42 10/22/12 3:41 PM
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And with the available
Entune®3 Multimedia System,
including apps like Pandora,
I can discover bands as
opposed to bandwagons.
The estimated 50 MPG1
Toyota Prius hybrid.
Named a Best Overall Value2
of the year for the last
10 years in a row.
The Toyota Prius. Those who get it … get it.
Get it for yourself at a dealer near you or visit toyota.com/prius to learn more.Options shown. 1 2012 EPA estimates 51/city, 48/hwy, 50/comb. Actual mileage will vary. 22012 IntelliChoice, www.IntelliChoice.com 3Always drive safely, obey traffi c laws & focus on the road while driving. Apps/services vary by phone/carrier; functionality depends on many factors. Select apps use large amounts of data; you are responsible for charges. Not all apps/services are available initially and subject to change. Apps identifi ed by ™ or ® are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies. For enrollment, cost and more details, see Toyota.com/entune®. ©2012 Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc.
“The way I see it, conformity erodes the soul.”
Raphael Saadiq
Toyota Prius
10.22.2012 17:45 BE3532_1112.pdf
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WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM • NOVEMBER 201244 WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM • NOVEMBER 201244
Those who are looking for a phone
designed to integrate seamlessly with
Windows and, more importantly, Micro-
soȎ O�ce, will appreciate the charms of
the Windows Phone 8X from HTC. The
4.3-inch display is beautiful, and the
dual-core CPU keeps graphics smooth.
It’s available in several eye-popping
colors. Price TBA; Available on AT&T,
T-Mobile, and Verizon Wireless.
The ThinkPad X1 Carbon o�ers a good balance
between portability and power. The carbon
�ber case and solid-state drive storage mean
it’s tough and durable, yet it remains light at
just under 3 pounds. The speedy SSD com-
bined with Intel’s Core i5 and i7 processors
means powerful performance. Plus you’ll
get a battery that lasts more than eight hours.
Prices start at $1,329; www.lenovo.com/us/en
For those who love navigating a tablet out in
the �eld, and want to transfer that experience
to a larger display in the o�ce, a touch-screen
monitor can increase productivity, especially
if it’s compatible with Windows 8. Dell’s
23-inch S2340T features up to 10 multi-touch
points, a �at screen, and a stand that users can
position at almost any angle, including �at.
Prices start at $699.99; www.dell.com.
Entrusting your documents, backup,
and media to third-party cloud stor-
age services such as Dropbox can be
convenient, but it makes some pro-
fessionals nervous. Get the advan-
tage of cloud storage that you control
with the Canvio. It connects to your
own wireless router and can sync and
share just like Dropbox but without the
monthly fee. $219 (2TB), $249 (3TB);
www.us.toshiba.com
Barnes & Noble’s new 9-inch Android tablet
is the perfect size and weight for reading
digital magazines and newspapers. Nook
Newsstand offers access to hundreds of
periodicals. Use the new Scrapbook feature
to “tear” out pages and save them in person-
alized collections to make research or saving
topic-speci�c stories easier than ever. $269
(16GB), $299 (32GB); www.nook.com
Mobility requires flexibility, and the Flex
o�ers both. This Bluetooth keyboard works
with the iPad and iPhone, Android tablets,
and many other smartphones. Now you’ll get
OS-speci�c shortcut keys with one keyboard.
The Zagg Keys Flex is lightweight and comes
with a case that doubles as a tablet stand. At
4.9 inches long and 4.8 inches wide, it won’t
add bulk to your bag. $69.99; www.zagg.com
SMARTPHONE: HTC
WINDOWS PHONE 8X
ULTRABOOK: LENOVO THINKPAD
X1 CARBON
MONITOR: DELL S2340T
TOUCH-SCREEN MONITOR
CLOUD STORAGE: TOSHIBA
CANVIO PERSONAL CLOUDTABLET: NOOK HD+
TABLET ACCESSORY:
ZAGGKEYS FLEX
Get more Tech at www.blackenterprise.com/technology
11 TECH.indd 44 10/22/12 3:41 PM
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www.knots4kids.org
Tie a knot, build a brighter future.
Founded by neckwear designer and entrepreneur
Efferem Williams, Knots4Kids strives to be
the difference by mentoring young men,
delivering a program tailored toward
character, personal and skill development.
Knots4Kids is designed to promote the
importance of healthy lifestyles, academic
excellence, social responsibility and diplomacy.
Today, more than 600 boys have graduated from
Knots4Kids youth programs, setting their course
for short- and long-term personal success.
Knots4Kids tailored programs:
•Attitudeandrespect
•Careerreadiness
•Crimeprevention
•Diningetiquette&chivalry
•Dressingforsuccess
•Entrepreneurship
•Financialliteracy
•Healthawareness
Knots4Kids helps build the connections that
will mean a more positive pathway for our young
men and a better outlook for our communities.
Please consider a contribution to support our
programs and the young men we serve.
Knots4Kids was formed in Jacksonville, Florida,
in 2007 to engage, educate and empower young
men in their journey from boyhood to manhood.
10.22.2012 12:42 BE0000_1112.pdf
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UNDECIDED ABOUT HER PROFESSIONAL GOALS
as a teenager, Audra Lowe decided to pursue a career in
television while watching a newscast with her mother.
AȎer 24 years in the business, her work ethic and open-
ness to change has kept her thriving in this competitive
industry.
How she got the job:
When Lowe was contacted about the prospect of hosting
The Better Show in 2007, the start date was only three
weeks from the time the o�er was presented. Lowe dis-
cussed the matter with her husband and relocated to New
York. The Better Show launched nationally in 12 markets
in 2007 and today airs in 180. She has interviewed a range
of guests from Lisa Ling and LL Cool J to President Bill
THE WORK I DO
More Than TalkA seasoned TV professional
focuses on longevity
Name: Audra Lowe
Job: Host, The Better Show, a nationally syndicated
lifestyle program produced by Meredith Corp.
Location: New York
46 EDITED BY SONIA ALLEYNE @SONIAALLEYNE • PHOTOGRAPH BY CREDIT • MONTH 2012
11 WORK.indd 46 10/23/12 2:25 PM
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Get specifi ctreatment to helprelieve this pain.
DIABETES DAMAGES NERVESwhich may cause shooting,
burning, pins-and-needles pain.Lyrica is believed to work on these damaged nerves.
DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD
bbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLyy
Prescription Lyrica is not for everyone. Tell your doctor right away about any serious allergic reaction that causes swelling of the face, mouth, lips, gums, tongue, throat or neck or any trouble breathing or that affects your skin. Lyrica may cause suicidal thoughts or actions in a very small number of people. Call your doctor right away if you have new or worsening depression, suicidal thoughts or actions, or unusual changes in mood or behavior. Lyrica may cause swelling of your hands, legs and feet. Some of the most common side effects of Lyrica are dizziness and sleepiness. Do not drive or work with machines until you know how Lyrica affects you. Other common side effects are blurry vision, weight gain, trouble concentrating, dry mouth, and feeling “high.” Also, tell your doctor right away about muscle pain along with feeling sick and feverish, or any changes in your eyesight including blurry vision or any skin sores if you have diabetes. You may have a higher chance of swelling, hives or gaining weight if you are also taking certain diabetes or high blood pressure medicines. Do not drink alcohol while taking Lyrica. You may have more dizziness and sleepiness if you take Lyrica with alcohol, narcotic pain medicines, or medicines for anxiety. If you have had a drug or alcohol problem, you may be more likely to misuse Lyrica. Tell your doctor if you are planning to father a child. Talk with your doctor before you stop taking Lyrica or any other prescription medication.
Please see Important Risk Information for Lyrica on the following page.
To learn more visit www.lyrica.com or call toll-free 1-888-9-LYRICA (1-888-959-7422).
You are encouraged to report negative side effects of prescription drugs to the FDA.Visit www.FDA.gov/medwatch or call 1-800-FDA-1088. PBP469710-01 ©2012 Pfi zer Inc. All rights reserved. July 2012
LYRICA is FDA approved to treat Diabetic Nerve Pain (or pain from Diabetic Peripheral Neuropathy).
This pain can worsen over time. LYRICA provides effective pain relief so patients feel better.* In some patients, Lyrica
can provide signifi cant pain relief in as early as the fi rst week of treatment. And, you should know, Lyrica is not a narcotic.†
*Individual results may vary. †Those who have had a drug or alcohol problem are more likely to misuse Lyrica.
Relief is possible. Ask your doctor about Lyrica today.
Artist depiction
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IMPORTANT FACTS (LEER-i-kah)
BEFORE STARTING LYRICA, continued• Avandia® (rosiglitazone)*, Avandamet® (rosiglitazone and
metformin)* or Actos® (pioglitazone)** for diabetes. Youmay have a higher chance of weight gain or swelling ofyour hands or feet.
• Narcotic pain medicines (such as oxycodone), tranquilizers ormedicines for anxiety (such as lorazepam). You may have ahigher chance for dizziness and sleepiness.
• Any medicines that make you sleepy
IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION ABOUT LYRICALYRICA may cause serious, even life threatening, allergic reactions.Stop taking LYRICA and call your doctor right away if youhave any signs of a serious allergic reaction:• Swelling of your face, mouth, lips, gums, tongue, throat or neck • Have any trouble breathing• Rash, hives (raised bumps) or blisters
Like other antiepileptic drugs, LYRICA may cause suicidal thoughtsor actions in a very small number of people, about 1 in 500.Call your doctor right away if you have any symptoms,especially if they are new, worse or worry you, including:• New or worsening depression• Suicidal thoughts or actions• Unusual changes in mood or behaviorDo not stop LYRICA without first talking with your doctor.
LYRICA may cause swelling of your hands, legs and feet.This swelling can be a serious problem with people withheart problems.
LYRICA may cause dizziness or sleepiness. Do not drive a car, work with machines, or do otherdangerous things until you know how LYRICA affects you.Ask your doctor when it is okay to do these things.
ABOUT LYRICALYRICA is a prescription medicine used in adults 18 years and older to treat:• Pain from damaged nerves that happens with diabetes or
that follows healing of shingles• Partial seizures when taken together with other seizure
medicines• Fibromyalgia (pain all over your body)
Who should NOT take LYRICA:• Anyone who is allergic to anything in LYRICA
POSSIBLE SIDE EFFECTS OF LYRICA LYRICA may cause serious side effects, including:• See “Important Safety Information About LYRICA.”• Muscle problems, pain, soreness or weakness along with
feeling sick and fever • Eyesight problems including blurry vision• Weight gain. Weight gain may affect control of diabetes and
can be serious for people with heart problems.• Feeling “high”
If you have any of these symptoms, tell your doctor right away.
The most common side effects of LYRICA are:• Dizziness • Trouble concentrating• Blurry vision • Swelling of hands and feet• Weight gain • Dry mouth• Sleepiness
If you have diabetes, you should pay extra attention to your skin while taking LYRICA and tell your doctor of any soresor skin problems.
HOW TO TAKE LYRICADo:• Take LYRICA exactly as your doctor tells you. Your
doctor will tell you how much to take and when to take it.Take LYRICA at the same times each day.
• Take LYRICA with or without food.Don’t:• Drive a car or use machines if you feel dizzy or sleepy
while taking LYRICA.• Drink alcohol or use other medicines that make you
sleepy while taking LYRICA.• Change the dose or stop LYRICA suddenly.
You may have headaches, nausea, diarrhea, trouble sleeping,increased sweating, or you may feel anxious if you stop takingLYRICA suddenly.
• Start any new medicines without first talking to your doctor.
NEED MORE INFORMATION?• Ask your doctor or pharmacist. This is only a brief summary
of important information.• Go to www.lyrica.com or call
1-866-459-7422 (1-866-4LYRICA).
Uninsured? Need help paying for Pfizermedicines? Pfizer has programs thatcan help. Call 1-866-706-2400 or visitwww.PfizerHelpfulAnswers.com.
PARKE–DAVIS, Division of Pfizer Inc., New York, NY 10017©2012 Pfizer Inc. All rights reserved. Printed in the USA.
Version June 2012
* Avandia and Avandamet are registered trademarks of GlaxoSmithKline.**Actos is a registered trademark of Takeda Chemicals Industries, Ltd., and
is used under license by Takeda Pharmaceuticals of America, Inc., and Eli Lilly and Co.
Rx only
BEFORE STARTING LYRICATell your doctor about all your medical conditions, including if you:• Have had depression, mood problems or suicidal thoughts or
behavior• Have or had kidney problems or dialysis• Have heart problems, including heart failure• Have a bleeding problem or a low blood platelet count• Have abused prescription medicines, street drugs or alcohol
in the past• Have ever had swelling of your face, mouth, tongue, lips,
gums, neck, or throat (angioedema)• Plan to father a child. It is not known if problems seen in
animal studies can happen in humans.• Are pregnant, plan to become pregnant or are breastfeeding.
It is not known if LYRICA will harm your unborn baby. You and your doctor should decide whether you should takeLYRICA or breast-feed, but not both.
Tell your doctor about all your medicines. Include over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and herbal supplements.LYRICA and other medicines may affect each other causingside effects. Especially tell your doctor if you take:• Angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors. You may
have a higher chance for swelling and hives.
10.23.2012 15:05 BE3548_1112.pdf
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Clinton and former Secretary of State
Condoleezza Rice. “The biggest learning
curve is knowing a lot about everything,”
she says of her transition to lifestyle TV.
“You need to know who’s who from reality
TV to politicians.”
Former position:
In 2004, Lowe joined Fox Sports as an
anchor and host. “I went from news to
entertainment, then sports. I’ve always
been a sports fan, but because it was
male-dominated, I never even thought
of the possibility of reporting sports.” As
much as she loved sports, she found the
reporting challenging. “[Sports fans] know
when you aren’t truly up on your sports
knowledge and are just a talking head—
especially as a woman covering several
sports at one time. It was tough because
now I had to study the sport instead of
just enjoying it. And we covered every
sport so I was fully immersed. I did that
for three years.”
Education:
Lowe received two bachelor’s degrees
from the University of California, Santa
Barbara in communications and black
studies in 1993. Her intention in graduate
school was to broaden her studies and ful-
�ll her love of traveling as well, focusing
on international a�airs with a concentra-
tion in languages, studying Kiswahili and
French. “I wanted to take my journalism
[interests] to another level. I got tired
of covering shootings and drive-bys. I
wanted to make more of an impact on
the way in which we received news and
information from abroad.” However, her
parents were concerned about a young,
single woman working internationally, so
she stayed in Los Angeles and continued
to take care of her grandfather, who had
diabetes and was a double amputee. She
also earned a master’s in �lm, TV, and
theater in 1998.
Training:
Aside from in-class training, Lowe
interned every semester of her college
career. “By the time I graduated I felt that I
had already been working in the business
for years. I went wherever I had to go to
get that experience and �gure it all out.”
Lowe, who still considers herself a news
junkie, started and worked in news for 13
years. “I thought that was going to be it. I didn’t
plan to do lifestyle, sports, or entertainment. It
all just happened. I was open to change.”
First job:
Lowe’s �rst job o�er was in Ventura, Cali-
fornia, at KADY-TV as an associate pro-
ducer. “My �rst response was, ‘I don’t want
to produce; I don’t know anything about
producing,’ and I remember the woman
saying, ‘Try it, you never know where it’s
going to go.’ I got there and learned how to
produce, which to this day I absolutely love.”
She also learned how to write, edit, operate
studio cameras, and �oor direct the show she
helped produce, which she says is vital expe-
rience to have in the industry. At night, aȎer
her production duties, Lowe would practice
reading news scripts on camera. “I was doing
that every single night when everyone had
gone home—it would be midnight, 1 in the
morning. I would read them over and over
again—and I did that for a year.” It seemed
that there was little chance of an opportunity
until an on-air employee called in sick. The
news director, who unbeknownst to Lowe
had noticed her practicing sessions, asked
her to step in. “I had given up. I [felt] I didn’t
have the look, I don’t have the talent, I don’t
have the background,” she recalls of her frus-
trations. “It was just local cut-ins, I remember
that day like it was yesterday. I was so nervous.
It was maybe 30 seconds, but it felt like an hour.
I did it. From there he saw that I was serious
and willing to put in the work necessary to do
the job. I ended up doing both: producing and
a little bit of reporting.”
Not all glamorous:
Lowe continued working in a variety
of areas even aȎer having been on-air.
Her most frustrating gig was as a news
associate at a CBS station in LA erasing
tapes. “I had already been on the air at
the smaller station and you have to be
humble because it’s tough to go back in
the other direction. And so here I am.
There was a conveyer belt and when all
the reporters �nished �ling their stories,
their tapes would come down the belt and
I would have to demagnetize them all. I
did that for hours and hours overnight.
The CBS TV newsroom was upstairs and
I thought that if I crossed paths with the
news directors, I might get an interview.
Looking back, I realized I wasn’t ready for
such a big step, but the ambition didn’t
hurt! That may have been a test to see how
bad I wanted to stay in a business that’s
full of ups and downs. You get experience
in all di�erent areas of TV. It doesn’t hap-
pen overnight where you pop up on the
air. You may end up doing a lot of work
for free just to get the experience.”
Inspiration:
“I struggled for a long time to determine
what my purpose would be and what my
career would be. All I knew when I was
growing up was that I was probably the
skinniest, least aggressive, and most naïve
kid in our family. My grandmother (aka
“Granny,” a tough cookie herself) pulled
me to the side one day and said, ‘Baby, if
you ever want to be heard, you have to
speak up. You have to learn how to use
your voice.’ I was about 8 or 9, but she kept
telling me over time. Now that I look back
on what she said, she too probably helped
me get to where I am today with her tough
love and encouragement. Those same life
lessons ended up being the foundation
for what I get to do every day.” By the
time Lowe arrived at high school, she had
found her voice, but she was still unsure
about what she wanted to do. Her mother
suggested that she become a newscaster
because she loved to talk. She ended up
watching the news that day for almost 24
hours, fascinated with a career she had
never thought of. “At that time, watching
the news, I only saw one woman on the
air who looked like me. My mother said,
‘you can do that if you want to,’ and I never
looked back.” —Sonia Alleyne
A FORMER NEWS JOURNALIST
AND SPORTS REPORTER, LOWE
NOW HOSTS A LIFESTYLE SHOW.
NOVEMBER 2012 • WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM 49
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WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM • NOVEMBER 201250
STRATEGY
Résumé WorkshopHow to effectively present
your experience and skills
to a prospective employer
IN RECENT YEARS, SOCIAL MEDIA
has presented a variety of oppor-
tunities for professionals to brand
themselves and describe their
expertise. The résumé, however,
is still the document recruiters and
hiring managers request to judge
an applicant’s quali�cations—but
the expectation has changed. “The
résumé is not about you,” explains
Je� Metzger, owner of and résumé
writer at Your Résumé Consultant
(www.yourresumeconsultant.com).
“A good résumé is about your pro-
spective employer.” To stand out
from the competition, it’s important
that job seekers use the résumé to
convey their unique talents and
speci�c skills, and how those talents
and skills will bene�t an employer.
Create a “Professional Profile”:
“A professional profile answers that problem of why they
should hire you. This is your opportunity to showcase
your experience and key differentiators.” Metzger says to
stay away from overused words like “team player,” “self-
motivated” and “attention to detail,” and use phrases like
“specific expertise in.”
Use a title that’s close to the job you’re seeking:
“It tells the person what you want.” The hiring manager
should be able to tell what your expertise is at first glance.
“They have 10 or 15 or more jobs that they’re sourcing and
hundreds of résumés that they’ve received in response
to a job. If I’m hiring for a customer service rep, I want
to see that on top, not sales or operations.”
Quantify your responsibilities:
Due to the competitiveness of the workplace, today it’s
important to outline what you do. If your responsibility is
to create spreadsheets, say something such as “created
four spreadsheets on quarterly budgets for review by
senior management.” Explain how you’ve impacted or
improved company business.
Use strong, specific language:
Led, managed, and directed are great action words. Cre-
ate an attractive, conservative design appropriate for the
industry. Metzger prefers Garamond font to Times New
Roman, which is commonly used.
New Résumé:
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Lose the “Objective”: Having an objective at the top of your résumé is
outdated. In fact, if recruiters see it, they believe
the job hunter is out of touch, says Metzger.
Old Résumé:
Don’t use passive language:Avoid words such as “assisted” and
“participated.”
Be selective:Eliminate past jobs from your résumé that don’t
offer the opportunity to showcase meaningful,
transferable skills.
Résumé Checklist:
n If you’ve been in one position for several years, pull out the specifics and the depth of your work history. Did you lead teams; did you write reports; did you do quality assurance or develop a
new operating system?
n Your résumé should be a liv-ing document that’s updated regularly. Because it can be dif-ficult to remember your accom-plishments, keep an electronic file of your progress and use information from your perfor-
mance reviews.
n Appearance counts. Your résumé should look crisp and clean, says Metzger. “There cannot be any errors—I cannot over-emphasize that. During my career as a hiring manager, I’d eliminate candidates from consideration if their résumé contained errors. Proofread, proofread, proofread. It’s your first opportunity to make a con-nection with a hiring company.”
—Sonia Alleyne
NOVEMBER 2012 • WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM 51
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WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM • NOVEMBER 201252
FROM
THE
C-SUITE
Otha “Skip” Spriggs III
New Position: Executive Vice President,
Chief Human Resources Officer
Organization: TIAA-CREF
Location: Charlotte, NC
Former Position: Senior Vice President, Human
Resources, Boston Scientific Corp.
Background/Responsibilities: Spriggs will oversee the com-
pany’s human resources function and ensure that it helps clients
achieve lifelong financial well-being. Spriggs has held leader-
ship roles at The Home Depot Inc., Levi Strauss & Co., UPS Inc.,
and Catalent Pharma Solutions Inc. In addition, he was senior
vice president of human resources at Cigna Corp., where he
also served as the company’s chief diversity officer and presi-
dent of the Cigna Foundation. He has a bachelor’s degree
in business administration from Towson State University.
Angela CannonNew Position: Vice President,
Affiliate Marketing
Organization: GMC TV
Location: Atlanta
Responsibilities : Cannon is
responsible for developing affiliate
marketing and demand-building
campaigns, as well as managing
key consumer initiatives.
Former Position: Senior Director,
Affiliate Marketing
Keija MinorNew Position: Editor-In-Chief,
Brides
Organization: Condé Nast
Location: New York
Responsibilities: Minor will be
directing all brand and editorial
initiatives for Brides, the oldest
and most widely read wedding
magazine in the world. She will
also oversee all licensing products,
including two stationery lines.
Former Position: Editor-
In-Chief, Uptown
Dara Richardson-
HeronNew Position: CEO
Organization: YWCA USA
Location: Washington, D.C.
Responsibilities: Richardson-
Heron will oversee the organization,
which provides services in more
than 1,300 locations in the U.S. and
in over 100 countries.
Former Position: CEO, Greater New
York City Affiliate, Susan G. Komen
for the Cure
Michelle D. GreeneNew Position: Executive
Director-IT-Interiors, Automotive
Organization: Johnson Controls
Location: Holland, MI
Responsibilities: Greene repre-
sents Electronics and Interiors IT,
and has functional oversight for
Electronics IT for all Interiors IT
resources and services.
Former Position: Director-IT, Global
Lines of Business and Headquarters,
Building Efficiency Division
11 WORK.indd 52 10/23/12 2:29 PM
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UnitedHealthcare’s Generations of Wellness® congratulates our grand prize
winner, and we salute all of those who stepped up their game to live healthy.
When employers create a culture of wellness and make it easy for their employees to take charge of their
health, we are all winners. And we’re proud to announce that Aaron Palmer of Move Baby, Move! won the
2012 Healthy Challenge Contest. Aaron will receive a trip to the the 2013 Black Enterprise Entrepreneurs
Conference. Visit www.uhctogether/behealthy to read Aaron’s story.
Thanks to everyone who submitted stories and voted in the challenge. Keep building healthy habits for generations to come.
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MMMMMMMMAAAAKKKK EE EE EEEE HHHH HHHH EEEE EE EE AAAAAAAA LLLLLLLL TTTTTTTTHHHHHHHH YYYY YY YY
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©2012 United HealthCare Services, Inc. Insurance coverage provided by UnitedHealthcare Insurance Company or its affi liates. Administrative services provided by United HealthCare Services, Inc. or their affi liates. Health plan coverage provided by or through a UnitedHealthcare company.
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BBBBBBBBRRRRRRRREEEEEEEE AAAA AA AA KKKKKKKK AAAAAAAA SSSSSSSS WWWWWWWW EEEEEEEE AAAAAAAA TTTTTTTT
FFFFFFFFEEEEEEEE EE EE LL LL LL LL BBBBBBBB EEEEEEEE TTTTTTTT TTTTTTTT EEEEEEEE RRRRRRRR
IT’S TIME TOCELEBRATE HEALTH
CongratulationsAaron Palmer for being the Healthy Challenge Contest winner.
10.22.2012 17:46 BE3536_1112.pdf
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WWW.BLACK ENTERPRISE.COM • NOVEMBER 2012 54
Wealth For Life Principle No. 7
I will ensure that my entire family adheres
to sensible money management
principles.
WHILE WORKING AS A SOFTWARE ENGINEER RECRUITER IN SILICON
Valley during the late 1990s, Cynthia Nevels learned that wealth can be fleeting, par-
ticularly without financial capability to back it up. “I saw a lot of people make a lot of
money, but when the dot-com craze was over, they didn’t have much to show for it as
far as assets were concerned,” she says. Many people were cashing in stock options to
keep up with the Joneses rather than saving for a rainy day. Determined that her then
6- and 7-year-old sons and her nieces and nephews would learn the value of saving
and investing, Nevels set out to teach them to be financially savvy.
Initially, Nevels intended to simply sit around the kitchen table with family and
share what she had taught herself about money over the years. A longtime fan of
PBS’s Nightly Business Report, Nevels had learned about investment strategies and
economic news by watching the program each night afer her boys went to bed.
Her interest in financial empowerment became even more pronounced when she
came across the business classic Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert T. Kiyosaki. “I read it
in two days, thinking, ‘I will never be able to build wealth without starting my own
business’, so I really needed to get my credit in order and get an understanding of
how to build assets,” the 42-year-old divorcée recalls.
Junior Achievement
Cynthia Nevels teaches her children
the value of saving and spending wisely
By Tamara E. Holmes
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55NOVEMBER 2012 • PHOTOGRAPH BY STEVE MCALISTER • EDITED BY LATOYA M. SMITH @LATOYAREPORTS
Afer moving to Dallas, Nevels started holding personal
finance sessions for the children in her family, but “other
parents found out about it and said, ‘I want this, too.’” Seeing
an opportunity to make an even greater difference, Nevels
became a certified financial educator and researched how to
start a nonprofit organization. In 2002, the Jr. Finance Literacy
Academy was born.
The first eight participants of the financial literacy program
were her two sons, her brother’s three children, and friends
of the family. Ranging in age from 7 to 10, the children would
meet every Saturday morning at a local library. While Nevels
found some free financial educational resources, she spent
about $15,000 in savings for startup materials such as a website
and course materials, as well as travel money for field trips to
financial institutions. Nevels also created a learning incentive
system that she paid for out of pocket in which the children
could earn money for completing learning-related tasks. For
example, children might earn $5 for attending a session, $5 for
completing an essay about a financial topic, or $3 for reaching
a personal savings goal.
The curriculum she developed consisted of 72 hours of
training on such topics as interest, credit, debt, and investing.
Kids in the program opened savings accounts with local banks
and deposited the money they earned through the program.
About six months into the program, Nevels partnered with the
Texas Credit Union Foundation, a nonprofit organization that
develops financial education initiatives, and won a $118,000
grant to expand the Jr. Finance Literacy Academy into other
cities across the state including Austin, Fort Worth, and Houston.
She also collaborated with community centers, churches, and
other organizations, touching the lives of between 5,000 and
6,000 kids in seven years, she estimates.
In the process of helping others, Nevels’s original goal was
met, as several of her family members reaped tangible benefits
from going through the program.
Her older son, Jeremy Nelson, now 19, worked throughout
high school to save about $2,500 to pay for his books and
housing during his freshman year at Auburn University at
Montgomery in Alabama. He credits the Jr. Finance Literacy
Academy with giving him much of the discipline he needed to
save and live debt-free. “The most important lesson I was taught
was how to save my money and save it consistently,” Nelson
says. “I even save coins because anything can help.” Nelson
is also an avid investor; he and his brother, 18-year-old Tyler,
have each had brokerage accounts since 2003.
Other principles Nevels taught the students included her
“Save then Play” principle, in which students committed to
saving half of their personal income toward a personal goal,
and a no-debt principle, in which students committed to buy-
ing only things they could pay for up front. Through the bank
accounts they opened, the students also acquired real-world
experience balancing a checkbook and sticking with a budget.
HOW TO RAISE FINANCIALLY SAVVY CHILDREN
1 Iwilllivewithinmymeans.
2 Iwillmaximizemyincomepotential
througheducationandtraining.
3 Iwilleffectivelymanagemybudget,
credit,debt,andtaxobligations.
4 Iwillsaveatleast10%ofmyincome.
5 Iwillusehomeownershipasa
foundationforbuildingwealth.
6 Iwilldeviseaninvestmentplanformy
retirementneedsandchildren’seducation.
7 Iwillensurethatmyentirefamilyadheres
tosensiblemoneymanagementprinciples.
8 Iwillsupportthecreationandgrowth
ofminority-ownedbusinesses.
9 Iwillguaranteemywealthispassedon
tofuturegenerationsthroughproper
insuranceandestateplanning.
10Iwillstrengthenmycommunity
throughphilanthropy.
The 10 Wealth for Life Principles
n Be transparent with your finances. While it’s great to tell children to save
some of their money, they’ll learn more from your example, Nevels says.
If your finances need attention, get them in order before you start telling
your children what to do, or better yet, show them how your commitment
to sound financial principles, such as budgeting and saving, is improving
your finances over time.
n Create structure for lessons. Just as kids know when they have to go to
basketball practice, Nevels’s children knew that every Saturday morning
they were going to spend time talking finance. She also shared lessons
from motivational books and resources, such as Rich Dad, Poor Dad and
The Millionaire Next Door by Thomas J. Stanley, Ph.D. and William D. Danko,
Ph.D. Nevels also developed her own resources, including a set of Personal
Finance Flash Cards (Caught You Learning Publishing; $9.99) that teach
money-related terms.
n Use analogies kids can relate to. When teaching the kids about the power
of investing, Nevels applied the principles to their day-to-day lives. “My boys
played football and they wanted Nike tennis shoes. I showed them the stock
price for Nike and how investing in Nike over time could benefit them more
than those tennis shoes. So instead of trying to save for the tennis shoes, I
taught them to save to invest in Nike stock. That’s something that they still
remember today.” be
Do you live by the Wealth for Life Principles? We would love to print your story. Nominate yourself or someone you know at wealth@blackenterprise.com.
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57
“MY PHILOSOPHY WAS THAT AS LONG AS ALL MY BILLS WERE PAID I COULD spend my money on whatever I wanted,” says Talisha White, a 26-year-old Brooklyn, New York, native.
But living that lifestyle led to $4,478 in credit card debt with interest rates ranging from 16% to 19%, and minuscule savings. She has $1,340 between her checking and savings accounts.
“I shouldn’t be struggling,” admits White, who works as an office assistant for the chief of breast surgery at a local hospital earning $45,500 a year. “I was spending my money within four to five days after getting paid. Any money I set aside would be dipped into, so nothing was ever getting saved because I’d always spend it.”
But White has made some headway. She stopped using her credit cards about eight months ago so that she doesn’t accumulate more debt. “I’ve even cut them up,” she says. She recently paid off a Target department store card in August that had a $400 balance. She is currently paying $250 on her HSBC card, which has a balance of $1,600 at 19.9% APR. She is making the minimum payments on her other two cards ($47 and $20), but plans to increase these amounts once she pays off the first card. Even though White loves to travel, she has postponed travel to focus more on saving. “I want to travel and possibly live abroad one day, but I need to get a hold of my finances before I can even think about that,” she says.
Escaping the Paycheck to
Paycheck Life Talisha White seeks to change behavior
that will sabotage her financial future
By LaToya M. Smith
NOVEMBER 2012 • PHOTOGRAPH BY RAYON RICHARDS • EDITED BY DEREK T. DINGLE @DTDINGLE
Financial Fitness Contest Winner No. 139
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The Advice
She also started tracking her spend-ing with Mint .com after gett ing some guidance from friends and fam-ily, financial blogs, and Suze Orman’s book, Young, Fabulous and Broke. They all echoed that she needed to first figure out how much money she had coming in and then figure out what she was spending it on. After tracking her bank and credit card transactions, she identified her biggest culprit—eating out.
In August, she spent $508 on food and dining, $255 on personal care, and withdrew about $300 from the ATM. In just one month she reduced her food budget to $347, personal care to $50, and ATM withdrawals to $228.
“Tracking my spending is paying off,” says White, who took it a step further by organizing all bills includ-ing due dates on an Excel spreadsheet. “Before I was just guesstimating and I didn’t have a clear idea where my money was going, but now all of my expenses are categorized and I’m able to see how much money I’m spending on shopping or other things that I didn’t realize my money was going to.”
Now she will realize immediate sav-ings by moving into a cheaper apart-ment. When her lease ended in October she decided to share a two-bedroom apartment with a roommate, saving $300 a month on rent. She plans to live there for six months to save money and then move into her own place by April.
n Continue to live with roommates: White was paying $750 in rent and moved into another apartment this month to reduce costs. She plans to put money aside for six months to move into a one-bedroom apartment in Brooklyn at an estimated cost of about $950 per month. Brown advises White extend her stay. “It doesn’t add up. Talisha has to consider that she will most likely have to pay a security deposit, first and last month’s rent, which adds up to $2,850. Even if she saves the difference she was paying in rent before ($300) that will only give her $1,800 in six months. She’ll still be $1,000 short.” Brown suggests that White focus on savings. If she doesn’t want to continue living with this roommate, she should find another roommate to keep housing costs as low as possible.
n Pay off credit card debt: White has three credit cards. She has a balance of $1,600 at 19.8% APR; $1,900 at 16%; and $978 on her third card which has a 0% introductory offer which will adjust to 22% in October 2013. She is currently paying $250 on her $1,600 balance. Brown recommends that White use the $2,000 contest winnings to eliminate the debt with the highest interest rate ($1,600). After paying off that card she can use the remaining $400 to apply that to the second debt and reduce that balance to $1,500. She can then apply the $250 to the other card and the savings from paying less rent ($300) to pay off the $1,500 balance in less than three months. By continuing to roll over funds to the next debt, White will be debt-free in a total of five months.
n Build an emergency fund: White can start building her emergency fund while paying off her credit card debt. Currently she has about $288 left over
each month after all bills and expenses are paid. She should aim to create an emergency fund to cover three months of expenses, or $7,200, Brown recommends. After paying off her debt, White can use the $550 ($250 from credit card payments plus $300 savings from housing) to continue building her emergency cushion. Although her focus should be on saving, Brown suggests that she open a separate savings account designated to travel. It’s better that she have money put away than try to plan for a trip and be tempted to dip into savings or charge it, explains Brown. n Keep 403(b) contributions at 10%: Since starting to save for retirement in early October, White says she can feel the difference. Her biweekly paychecks are $183 less and she’s considering reducing the amount. Brown recommends she stick it out. By saving 10% she can grow her savings to more than $1 million by age 65. Just a 3% decrease can result in $300,000 less in savings.
n Pay off student loans sooner: White is currently paying $230 a month on her $47,900 student loan balance. She is on a graduated payment plan, which increases her payment by 12.9% every two years. Under this plan, it will take her 20 years to wipe out the debt. Brown calculates that if White increases her payments to $400 a month she can pay off her student loans in 10 years. After funding her emergency account she can apply $175 from the $250 she was paying toward her credit card debt plus the $250 she is currently paying to pay off her student loans earlier.
“She is on the right path,” says Brown. “But because she is still finding areas to cut she should revisit her progress in about three months and see how she’s doing and make adjustments as necessary.” be
black enterprise and Dawn Brown, CFP, a senior financial adviser with Altfest Personal Wealth Management in New York City, offer the following advice:
WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM • NOVEMBER 201258
Household Income
Gross Income $45,500
Assets
Checking $250
Savings 1,090
403(b) 183
Total $1,523
Liabilities
School Loan $47,900
Credit Cards 4,500
Total $52,400
Net Worth $-50,877
Financial Snapshot
Talisha White Brooklyn, NY
To apply for the Financial Fitness Contest, go to www.blackenterprise.com/financial-fitness-contest.
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Walmart Market Manager & Fighting Hunger Advocate
Wade Hunt
Making a difference.As a board member of his local food bank, Wade is creating hunger awareness in his community through education.
To learn more, visit www.blackenterprise.com/category/career/cool-jobs/
10.22.2012 17:45 BE3533_1112.pdf
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MANAGINGSAFETY
WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM • PHOTOGRAPHY BY RAYON RICHARDS • NOVEMBER 201260
A former special agent transfers his skills to corporate security
FOUR MONTHS AFTER
graduating from St. John’s
University in 1974 with a
degree in criminal justice, Lew
Rice was sworn in as a special
agent with the then-newly
formed Drug Enforcement
Administration. By the time
he retired 26 years later, he
had been given assignments
in New York City, Philadel-
phia, Miami, Detroit, Wash-
ington, D.C., and Kingston,
Jamaica. He had also become
the special agent in charge of
the New York DEA office, and
written a book, DEA Special
Agent: My Life on the Front
Line (Dorrance Publishing Co.;
$12), outlining his ascent in a
dangerous industry as well as
his involvement in the heroin
investigations of Harlem drug
lords Leroy “Nicky” Barnes
and Frank Lucas. His extensive
experience working with local,
state, federal, and international
law enforcement agencies had
also prepared him to oversee
the changing environment in
the area of corporate security.
Today, as vice president of Global Security
and Trademark Protection for The Estée
Lauder Cos., Rice is in the ninth year of
his second career, managing a team of 31
security executives throughout the world.
His responsibilities include playing a key
role in the development, implementation,
and execution of the companies’ crisis man-
agement plan, as well as investigations, loss
prevention, and supply chain security; travel
security as employees travel to challenging
environments around the world; executive
protection; and special event security for
special events and launches.
Here he explains how he managed the
transition and how his background prepared
him for a new opportunity.
How has corporate
security changed?
Prior to 9/11, the corporate security indus-
try, for the most part, especially global
companies, had a professional in that posi-
tion, but not necessarily one trained or
knowledgeable in law enforcement. Afer
9/11, the discipline changed dramatically.
The terrorist attacks showed that civilians
could be the target of terrorist groups. A lot
of companies began to look at their security
function at that time. Some of my peers got
a bump up and some got shown the door.
Corporate executives realized that they
needed to hire somebody who really knew
that discipline and had strong relationships
with contacts in federal, state, local, and
international security forces around the
world to bring the right information into
the company.
Is intelligence much more
coordinated today?
The New York City Police Department
and the FBI have corporate security out-
reach programs, and on a regular basis
they will bring together corporate security
executives and talk to them about what
they’re seeing, what’s going on, and what
they should tell their employees. The NYPD
has everyone on an e-mail and if there is
anything going on in the city, we will get a
heads-up alert.
What advantage did your
DEA background offer?
The great advantage with the DEA is that
it is an international investigative agency.
They have offices in U.S. embassies through-
out the world and work very closely with the
security forces, police, and military in Asia,
Africa, and Europe. I retired in good stand-
ing, so I can call on my relationships within
those agencies. With those connections, we
can get information and bring it back very
quickly to the company.
What has been the challenge tran-
sitioning into a corporate position?
When I came to the corporate world, I was
the special agent in charge of the New York
office of the DEA— its largest operational
By Sonia Alleyne
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NOVEMBER 2012 • BY SONIA ALLEYNE @SONIAALLEYNE 61
office. My interaction was at the highest level
of law enforcement agencies. I was working
with several hundred men and women who
went through a 17-week academy; they were
socialized in federal law enforcement. They
knew the mission. They knew the drill. In the
corporate sector, it’s not like that. Through
networking and through understanding the
core mission of the business, I have been
able to get buy-in from senior management
and employees.
How do you staff globally?
When I came in, the company allowed
me to go around the world to interview and
hire people in various parts of the world
where we have operations. Those outside
the U.S. are primarily former law enforce-
ment professionals with strong reputations
for success and with strong relationships
in their country. Relationships are always
going to be important. People are comfort-
able working with people they know. If
there is a terrorist attack or rumors of
a terrorist attack in London, the right
security persons in place can call their
colleagues in the metropolitan police
and find out what’s going on. It may not
be top-secret information, but enough
to bring back to the corporation so they
know how to manage safety procedures
for their employees. The company has
realized how important it is to have first-
class security executives looking out for
their safety. be
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NOVEMBER 2012 • PHOTOGRAPH BY CREDIT • WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM 000WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM • PHOTOGRAPH BY KEVIN ALLEN • NOVEMBER 201262
The Real Cost of
AdoptiontionBy Tamara E. Holmes
& Sheiresa Ngo
brown’s personal
savings helped her adopt
her daughter, kendra.
PERSONAL FINANCE
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NOVEMBER 2012 • @BLACKENTERPRISE 63
But the adoption process did not come without
challenges. For starters, Brown, 44, was shocked at
the expense. “The cost was unbelievable,” she says.
The tally included paying $1,750 for home study, a
three- to six-month process whereby social workers
examine all aspects of your home and family life
to determine whether it is a safe environment for a
child. Then there was the $1,000 she paid for a pro�le
about herself, which would be shown to prospective
birth mothers in choosing adoptive parents. Add
to that $2,880 in attorney’s fees to handle the legal
aspects. When all was said and done, Brown spent
$20,000 to $25,000 in total.
While the new mother had the personal savings
to cover the cost of adoption, many people are not
as fortunate as Brown. Private agency adoptions
can range anywhere from $5,000 to $40,000-plus,
according to the U.S. Department of Health & Human
Services Administration for Children and Families,
with $25,000 to $35,000 being the norm, experts say.
“Most families look at that $25,000 as if it’s a gigantic
brick wall,” says Cherri Walrod, who founded the
website Resources4Adoption.com aȎer looking for
money to fund her own three adoptions.
However, there are ways to get past the high cost
of adoption. Taking advantage of grants, tax credits,
low-interest loans, and other fundraising strategies,
prospective adoptive parents can e�ectively break
down �nancial barriers.
The Root of the Costs
While there is always a need for people to adopt
children, African American adoptive parents are
in particularly high demand, says Maxine Chalker,
executive director of Adoptions from the Heart
(www.aŽh.org), a private adoption agency based
in Wynnewood, Pennsylvania. In many cases,
agencies don’t have enough prospective African
American parents on their waiting list for African
American birth mothers who prefer to have their
children adopted by someone of the same race. “In
2011, Adoptions from the Heart placed 51 African
American newborns.
It’s hard to gauge how many private adoptions
take place each year because states aren’t legally
required to report that information. The Administra-
tion for Children and Families tracks only adoptions
from the foster care system, which is temporary
housing for children in the state’s control. In 2011,
50,516 children were adopted from foster care, 23%
of whom were African American.
Families considering private agency adoption
should know it’s not an overnight process; it could
take anywhere from one to two years before comple-
tion. The good news is you have a period of time
to come up with the necessary funds. “You don’t
have to write a $30,000 check the day you start,”
says Julie Gumm, author of Adopt without Debt:
Creative Ways to Cover the Cost of Adoption (Black
It’s not cheap to adopt a child from a private agency. Here’s how to finance the growth of your family
YVETTE BROWN HAS ALWAYS DREAMED OF BECOMING A MOTHER.
When the time came to turn that dream into a reality, she chose to adopt.
“I knew from a very young age that there were children in the world who
needed a home, and I always said to myself that I would adopt when I
was older,” says Brown. In March of 2010, the single physician from Cham-
bersburg, Pennsylvania, adopted a 2-week-old baby girl named Kendra.
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WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM • PHOTOGRAPH BY ELTON ANDERSON • NOVEMBER 201264
Boot Publishing; $14.99). Rather, you
may need $5,000 at the beginning of
the process and another $5,000 �ve
months later, Gumm says.
Since there are limited federal
laws governing adoptions—mainly
concerning eligible expenses to
receive applicable tax credits or
exclusions—costs vary from state
to state and agency to agency. A
home study can cost between $1,000
and $3,000, and legal expenses
are in the neighborhood of $6,000,
depending on state requirements,
birth parent relinquishment paper-
work, and the number of children
being adopted. Adoption agency
fees can be as little as $5,000 or as
high as $40,000, depending upon
the services o�ered. For instance, it
may cost less to �nd your own birth
mother and have the agency handle just the legal work,” says
Kimberly King, adoptive family coordinator for Lifetime Adop-
tion Center (www.lifetimeadoption.com), a national adoption
facilitator. This option was chosen by Yamilée Emmanuel-Kelly
and Errol Kelly. The couple, who have been married for 18 years,
desired a family. AȎer several years of trying for a baby, they
decided to adopt directly from a birth mother, with the help of
a lawyer and social worker. Yamilée, who had been diagnosed
with polycystic ovarian syndrome, was determined to have the
family they always dreamed of.
“We wanted two kids, a boy and a girl. And I was going to
�nd a way to make it happen,” says Yamilée, 42, a high school
social studies teacher.
The Kellys sought guidance from Parents Adoption Lifeline,
a Palm Beach Gardens, Florida-based adoption support group.
Errol, a 44-year-old IT professional for a local university, had a
co-worker who told him about a support group for people who
had adopted, those interested in adoption, and those going through
the process. In February 2001, a few days aȎer joining the group,
the couple received a call from a social worker, saying a young
mother was interested in placing her child for adoption. Much
to their dismay, the birth mother changed her mind a few weeks
later, shortly aȎer giving birth. Then, in April 2001, another oppor-
tunity arose. Yamilée and Errol received a call from their lawyer
and were matched with a birth mother who was due in August.
The Kelly’s son, Zakia, was born in August 2001. Overall, the
cost was about $11, 000. The process for adopting Zakia, now
11 years old, was roughly �ve months. Three years later, the
couple decided to adopt again, using the same process. Their
daughter, Arrianna, was born July 2004. They say the total cost
was about $15,000. The Kellys were able to pay for the cost of
adopting Zakia through tax refunds, personal savings, and family
contributions. In addition to the above, they had a personal loan
and money they received from a grant when adopting Arrianna.
The couple says the process for adopting Arrianna, now 8 years
old, was about six months.
The couple’s advice: “Do your
research,” says Yamilée. “We got a
$2,000 to $5,000 grant for parents
adopting from a private agency; our
social worker told us about it. There is
money available out there. People are
willing to help you.”
Managing the Expense
“If you are looking for a program that is going to walk you
through everything from beginning to end, it will probably be
more expensive.” Also, some agencies charge fees for parts of
the application process such as �ngerprinting and criminal
background checks. Others require prospective parents to
pay medical and housing expenses for the birth mother, says
Gloria Hochman, a spokesperson for the National Adoption
Center (www.adopt.org). If you adopt a child in another state,
transportation and housing costs—while you’re waiting to
bring your baby home—may need to be added to the amount
you’ll need to raise.
While the costs can be prohibitive, there are ways for fami-
lies to �nd �nancial relief. “Going into debt is never something
somebody wants to do,” says Gumm. “I know people who’ve
drained retirement accounts to pay for adoption.” Parents who
don’t have the money for a private adoption should consider
adopting from the foster care system. However, it is rare that an
infant would be available. But “because we’re so eager to get
kids out of foster care as quickly as possible and into permanent
homes, there’s really not very much in the way of expenses,”
says Hochman. In foster care adoptions, fees are oȎen kept to a
minimum or are waived, such as the charge for the home study.
There are also adoption subsidies of up to several hundred dollars
per month (depending on the state) available to help defray costs
for families who adopt from the foster care system. If you’re still
set on a private agency adoption, some agencies charge fees on
a sliding scale, so people with less income pay less.
AN ADOP-
TION GRANT
HELPED THE
KELLYS TURN
THEIR DREAM
INTO REALITY.
PERSONAL FINANCE
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NOVEMBER 2012 • WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM 65
Here are other funding sources to consider:
Federal and State Tax Credits: There is a federal tax credit
of up to $12,650 per adoption in 2012. The amount a family
quali�es for depends on such factors as the family’s income,
qualifying expenses such as court costs and attorney’s fees,
and whether the child has special medical needs. However,
the adoption tax credit is set to expire on Dec. 31, unless
Congress passes legislation to extend it. Some states also
o�er tax credits.
Military Family Subsidies: Members of the military whose
adoptions are arranged through qualifying adoption agen-
cies may be eligible for reimbursement for up to $2,000 per
child or up to $5,000 per year.
Employer Reimbursement Programs: Many companies
o�er �nancial assistance for adoption as a bene�t. An Aon
Hewitt survey of 1,000 major U.S. employers found that
56% o�er a �nancial adoption bene�t. Company payments
ranged from $500 to $25,000 according to the Dave Thomas
Foundation for Adoption.
Grants: Several organizations provide grants to prospective
adoptive parents. However, you typically must have your
home study done before you can apply. Some grants are
geared particularly toward certain communities. For exam-
ple, Lifetime Adoption Center has the African-American
Enrichment Program, which o�ers grants between $1,000
and $4,000. Should you plan to apply for grants, expect to
�ll out a lot of paperwork, says Walrod, who maintains a
database of more than 70 adoption grant and loan oppor-
tunities at Resources4Adoption.com.
Fundraising: Many people find creative ways, or they
capitalize on a hobby such as sewing, to �nance adoption.
Working a second job to bring in extra money is another
option. Others enlist the aid of their families and friends by
asking them to make a �nancial contribution to an adoption
fund or to donate furniture and other items that can be sold
on eBay, says Gumm.
Financing: Taking out an adoption loan is another alterna-
tive, however, just be wary of predatory lenders looking
to take advantage of families that are in an emotionally
vulnerable state, warns Walrod, who has come across
adoption loans with interest rates as high as 25%. “Any
time you get [interest rates] in the double digits, you need
to proceed with caution,” she says. Check with your credit
union or bank, Walrod suggests. Also, some organizations
o�er low-interest and interest-free loans for adoption, such
as the ABBA Fund (www.abbafund.org) and Lifesong Legacy
Fund (www.lifesongfororphans.org).
While the �nancial path to adoption is not easy, there are
plenty of resources to make the journey less taxing. And the
reward is worth the e�ort, says Brown, who can’t imagine
life without 2-and-a-half-year-old Kendra. “I love every
minute with her.”
THE COST OF ADOPTIONBREAKDOWN OF FEES
Home Study
$1,000 to $3,000
(average:$2,000)
Document Preparation
$500 to $2,000 (average:$1,250)
Attorney for Adoptive parents
$2,500 to $6,000
(average:$4,250)
Counseling Expenses for the
Birth Mother
$1,000 to $2,500
(average:$1,750)
Adoption Agency Fees
$5,000 to $40,000 (average:$22,500)
Total Average Cost
$31,750SOURCE:
CHILDWELFARE.GOV AND GLORIA HOCHMAN
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55Resource ToolsChildwelfare.gov (www.childwelfare.gov/
adoption) provides adoption resources and
information from the U.S. government.
African American Adoptions Online
(http://africanamericanadoptionsonline.
com) has information developed by Life-
time Adoption Center for African American
parents looking to adopt through private
agencies.
Resources 4 Adoption (www.Resources
4Adoption.com) lists information about
adoption grants and loans.
American Academy of Adoption Attorneys
(www.adoptionattorneys.org) is a source
for locating adoption attorneys experienced
in interstate and international adoption
regulations.
Help Us Adopt (www.helpusadopt.org) is an
organization that provides adoption grants.
be
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Feb. 27-Mar. 2, 2013Waldorf Astoria Orlando
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Claimsher power
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PERSONAL FINANCE
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A position at Travelers is no typical insurance job. Just ask Virnitia from the Hartford office.
She’s been at Travelers for more than 15 years, and during that time, her career has taken many
paths. She started in the special collections unit, moved into the management level in billing
and collections, then to systems support and now is a 2nd Vice President leading the Claim
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The Travelers Indemnity Company and its property casualty affiliates. One Tower Square, Hartford, CT 06183
07.09.2012 16:00 BE3397_0812.pdf
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@BLACKENTERPRISE • NOVEMBER 2012 68
By Marcia Wade Talbert
How
four professionals found
lucrative opportunities in a growing field
HAVE YOU EVER CONSIDERED THE EFFORT that goes into preparing your lunch? No, we’re not talking about what happened in the kitchen 20 minutes ago—we mean before that. Before the peppers on your burrito were harvested last spring, an economist had to forecast the quantity of seeds that would be needed to sustain the demand for peppers in Mexican-style restaurants this fall. Ahead of the restaurateur’s deci-
sion to serve locally sourced, grass-fed beef in all his entrées,
the owner of a family-owned farm hired someone to market
and brand that beef to attract retail attention. Before immigrant
farm production workers received equitable pay for a hard day’s
work, a civil rights attorney with the United States Department
of Agriculture studied their complaints and determined if dis-
crimination occurred in the dairy plant that produced your sour
cream. Long before you drank your beer and sighed contentedly,
a food scientist calculated the amount of yeast needed for the
fermenting process to produce the �avor you’re accustomed
to in your favorite brand.
Well, if you hadn’t
wondered about that
before, I’m sure you
hadn’t thought about
the myriad jobs involved.
The fact is, employment of
agricultural and food scientists
is expected to increase by 10% from
2010 to 2020, according to the Bureau of Labor
Statistics. And the USDA expects that some 25,700 jobs will
open up annually for management and business representa-
tives in food systems, renewable energy, and the environment
between 2010 and 2015.
These are professional positions that cater to scientists,
lawyers, and people with MBAs, with starting salaries above
$40,000. But there is a shortfall of candidates with skill sets in
science, technology, engineering, and mathematics to �ll these
vacancies. On the next few pages you will meet four young
professionals who chose not to ignore the industry but lever-
aged their knowledge of agriculture and its market demands
to �t their professional and business goals.
CAREERS
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WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM • NOVEMBER 201270
“When Steve Harvey found out I was
a food scientist, it blew his mind,” says
chef Judson Todd Allen, the self-described
“architect of �avor” who was recently a guest
on Harvey’s show. Allen’s company, Healthy
Infused Cuisine, specializes in personal, private,
and event chef services. “Harvey said, ‘Some of us do
that?’ It instantly gave me credibility. Then I was able to back
up the title with knowledge. He looked at me di�erently—as
an expert who could pull on the science behind food.”
Allen’s food science degree from the University of Illinois
also gave him an edge when he auditioned for The Next Food
Network Star. Celebrity chef Alton Brown, known for his enthu-
siasm in investigating the science behind food, chose Allen, the
only contestant with a degree in food science, to join his team
for the Season 8 competition. And though some might think of
scientists as stu�y or aloof, Brown complimented Allen on his
personable presentation style.
“When I went to college, I went into food science because
I knew it would set me apart from my competitors. I knew
I wasn’t going to be a traditional chef. My favorite courses
were food sensory and analysis and food chemistry,” says
Allen, who as a child dreamed of becoming an entrepreneur
and television personality like Emeril Lagasse. “Those classes
allowed me to really peel back the layers of food and �avor,
understand their chemical breakdown, and—from a sensory
perspective—train my palate to discern di�erent �avors and
their interactions.”
Allen’s goal is to use his food science
background to transform the way people
think about healthy food. He’s not the �rst to
take on this task, but because of his personal
struggle with weight (he’s lost more than 135
pounds) and eating unhealthily, he hopes to make
this message palatable to others as well. Trained at Le
Cordon Bleu, Allen has worked at the Ritz in Paris and the Institut
Paul Bocuse in Lyon, France, the gastronomic capital of the world. He
means it when he says, “Healthy doesn’t have to be boring or bland.”
Using food science as the vehicle to carry him to food celebrity
status wasn’t always Allen’s plan. As a freshman at the Chicago
High School of Agricultural Sciences in 1995, Allen resented
being associated with what had become known as “the farm
school.” But getting a grassroots, science-driven education in
high school broadened his perspective. It taught him about the
chemical processes that are naturally a part of cooking, baking,
and fermenting, and encouraged him to pursue a bachelor’s
in the �eld. While attending the University of Illinois, Judson
teamed up with a classmate and developed a lactose-free, soy-
based gourmet chocolate. They conducted a sensory analysis
panel and even placed second in a national product develop-
ment competition sponsored by Minorities in Agriculture,
Natural Resources and Related Sciences, or MANRRS.
“Food science allowed me to understand food from a scienti�c
perspective,” says Allen, who hopes to see his name and face
on grocery store shelves one day. “With that knowledge you
can play around with food, and the possibilities are endless.”
Judson
Todd Allen
31
Food Science
Mean Salary
Outlook: $64,170
CAREERS
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NOVEMBER 2012 • PHOTOGRAPH BY MARY BUTKUS • WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM 71
Working in a project manager-business ana-lyst capacity in the Vegetable Global Production area at agricultural product provider Monsanto, Markesha Jones is responsible for reviewing and providing key performance indicators for veg-etables using current and historical forecast data, planning tools, and production figures and capaci-ties. She spends about 15% of her time traveling to Monsanto’s production sites, which include greenhouses, production fields, and production plants. She has also traveled to production areas in Chile, France, and other places, primarily to conduct business analyses to review and improve Monsanto’s global production processes that are being conducted in these locales.
Jones’s father used skills he learned as an agronomist in his work in the U.S. Army. Growing up as the daughter of an Army service member, Jones saw agricultural practices in various parts of the world. “My father influenced my sister and me by saying that people are always going to need food, water, clothing, and shelter, which are vital for life,” says Jones. Her interest in agriculture may come naturally: Her family owned tobacco farms in Virginia; they sold winter wheat, soybeans, corn, and hay, and raised some livestock for market; they also owned a forestry business in Georgia.
When it came time to choose a career path, Jones, who graduated from Florida A&M University with a major in agribusiness and a minor in agricultural economics, followed her father’s advice and took up the family’s line of work. But instead of tilling the soil, she studied international business and earned an MBA from the University of Missouri–St. Louis. On a typical day at work she uses complex math equations and statistics to calculate crop performance and production capacities globally and in the U.S. She develops reports that production coordinators, regional production leads, crop leads, and production research specialists, among others, use to determine production, supply planning, and operation efficiencies. She then analyzes production trends to ensure that Monsanto’s global production areas and processes are functioning efficiently.
Jones credits MANRRS and the professional arm of the Agriculture Future of America, AFA Alliance, with helping her to achieve her goals. She says that organizations like these and others, such as the National FFA Organization (formerly the Future Farmers of America), help people interested in agriculture develop and achieve their goals, and she notes that
the AFA Alliance seeks out young professionals in the agriculture industry. Jones is also active in five affinity
groups at Monsanto, including AAIM, or African Americans in Monsanto. The company sponsors internships and co-op opportunities for students from various universities, including HBCUs. Jones recommends that other companies in agribusi-ness follow Monsanto’s lead and cultivate diversity programs that will attract employees of diverse backgrounds.
“Agriculture is all about supply and demand,” Jones says. “Because our society is affected in some form or another by 65% of agriculture-based products and services, there is always going to be a need or service to be filled in that area. There are so many opportunities out there, and I don’t think people tie the two together or they don’t know about it. Whether or not you have an ag-based degree there are ag opportunities in manufacturing, IT, and legal.”
Markesha
Jones
29
Agribusiness
Mean Salary
Outlook: $97,690
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On the heels of black enterprise Magazine’s successful supplier diver-
sity event in Tampa, Florida, in August, women entrepreneurs took
center stage in Charlotte, North Carolina at the media company’s
latest 20/20 Vision Forum, hosted by Walmart.
Walmart and black enterprise have been partnering on a
series of one-day events being conducted in major cities across
the country that bring creative entrepreneurs together with top
corporate leaders, veteran business owners, nationally recognized
development supplier experts, and some of the nation’s most suc-
cessful women and minority suppliers.
By tackling such urgent issues as job creation and finding capital,
the 20/20 Vision Forums are designed to help strengthen African
American businesses and emphasize their potential to impact the
global economy—as wealth builders, problem solvers, and job
creators. The event in Charlotte drew more than 300 attendees and
reached 390,000 Twitter accounts, garnering 4.4 million impressions.
“Our purpose today is to focus on helping the entrepreneurs in
this room to best access and utilize corporate supplier diversity
programs to create productive partnerships and win lucrative
contracts with major corporations,” said be President and CEO
Earl “Butch” Graves, Jr., in his opening remarks, stressing that the
day’s focus on women is “only fitting” as women entrepreneurs –
African American women entrepreneurs, in particular – are among
the fastest growing segments of business owners in this country.
In addition to hosting our 20/20 Vision Forums, Walmart is
a major sponsor of the Black Enterprise Entrepreneurs Confer-
ence, which will take place May 15-18, 2013 in Columbus, Ohio.
“Walmart is so serious about this forum achieving maximum
engagement today, that they’ve also charged us with expanding
today’s discussion using social media,” says Graves.
The theme was picked up by Sylvia Brewer, Walmart’s regional
human resources director in Charlotte.
“This 20/20 forum is a great learning opportunity but it’s also
about women’s empowerment—an issue that has caught Walmart’s
attention and galvanized us into action,” Brewer said, noting that
the retailer giant is marking its 50th anniversary with the launch
of its Global Women’s Economic Empowerment Initiative.
“This is the most ambitious social action initiative we’ve ever
undertaken. Over the space of five years, we will source over $20
billion in products and services from women-owned business in
the US and double our sourcing from women suppliers internation-
ally,” she said. The initiative also includes a $100 million in grant
commitments to non-profits working to help train and prepare
women for entrepreneurship and economic self-sufficiency.
“All of us at Walmart are enthused about what women-owned
businesses are accomplishing,” she added.
Certainly there was ample cause for enthusiasm on display in
Charlotte, which attracted dynamic women professionals from
across the spectrum.
Accomplished entrepreneur Dawn Fitch, co-founder of the
Orange, New Jersey-based bath and body company Pooka Pure and
Simple, shared her experience with social media venues like Twit-
ter that were instrumental in getting the word out on her natural
handmade products, including a cover story in black enterprise:
“Traditionally the main way to get in touch with media outlets was
through a PR person, but at the beginning when capital is maybe
low, it may be harder to have a PR company.”
The good news, said Fitch, is that today nearly all reporters and
editors are embracing social media.
“You have direct access to them, which we didn't have before.
You can follow them on Twitter. You can go to their fan pages.
You can go to their Facebook pages. And when they’re looking
for sources, if it’s something that fits in, you can respond directly
to them. And that’s an amazing benefit of social media,” she said.
A morning panel on successful strategic planning for the long
term showcased Lisa Price, CEO and founder of Carol’s Daughter,
Balancing Growth and Authenticity: Women Entrepreneurs Make it Work at20/20 Vision Forum By Chris Atwell
tk
S P E C I A L A DV E R T I S I N G S E C T I O N
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and Valerie Daniels-Carter, president and CEO of V & J Foods,
one of nation’s largest African American firms. Also participating
was locally based human resource consultant Brenda Anderson,
president and CEO for the Galilee Agency in Charlotte.
The trio provided a spirited discussion that covered success strate-
gies and anticipating roadblocks, revealing what drives any success-
ful enterprise, particularly in its first unsteady steps out of the gate.
“You have to understand why it is that you are starting that
business and it has to start inside,” advised Anderson. “It has to
be an internal message that says this is what I need to do, because
that is what’s going to sustain you when the checks aren't in the
mail. That’s going to sustain you when that one employee you
were counting on to carry you through that project leaves.
That’s what’s going to sustain you when the IRS does
those letters of threat. That’s what’s going to sustain
you when the product that you thought you were
going to sell is not ready to be sold.
“Unless you can answer that question personally –
Why am I in business? – it’s going to be very difficult.”
Daniels-Carter brought passion to spare to the
discussion, as well as her business game, at one point
stating she knew she was “destined for greatness”
early on. Having grown a single Burger King fran-
chise into a be 100s company with more than 4,500
employees in two decades, no one disputed her.
She did add, however, that even passion needs a
reality check, especially when undertaking an expan-
sion of your business: “It doesn't do you any good to
have 140 restaurants if you’re not making any money. You
really have to understand what the principal profitability model is
for your environment. You don't want to expand it too quickly …
you’ll create a really bad situation for yourself where you will over
engage and not be able to deliver. It’s better to under commit and
over deliver than to make a high commitment and under perform.”
A challenging transition for Price as her venture began to grow,
she said, was shifing from family support to more high-level pro-
fessional talent to meet growing more complex needs.
“When you go from being a company that’s making $700,000 in
sales to a company that’s doing $10 million or $15 million in sales,
the expectation of what’s required changes. We had to look like a
professional beauty company and some of my family members
did not have beauty company experience.”
Growth, the group agreed, brings its own risks. A dependence
on the “expertise” of advisors and consultants can go beyond
informing leadership decisions to hindering them if the CEO does
not remain firm in her goals and in her self.
“One thing that you always have to remember,” said
Daniels-Carter, “is that as the owner of the business
and the passion behind the business, you are the
business. [Others] may know operations, they may
know marketing, they may know PR, but they don't
know you and they don't know your story and they
don't know what you’ve built and they don't know
why your customer comes to you. You know that. So
you always have to keep that rock solid and bring their
advice in as needed. You walk a very fine line between ‘there are
some changes that I have to make to grow and be better’ and ‘I
have to hold onto this to remain authentic.’ Because once you’re
not authentic, your customer knows right away and it’s the hardest
thing to get her to come back.”
On Leadership:“When you're starting out, you can't be every-thing to everyone. And if you really have a vision and if you're a real leader, some people are going to follow you without asking for a dime.”
—Dr. Twyla Garrett, entrepreneur; founder, Garrett Entertainment Company
On Priorities:“Focus on sales. What we see often times is that folks do a lot of marketing and PR and have events and have parties and at the end of all of it, they've sold nothing. If you can create sales, you can find the capital.”
—Kesha Cash, director of investment, Jalia Ventures
On Success: “One of the things that research shows, one piece that when you look at research, is that people who are highly successful at a fundamental level have a tremendous belief that they can pull it off. That is something that is non-negotiable.”
—Audrey Bohannon, vice president of diversity and inclusion, Global Novations
10.24.2012 10:18 BE3546_1112.pdf
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HEADLINE GOES HERE
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“I love meat, but I also love knowing
where my meat comes from,” says Naithan
Jones (no relation to Markesha Jones), who
grew up in the Kansas City metro area, famed
for its steaks and barbecue. Jones is not alone. A
growing number of people want their meat raised and
produced locally on small farms and ranches, not shipped long
distances from mechanized corporate feedlots that �nish tens
of thousands of livestock at a time.
As the founder of AgLocal, a Web-based marketplace and
exchange platform for the buying and selling of pasture-
raised and other non-commercially raised meats, Jones wants
to change the way people produce and source beef, chicken,
and pork. He hopes to empower not only meat eaters, but also
restaurant owners with his Twitter-based #EatClear campaign
by facilitating a connection between consumers and restaurants.
“What Amazon did for small independent publishers can be
applied to agriculture,” says Jones, who hopes to provide equal
competition in the marketplace for restaurants, distributors, and
non-corporate, non-mechanized farms. “[Amazon] immediately
enabled small publishers to access larger markets at scale and
have all the tools and resources and supply chain to compete
for the same eyeballs as the large publishing houses.”
It’s not di�cult to see the value proposi-
tion in his idea. The U.S. beef cattle industry
alone had a retail equivalent value of $79 bil-
lion in 2011 and comprises more than 900,000
operations with cattle and calves, including beef
and dairy cattle.
Local farmers in western Kansas and California have been
supportive of AgLocal, but so has Silicon Valley. Jones was
selected from hundreds of applicants to participate as one of
seven resident entrepreneurs in the second NewMe Accelera-
tor class for minority tech entrepreneurs. He has since raised
more than $1 million from venture capital �rm Andreessen
Horowitz, OpenAir Equity Partners, Serious Change, and Art-
ists & Instigators.
Jones, who worked for the Kau�man Foundation structur-
ing the business model for the entrepreneurship education
programs used in Silicon Valley, Boston, and Austin, Texas, was
inspired by his wife’s aunt, a farmer who has a Ph.D. in range
management and agronomy and AgLocal’s �rst investor. But
he laments that rural America has su�ered a brain drain. “That
can’t continue to happen,” he says. “We need smart people in
rural areas supporting rural innovation, folks that don’t mind
sacri�cing the city lifestyle to do important work.”
Naithan
Jones
37
Technology
Salary Outlook:
Varies
CAREERS
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Help complete your child’s future by encouraging them to get
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Copyright © 2012 Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp., a subsidiary of
Merck & Co., Inc. All rights reserved. DIAB-1047282-0001 09/12
Actor portayal
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WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM • PHOTOGRAPH BY BOB NICHOLS • NOVEMBER 201276
As an adjudicator in the USDA’s Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, Cinnamon Butler makes sure that USDA loans, programs, and services are provided based on the merits of a business decision and not on factors that could be discriminatory, such as race, sex, age, or religion. She then writes a decision that determines if damages should be awarded, compliance reviews required, or training in civil rights conducted.
Among other things, she evaluates whether discrimination has occurred with USDA-funded rural housing for the elderly or disabled. “Sometimes state, local, and federal monies aren’t geared toward people who need it,” says Butler, who in col-lege became a member of Alpha Zeta, the national scholastic fraternity for agriculture students and professionals.
While Butler was attending the University of Kentucky in 1998, a landmark class action lawsuit known as Pigford v. Glickman was on the verge of being filed against the USDA. It alleged that black farmers had been discriminated against in the allocation of farm loans and assistance between 1993 and 1997.
Butler, who was elected president of the school’s MANRRS chapter, and who won a national MANRRS public speaking contest, gave a speech on the Pigford settlement for a class. The suit hit home with her because she was raised on a 400-acre family farm in western Kentucky in an area called Butlertown—named after her relatives. Some of her relatives joined the lawsuit and eventually received a $50,000 settlement. But Butler knew of families who didn’t. Although she didn’t realize it at the time, the topic set her on the path to champion small farmers and underrepresented agri-culture workers.
After graduating with a degree in animal science, she took a job as a plant management trainee at Perdue Farms and supervised approximately 50 people, mostly Latinos and Bos-nian refugees who spoke little Eng-lish. She developed a rapport with them and they turned to her for
solutions to work-related problems. “I thought if I can do that in this capacity, I can do an even better job in a legal capacity,” Butler recalls. Not long afterward, she entered law school. Her last year in law school was paid for
by a fellowship from the American Association of University Women, which supported her pursuit of a career in agricultural law, a field typically dominated by men.
Butler worked in the Governor’s Office of Agricultural Policy, where entrepreneurs and small farmers apply for loans to develop agriculture products. The next summer she served in the Kentucky Department of Agriculture in the legal counsel department. But before acquiring her dream job at the USDA, Butler was advised to get litigation experience in the court-room. She says her courtroom experience was invaluable, but that her animal science experience is also useful because it helps her to understand the day-to-day operations, yields, and expenses, and the legal implications of running a farm of limited resources. be
Cinnamon
Butler31
Agriculture Law
Starting Salary:
$68,809
CAREERS
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mains constant.
following integer
equencies
ns periodic
sequences.
vertical axis.
exchange
probability
generated
further added
computations.
African-American high school students
who participate in the National Math and
Science Initiative are six times more likely
to earn passing scores on AP® tests. Let’s
give more students that opportunity.
Let’s get America back on track.
exxonmobil.com/letssolvethis
Let’s unlock more doors.
08.01.2012 10:41 BE3425_0912.pdf
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@BLACKENTERPRISE • NOVEMBER 2012 78
Winning Battles for VETPRENEURS
By Cliff Hocker
Returning GIs
access capital and
other support to grow
thriving businesses
on the homefront
S
SMALL BUSINESS [PART 1 OF A SERIES]
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IN BAGHDAD, CAPT. JOHN E. JAMES LED TWO
U.S. Army aviation platoons in combat operations. Dur-
ing Operation Iraqi Freedom, James’s primary duties
were those of platoon leader and battle captain/assis-
tant operations o�cer. Working with another assistant
and under a commander, James planned, managed,
and synchronized the deployment of 24 Apache and 10 Black
Hawk helicopters. A graduate of West Point, James has �own
nearly 1,200 hours and been awarded several combat medals,
but he says his greatest achievement is bringing all his soldiers
home alive and physically unharmed in 2009.
When James, 31, was honorably discharged in February, he
went to work for his family’s Detroit-based 150-employee busi-
ness, James Group International (No. 81 on the be industrial/
service companies list with $30.1 million in revenues). The
company, which does logistics work for Ford, General Motors,
and Toyota, was started by James’s father in 1971. About a year
away from completing his master’s in supply chain manage-
ment from Pennsylvania State University, James has already
increased JGI’s e�ciency. For instance, he implemented JGI’s
enterprise resource planning for information technology, or
ERP/IT, system in conjunction with Ford, giving the automaker
greater visibility of product in the supply chain.
James, vice president of operations, joined JGI to ful�ll his
lifelong dream of following in his father’s footsteps. “I �ew
halfway around the world and was blessed with the oppor-
tunity to help defend those in a foreign country who could
not defend themselves. I felt that it was past time to devote
myself in similar fashion to the beleaguered communities in
my hometown of Detroit.”
James is not alone. Many veterans are exploring business
opportunities as a means of self-su�ciency and economic
development in their homeland. African American military
servicemen and -women account for about one out of every
10 black-owned companies. Veterans of all ethnicities own 2.4
million businesses, generating total sales of $1.2 trillion and
paying 5.8 million employees.
Unlike James, who returned home to an established family
business, a number of returning service members encounter
di�culties starting enterprises and keeping the doors open.
AȎer �ghting for their country in Iraq and Afghanistan, many
are now learning how to access capital and contracts. Suc-
ceeding in business, though, is not unlike winning in battle.
Both require courage, leadership, strategic planning, decision-
making, teamwork, resourcefulness, and endurance. Former
service members may �nd a U.S. marketplace in turmoil, but
their military experience gives them a competitive edge for
starting or expanding a business—and stateside programs are
here to help.
“Military service itself is excellent preparation that provides
many of the ingredients necessary for business success,” says
Matthew Pavelek, director of communications at the National
Veteran-Owned Business Association. “Working long hours,
leadership, and being disciplined, dedicated, and accountable
are all developed through military service and are characteristics
of successful entrepreneurs.”
JAMES IS APPLYING HIS
COMBAT LEADERSHIP
SKILLS IN HIS FAMILY
BUSINESS OPERATIONS.
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BUSinESS
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Young military o�cers, like business executives, frequently
have authority over personnel whose experience exceeds their
own, notes James. “I learned that one’s leadership acumen is
rarely de�ned by the direct orders he gives but by the direct
questions he asks,” he says. “My Army experience taught me
that my most important contribution was to get my team to
work e�ectively to accomplish the mission. Such coordination
of e�ort is essential for survival in both business and combat.”
To help veterans succeed, says Pavelek, it’s important for
them to “know that there is an incredible array of opportuni-
ties available.”
Operation Boots to Business
About 250,000 men and women leaving military service
each year attend the new Transition Assistance Program of the
Department of Defense. Regardless of their length of service,
they must all participate (within a year of their separation or
retirement) in weeklong workshops that provide information
about employment and training.
In the fall of 2010 and 2011, President Obama called for the
creation of two joint task forces: the Department of Defense-
Department of Veterans A�airs Veterans Employment Initiative
Task Force and the Interagency Task Force on Veterans Small
Business Development, led by the Small Business Administra-
tion. Approximately 15% of veterans going through TAP are
interested in SBA programs, says Rhett Jeppson, associate
administrator, SBA O�ce of Veterans Business Development.
Operation Boots to Business is a program that teaches return-
ing service members how to start and develop a business. It is
taught on base as part of the new TAP by SBA and its resource
partners. The course curriculum was developed in conjunc-
tion with the Institute for Veterans and Military Families at
Syracuse University.
The Obama administration’s emphasis on small business
entrepreneurship will help veterans play a huge role in the
recovery of the U.S. economy, says Vernice “FlyGirl” Armour,
America’s �rst African American female combat pilot. AȎer
serving in Operation Iraqi Freedom, the former U.S. Marines
captain started a consulting and multinational speaking busi-
ness. “Our young folks can transition out of the military and
struggle and look for a job and end up homeless—or we can give
them the tools they need that will supplement their leadership
training,” says Armour.
Flying solo as a business owner may prove challenging.
Veterans owning sole proprietorships don’t have the support
of a platoon or squad team. “There are de�nitely times when
you feel as if you’re alone and as if it’s combat in corporate
America,” says Armour.
Armour once heard in response to the statistic that 95% of
businesses fail in the �rst few years that they don’t actually
fail—their owners give up. But Armour, who describes her
ideas in her book, Zero to Breakthrough (Gotham Books; $25),
asks how we can help business owners make the right deci-
sions and give them the resources they need. The military
approach of “one mission, one goal, one team” is key to busi-
ness success. “Sometimes life builds a wall high enough to see
if you’re willing to work hard to get over it,” Armour muses.
“One component that veterans bring to the �ght is what I call
FLYGIRL ARMOUR BELIEVES
VETPRENEURS HAVE A
FIGHTER’S MENTALITY THAT
WON’T ACCEPT FAILURE.
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a breakthrough mentality. Accomplish the
mission—failure is not an option.”
There’s a lot of support awaiting veterans
taking the plunge into business, says Pavelek.
“Far too few veterans are aware that everyday
Americans are eager to show their gratitude
by buying from veterans, that the federal
government is required by law to buy from
veteran-owned �rms, that more than 150 of
the top 500 public corporations have special
programs dedicated to buying products and
services from veteran-owned small busi-
nesses, and that state and local governments
have passed laws to buy veteran,” he says.
Take Johnson & Johnson and Comcast,
which were named among the “10 Best Cor-
porations for Veteran-Owned Businesses for
2012” by the National Veteran-Owned Busi-
ness Association. Veronica Manuel-Gilbert,
Johnson & Johnson’s director of Enterprise
Supplier Diversity, says a top-down emphasis
on improving the company’s supplier diversity
program only makes the future look brighter
for veteran-owned businesses. She notes that
Johnson & Johnson has improved business
analytics to provide better identi�cation of
veteran-owned businesses, and continually
seeks speci�c areas where small and veteran-
owned businesses can participate.
In 2011, Comcast spent $60 million with
veteran-owned suppliers, typically purchas-
ing furniture, product installations, logistics
services, and construction. “In addition to
our long-standing supplier diversity program
and commitment to cultivating partnerships
with veteran contractors,” says Ajamu John-
son, senior director, Supplier Diversity and
Strategic Procurement at Comcast Cable, “we
support veterans in our workforce, program-
ming, and community investment initiatives.”
A Joint Diversity Advisory Council of about
40 business and community leaders advises
senior executive teams at Comcast regarding
diversity efforts and initiatives, including
enhancing relationships with service-disabled
veteran-owned businesses.
Skin in the Game
The greatest hurdle facing would-be
entrepreneurs, along with convincing fam-
ily that they can still pay the bills, is �nding
startup capital, says Pavelek. Luckily, vet-
erans have an active SBA program to help
them �nd capital: the Patriot Express Loan,
available to veterans and their spouses. From
the program’s July 2007 inception through
mid-September of this year, more than 9,200
Patriot Express Loans have been made, total-
ing an approved value of nearly $779 million.
Veteran-owned businesses typically borrow
in the range of $150,000.
The agency’s vast network comprises 68
District offices and 15 Veterans Business
Outreach centers; the latter provide coun-
seling and training to thousands of veterans
annually. The SBA also partners with SCORE,
whose 13,000 volunteers, 40% of whom are
veterans and the majority of whom are for-
mer or current CEOs, provide counseling to
veteran entrepreneurs. Veterans also have
nationwide access to 100 SBA Women’s Busi-
ness Centers and nearly 1,000 Small Business
Development Centers, many of which are at
colleges and universities.
U.S. Army Sgt. Nicole Baldwin served two
tours of duty in war zones aȎer 9/11. She
was deployed as a unit supply specialist
to Iraq during 2003–2004 and to Afghani-
stan during 2005–2006. She went on the
�rst all-female convoy into the streets of
Bagram to visit a local midwives hospital.
After her first tour of duty, Baldwin, 28,
enlisted in the Individual Ready Reserve
and attended Houston Training Schools to
become a licensed aesthetician. Inspired by
the herbal remedies her grandmother made
to heal facial burns Baldwin had su�ered as
a child, she wanted to create an all-natural,
organic skincare line. Returning to Afghani-
stan in 2009, Baldwin worked as a civilian
contractor until earlier this year, but she
BEST
CORPORATIONS
THAT BUY
VETERAN
The National Veteran-
Owned Business
Association’s leading
companies that buy
products and services
from vetpreneurs:
TOP 10
1. Booz|Allen|Hamilton
2. Comcast
3. DynCorp
4. Johnson & Johnson
5. Life Technologies
6. Lockheed Martin
7. Novartis
8. Rockwell Collins
9. SAIC
10. Volvo
HONORABLE MENTIONS
1. ConAgra Foods
2. Dell
3. JPMorgan Chase
4. Northrop Grumman
5. UPS
15
BALDWIN’S SKINCARE
LINE WAS INSPIRED
BY HER EXPOSURE
TO HARSH MIDDLE
EASTERN CLIMATES.
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kept working on her goal. “I literally had to do all
my research and correspondence with my design
team, chemist, and lender through late-night
e-mails and phone calls,” she says. Because of her
experience in the harsh, dry, Middle East climate,
Baldwin selected active, moisturizing ingredients
for her products: Amazonian babassu oil, which
deeply hydrates the skin without leaving an oily
residue, and botanicals from traditional Chinese
medicine, which reinforce the skin’s natural
defenses against oxidative stress.
Baldwin o�cially started Biao Skincare on Aug.
1 in Houston using $10,000 of her own money and
a $50,000 small business startup loan from People-
Fund, the second-largest microlender in Texas.
Biao is an acronym for beautiful inside and out.
To promote her line, Baldwin has enlisted
35 women to test the products in exchange for
feedback and reviews. She also e-mails beauty
bloggers daily and asks them to test her products.
Biao Skincare is sold online (www.biaoskincare.
com), but Baldwin is currently negotiating deals
with boutique-style retail outlets and one inter-
national online retail chain. Six weeks aȎer its
product launch, revenues reached $10,000 via
word-of-mouth. “Because of my belief in Biao
Skincare,” says Baldwin, “and by being persistent
and determined, I’ve found the right doors to
knock on for support.”
Taking Control
Marylyn Harris, vice chairman of the Advisory
Committee on Veterans Business A�airs, believes
that entrepreneurship is a viable career alterna-
tive for veterans, especially those who have
post-traumatic stress disorder. “It’s more in line
with who you are, you have more autonomy,”
says Harris, who also owns Harrland Health-
care Consulting L.L.C., a Houston-based certi-
�ed service-disabled veteran-owned business.
“Business ownership is more attractive and
symptom-mitigating to veterans because you
have a level of control that you don’t always have
as an employee.”
Harris is upbeat about business opportunities
opening up for veterans. “Vets hire other vets.
They are going to create jobs, create wealth, and
create well-being for their families. I’ve been
talking to everybody from large nonpro�ts to
major corporations about this. We need to think
in terms of incorporating veterans in the supply
chain, in supplier diversity initiatives, and we’re
going to do it quickly.” be
VETPRENEUR RESOURCESA variety of initiatives and programs exist for veterans, reserve
members, and their spouses, dependents, or survivors. Many
of these resources are available through the SBA Office of
Veterans Business Development (www.sba.gov/about-offices-
content/1/2985). Other options to explore:
Institute for Veterans and
Military Families at Syracuse University
SBA-funded programs include Operation Boots to Business
(www.sba.gov/bootstobusiness); Entrepreneurship Bootcamp
for Veterans’ Families (www.whitman.syr.edu/ebv/programs/
families), a free program that trains the surviving spouse of
a deceased military member or family members who are car-
ing for a wounded veteran; Operation Endure & Grow (www.
whitman.syr.edu/EndureAndGrow), eight-week online training
programs open to service members from all branches of the
military and their family members; and Veteran Women Igniting
the Spirit of Entrepreneurship (www.whitman.syr.edu/vwise),
a three-phase program that includes a 15-day online course.
The Center for Veterans Enterprise
(www.vetbiz.gov) manages the verification process that
veteran-owned businesses need to go through to be certified
as such. It also maintains a website that serves as the federal
government portal for veteran-owned businesses.
National Veteran Small Business Conference
(www.nationalveteransconference.com) provides veteran
small-business owners with training and the opportunity to
network directly with government and decision-makers from
large businesses.
F7 Group
(www.f7group.com) secures and provides resources, train-
ing, support, and mentoring to female veterans and women
in military families.
Women as Veteran Entrepreneurs
(wave.charsoft.com). WAVE provides a forum for veteran
woman-owned small businesses, enabling them to meet prime
contractors to discuss business teaming, sub-contracting, and
mentoring opportunities.
National Center for the Veteran Institute for Procurement
(www.montgomerycountychamber.com/foundation/veteran-
institute-procurement). This three-day, 27-hour comprehensive
certification program is designed to equip veteran businesses
and increase their ability to win government contracts.
Kauffman FastTrac NewVenture
(www.fasttrac.org/entrepreneurs/veterans.aspx).
FastTrac courses (both live and Web-based) help veterans
utilize experience acquired through military service to develop
a business platform is and leverage leadership skills.
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By Carolyn M.Brown & Jeffrey McKinney
Americans
Great
for African
Franchise Opportunities
FRANCHISING
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A new class of entrepreneurs is taking advantage of programs for minorities, athletes, and veterans
NOVEMBER 2012 • @BLACKENTERPRISE 87
GRAND SLAM TENNIS PRO AND FOUR-TIME OLYMPIC GOLD MEDALIST
Venus Williams is looking to ace the field of franchising. Last year, Williams, 32, signed a joint venture deal with Emeryville, California-based Jamba Juice to open five stores in the Washington, D.C.-Maryland area in the next two years. Williams opened her first Jamba Juice store at the Westfield Montgomery Mall in Bethesda, Maryland, and a second and third store this past summer in the District’s Dupont Circle and Union Station.
Williams is a long-time philanthropist and sup-
porter of academic enrichment and sports pro-
grams for youth and adults in the D.C. community.
“My partnership with Jamba Juice is an extension
of my commitment to fight against obesity and to
promote a healthy, active lifestyle,” says Williams,
who also serves as a spokeswoman for Jamba’s
Team Up for a Healthy America initiative and for
the company as a whole.
It was Chairman, President and CEO James D.
White who was instrumental in bringing the ten-
nis star onboard as a multi-unit area franchisee
and partner in the company’s expansion into the
D.C. metropolitan area. “Our entry not only brings
our healthy living brand to more customers, it also
contributes to the economic growth of the city
by hiring local residents,” he says. Since 2008,
White—one of the nation’s top African American
executives—has led the charge to transform the
fruit smoothie-centric and fresh juice company
into a full-fledged healthy, active lifestyle brand of
beverages and complementary food items. Jamba
Juice boasts more than 800 locations globally, which
account for sales of $450 million.
Williams is a good fit as a storeowner not only
because of her passion for healthy living and her
love of the brand, but also because Jamba Juice has
been signing up entrepreneurs who can operate
at least three to five locations, either occupying
stand-alone buildings or a single unit in a strip
mall. In order to qualify, a potential franchisee must
show a net worth of $1 million and liquid assets
of $350,000 or more. The initial investment for a
traditional unit is between $353,100 and $639,800,
including a $25,000 franchise fee. Royalty fees are
5.5% for four or more stores.
A Palm Beach Gardens, Florida resident, Wil-
liams doesn’t handle the day-to-day operations
of her stores, but she does work hand in hand
with Jamba Juice and store operating managers.
“They have the expertise. For me as a franchise
owner, there is a learning curve. I have to be open
to learning not only the whole philosophy of Jamba
Juice, but how the business works,” says Williams,
whose entrepreneurial experience running the
fashion line EleVen and the design firm V*Starr
has helped her in understanding, managing, and
motivating others.
Franchising continues to be an integral part of
the American economy with more people like
Williams starting businesses with a trusted brand.
On the following pages, black enterprise has not
only identified the hottest sectors poised to flourish
within the industry, but also spotlights franchise
education and recruitment programs targeting
athletes, veterans, and minorities. We finish up
with our top 25 list showcasing franchises within
high-growth categories that have low-to-medium
startup costs, high franchisee satisfaction, and a sig-
nificant number of black-owned or veteran-owned
units because of effective diversity initiatives and
incentives. Read on.
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NOVEMBER 2012 • WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM 88
COACHING ATHLETES AS
CHAMPION FRANCHISEES
There is a whole squad of active and retired athletes entering
the franchising arena. Among them: Jamal Mashburn, Key-
shawn Johnson, and Shaquille O’Neal. Professional athletes are
becoming more conscious about the longevity of their careers
and are placing more efforts toward planning for a life beyond
sports, says Michael Stone, founder and executive director of
the Professional Athlete Franchise Initiative.
Launched in 2011, PAFI, in partnership with the International
Franchise Association, helps prepare athletes for a second career
in franchising by hosting an annual summit and providing
educational certificate training workshops. There are also
mentorship and apprenticeship programs. PAFI has charter
membership and alliance partnerships with franchisors, sup-
pliers, and organizations such as the National Basketball Retired
Players Association. Some 40 PAFI charter members include such
brands as Dunkin’ Donuts, KFC, 7-Eleven, and Jersey Mike’s Subs.
A retired NFL player, Stone saw an immediate need for
resources for athletes transitioning from professional sports.
The idea came to him afer a meeting with Ulysses “Junior”
Bridgeman, CEO of Manna Inc. in Louisville, Kentucky (No. 5 on
the be industrial/service companies list with $528 million
in revenues). “I heard his story and felt it was something that
Player League/
Sports
Franchise # Units
Tim Biakabutuka NFL Bojangles’ 3
Ulysses “Junior”
Bridgeman
NBA Wendy’s/Chili’s 165/126
Angelo Crowell NFL Jersey Mike’s Subs 3
Tyoka Jackson NFL IHOP 2
Van Jakes NFL McDonald’s 5
Keyshawn
Johnson
NFL Panera Bread 8
Shaquille O’Neal NBA Auntie Anne’s Pretzels 19
Jamal Mashburn NBA Outback Steahouse/
Papa John’s/
Dunkin’Donuts
37/37/4
Ron Stone NFL Wingstop 4
George Tinsley NBA KFC/Quiznos/
Pizza Hut
2/2/4
Venus Williams Tennis Jamba Juice 3*
ALL-STAR ROSTERSuccessful active
and former pro
athletes that own
multi-unit franchises
*WILLIAMS HAS AN AGREEMENT
TO OPEN A TOTAL OF FIVE
JAMBA JUICE FRANCHISES
SOURCE: BLACK ENTERPRISE, PAFI
FRANCHISING
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James White
President & CEO Jamba Juice
Exciting new markets now available: Washington DC, Baltimore, New York, Atlanta, Florida, St. Louis, Indianapolis, North Carolina and many more across the country.
•
Extensive support from training, operations and vendor relationships to integrated local and national marketing. •
Recipient of the 2011 Top 50 Franchise Satisfaction Award•
To find out more about our franchising opportunities,
visit jambafranchise.com or call Sarah Goehring at 415.623.8651
Jamba Juice is growing by leaps and bounds
We’re now seeking qualified franchise candidates who are as inspired about healthy living as we are.
For over 20 years, Jamba Juice has been inspiring people to live healthy, active lifestyles. We offer over 25 great-tasting whole fruit smoothies, fresh-squeezed juices, and a variety of delicious, better-for-you meal and snack items. For customers who want to make healthier choices without sacrificing convenience, Jamba Juice makes it easy and fun. And for entrepreneurs who want to profit from a healthy business, Jamba Juice offers a whirl’d of opportunity.
INSP
IR
ING HEALTHY LIV
ING
SIN C E 19 90
years
over
20
we’reripe forexpansion!
04.03.2012 10:59 BE3241_0512.pdf
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Franchising Hot Spots
NOVEMBER 2012 • WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM 90
could be duplicated by other athletes,”
Stone says. A former NBA shooting guard
for the Milwaukee Bucks, Bridgeman
bought his first five Wendy’s franchises
to generate income while he planned his
next career move. He turned his athletic
fortitude into a fast-food empire that
today boasts 165 Wendy’s and 126 Chili’s
restaurants in 11 states.
Stone notes that there are more than
40 active and retired athletes involved
in franchising. PAFI strives to educate
players about franchising opportunities
once they enter the league since their
income immediately stops at retirement.
The biggest challenge is getting them to
manage their expectations. “There are
a lot of perceived quick upsides,” Stone
says. “We explain that this is a franchise,
you are not going to double your money
in year one. You are going to grow your
wealth very slowly.”
PAFI also stresses to athletes the need
to be actively involved in the early stages
of the business. This requires finding the
right people to operate the franchise. “The
biggest failures happen when you don’t
find the right partners and you just put
people in place because they are clos-
est to you, like family members,” Stone
says. “You have to select good operating
partners that have experience.”
DEVELOPING MINORITY
AND VETERAN FRANCHISEES
Last November, first lady Michelle Obama announced
Operation Enduring Opportunity, a campaign to encourage
75,000 veterans and military spouses, and 5,000 wounded
warriors to start careers in franchising by 2014 as part of Vet-
Fran, a program of the Washington, D.C.-based International
Franchise Association.
Beth Solomon, IFA’s vice president of Strategic Initiatives
and Industry Relations and head of VetFran (www.vetfran.
com), says more than 15,000 veterans have started careers in
franchising since the campaign began. This includes more than
4,200 veterans as new franchise business owners for companies
such as McDonald’s, Dunkin’ Donuts, Meineke, and Mr. Rooter.
More than 500 companies are participating, of which about
25 have waived startup fees for veterans, including The UPS
Store, Popeyes, and WIN Home Inspection. “We want to help
veterans become leaders in the civilian economy and create
the jobs America needs,” says Solomon.
The IFA also has a flagship education and recruitment
program to help minorities become franchisees. Some of
the companies in its MinorityFran initiative (www.franchise.
org/minorityfran.aspx) offer incentives such as reducing
royalty payments, waiving franchisee fees, and assisting with
financing. There are more than 100 MinorityFran participat-
ing companies, including Always Best Care Senior Services,
CruiseOne, Little Caesars, and JAN-PRO.
IFA plans to roll out a pilot program that partners minority
participants with a seasoned franchise owner. “We want them
to be mentored by individuals who have been successful, know
the ropes, and are willing to help them through their initial
learning process,” says Miriam Brewer, IFA’s senior director of
education and diversity.
The new Minority Franchisee Leadership program is
patterned afer IFA’s Franship mentoring program, where
franchisees, franchisors, and suppliers share best practices.
It will encompass three components: the MinorityFranship
mentoring program, scholarships for IFA’s Certified
Today, more than 3,500 different brands offer franchise options in the U.S. More than
725,000 franchise units operate nationwide
generating about $781 billion in revenues
and employing more than 8 million people.
The costs to purchase one can range from $5,000 to millions of dollars.
Because of the recession and bank credit crunch, franchisors are becoming
more proactive in offering alternative financing to help entrepreneurs access
capital to expand or open new franchise units. Among them: ServiceMaster,
Retro Fitness, Weed Man, Marco’s Pizza, Fastsigns, and The UPS Store.
Lower-cost franchise opportunities have always been popular, but they are
growing at rates much faster than traditional retail and food concepts, which
typically require an investment of $250,000 to $500,000 or more. Franchises
less than $100,000 include companies such as Dollar Store Services, Liberty
Tax Service, The Mail Box Stores, CKO Kickboxing, Meineke, Doc Popcorn,
Home Helpers, and U.S. Lawns, to name a few, reports FranchiseGator.
com. (Also, check out be’s editors choice in the “5 Best Buys in Home-Based
Franchises,” Small Biz, July 2012.)
Overall, minority representation in the industry is at 15%, says Eric Stites,
CEO and managing director of Franchise Business Review, an independent
franchise market research firm in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, with African
Americans making up 4%. Why so few? That’s mostly due to a lack of awareness and capital or equity. However, opportunities are plentiful if you know where to look.
FRANCHISING
11 FRANCHISE.indd 90 10/22/12 11:05 AM
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Black Enterprise Entrepreneurs Conference+Expo
Hosted by Nationwide
MAY 15-18, 2013Columbus, OH
For more information, visit www.blackenterprise.com/ecRegister on-site for the 2013 Conference and receive a special discount.
Visit the registration desk for more information.
10.23.2012 20:14 BE3556_1112.pdf
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WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM • NOVEMBER 201292
Franchise Executives program, and the Minority Leaders in
the Making program, designed to help franchisors identify
high-potential diverse individuals to put into the pipeline
for leadership positions.
ARMY VETS HELP KIDS
THROUGH ART EDUCATION
Imagine keeping a bright outlook while being pinned down
in a bunker for hours with rocket fire blasting all around you.
That’s where U.S. Army veteran April Rose Jackson, 34, and
her husband Isaac Kordy Jackson, 27, found themselves four
years ago serving in Iraq and Afghanistan, respectively. It was
during their active duty that April imagined starting a busi-
ness. That vision became a reality afer the couple returned
home in March 2012 and—using personal savings—bought
an Abrakadoodle art education franchise in Oklahoma City
for a $48,816 total investment.
Abrakadoodle, a VetFran and MinorityFran participating
company, sells franchises that offer art classes, camps, parties,
and special events for children ages 12 and under. It has 74
franchisees that pay one-time startup costs of between $23,000
and $51,000, plus annual royalties—8% of gross revenues.
The Jacksons started their business this past summer with
four camps at various locations. Relying on creativity-
boosting educational art classes provided by Abrakadoodle,
April says the business mainly serves children ages 20 months
to 14 years old through partnerships with entities such as public
and private schools, art groups, recreational programs, and
other community sites. “We provide art to children to help them
build a foundation to become critical thinkers in today’s society.
Those skills are needed to make kids innovative and diverse.”
The Jacksons got a veterans discount of 10% from Abrakadoodle,
knocking nearly $3,700 off the purchase price. With a longtime
passion for art, a mass communications degree and a minor in
graphic art, April serves as education director while Isaac, who has
a degree in finance, oversees the books while remaining an Army
reservist. He expects revenues of $35,000 to $40,000 this year and
projects between $95,000 and $110,000 next year. The Jacksons
are confident that their franchise is needed largely because local
schools are slashing budgets and cutting art programs. The couple
sees a full year of operations, new business, and expansion into
charter, private, and Catholic schools spurring the gain. April has
even bigger dreams: She wants at least two Abrakadoodle locations
in each of Oklahoma’s 77 counties in the next two to five years.
THE JACKSONS TOOK ADVAN-
TAGE OF ABRAKADOODLE'S
10% DISCOUNT FOR VETERANS.
FRANCHISING
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SINGLE,
MULTI-UNIT AND MASTER
FRANCHISE OWNERSHIP
The average annual business income—net
pro�ts—reported by all African American
franchise owners is $50,692 versus $66,000
for all franchise owners. The primary reason
for the income gap is that African Americans
are 30% less likely to be multi-unit operators,
and multi-unit owners typically have higher
net pro�ts. Of all African American franchi-
sees, 78% are single-unit and 22% are multi-
unit owners versus 70% single-unit and 30%
multi-unit owners for all franchisees. African
American master franchisees are rare.
SINGLE-UNIT OWNER:
A person who owns one franchise store and
is responsible for the day-to-day running of
the operation.
MULTI-UNIT FRANCHISEE:
An owner of multiple units that are typi-
cally sold at a reduced rate per unit.
MASTER FRANCHISEE:
A person who buys a specific territory and
helps recruit other entrepreneurs to open
franchise units within that region,
collecting a percentage of their revenues.
NOVEMBER 2012 • WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM • PHOTOGRAPH BY KEVIN ALLEN94
MEET MASTER FRANCHISEE DARREN WILLIAMS
In his former profession as a stockbroker working in down-
town Atlanta, Darren Williams experienced an “aha” moment.
He discovered that cleaning companies were fetching more
than $30,000 a month to service his building. “I was amazed.
That’s what really planted the seed for me to enter the janitorial
business,” he recalls.
Today, Williams, 40, is a master franchisee and regional
director for Anago Cleaning Systems in Washington, D.C.
He oversees 54 franchisees. Clients include multi-tenant
o�ce buildings, sporting stadiums, and bowling alleys in the
nation’s capital. Williams’s franchise was the o�cial cleaning
service of the 2012 Citi Open (formerly the Legg Mason Tennis
Classic). He also counts Jenny Craig, Amtrak, and multiple
embassies as clients.
Making the shiȎ to Main Street from Wall Street was not easy.
Williams’s greatest obstacle was coming up with the funding.
He and two business partners (younger brother Michael and
lifelong friend Roscoe Hamilton) bought the master franchise
rights to the Washington, D.C., territory in 2002, pooling together
their resources aȎer being turned down for bank loans. They
used personal savings and the sale proceeds from a previously
owned single-unit janitorial franchise (not Anago) in Atlanta
to obtain startup and operating capital. Anago agreed to help
�nance their endeavor.
Williams chose Anago over other janitorial �rms because of
its direct personal relationship with franchise owners. He met
and worked out a deal with Anago’s chairman and CEO David
Povlitz a week aȎer contacting the company.
Founded in 1989, Anago Cleaning Systems out of Pompano
Beach, Florida, has more than 2,200 unit locations nationwide,
of which 89% are minority owned. As a master franchisee, Wil-
liams’s sales team �nds cleaning contracts for Anago franchisees
he recruits to the area. He also helps provide the necessary tools
to run their business, including cleaning supplies and equip-
ment. He also o�ers training in customer service, collections,
help securing janitorial contracts, and other support. Financing
is also available for units from master franchisees.
Williams says it took nearly two years to become pro�table. He
expects to post revenues of nearly $2.5 million this year and around
$3 million for 2013. He became a master franchisee because the
income potential is greater than that of a single-unit owner. He
gets a franchising fee from his recruits plus a 10% royalty of their
annual sales. He also charges fees for services such as insurance,
bonding, workers’ compensation, and �nancing equipment such
as carpet-cleaning machines. “It’s the best decision I ever made.’’
WILLIAMS OVERSEES THE
WASHINGTON, D.C., TERRITORY
FOR ANAGO CLEANING SYSTEMS.
FRANCHISING
11 FRANCHISE.indd 94 10/24/12 4:47 PM
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Contact Perkins® today:
franchise@prkmc.com
1-800-877-7375
· Established, family-oriented concept with loyal following
· Industry-leading support staff
· Revenue streams across multiple dayparts
· Operating in 33 states and 5 provinces
· Desirable territories available
ESTABLISHED CONCEPT. TRUSTED BRAND.
A RECIPE FOR OPPORTUNITY.
© 2012 Perkins & Marie Callender’s, LLC
This advertisement is not an offer to sell a franchise.
NOW AVAILABLE
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DOWNLOAD the FREEBLACK ENTERPRISE App
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For more details,
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WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM • NOVEMBER 201296
SOURCES: BLACK ENTERPRISE, INTERNATIONAL FRANCHISE ASSOCIATION,
FRANCHISE BUSINESS REVIEW, NATIONAL MINORITY FRANCHISING INITIATIVE
FRANCHISING
These brands and concepts offer the best business
opportunities based on minority participation,
veteran incentives, franchisee satisfaction, growth
industries, low-to-medium cost of entry, and store
success rates.
BE
BEST BETS FOR AFRICAN
AMERICANS
Company Startup Cost Website
Abrakadoodle Art Education $32,492 to $59,992 www.abrakadoodle.com
Always Best Care Senior Services $39,500 to $90,700 www.alwaysbestcare.com
Anago Cleaning Systems $2,000 to $50,000 www.anagousa.com
Anytime Fitness $46,299 to $321,899 www.anytimefitness.com
Auntie Anne’s Pretzels $197,875 to $444,100 www.auntieannes.com
BrightStar Care $100,000 www.brightstarcare.com
Coverall Health-Based Cleaning System $2,000 to $27,200 www.coverall.com
CruiseOne $495 to $9,800 www.cruiseone.com
Cruise Planners-American Express $9,995 www.cruiseplanners.com
Doc Popcorn $70,000 www.docpopcorn.com
FastSigns $75,000 www.fastsigns.com
Heaven’s Best Carpet Cleaning $28,900 to $64,000 www.heavensbest.com
i9 Sports $24,900 to $39,900 www.i9sports.com
JAN-PRO Cleaning Systems $950 to $36,500 www.jan-pro.com
Kiddie Academy $150,000 to $200,000 www.kiddieacademy.com
Little Caesars $194,250 to $622,500 www.littlecaesars.com
Mosquito Squad $25,000 to $75,000 www.mosquitosquad.com
Padgett Business Services $105,955 www.smallbizpros.com
Pop-A-Lock $30,000 to $45,000 www.popalock.com
PostNet $60,000 www.postnet.com
Proforma $0 to $19,500 www.proforma.com
Right at Home Senior Care $70,200 to $118,400 www.rightathome.net
ServiceMaster $8,380 to $24,305 www.servicemaster.com
Tutor Doctor $39,700 to $127,000 www.tutordoctor.com
WSI (We Simplify the Internet) $49,000 www.wsiworld.com
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Staffng is big business – $105 billion in sales a year big, and projected to
be $164 billion by 2018.
Express is a growing franchise, with more than 570 current locations and
29 years of experience. As an Express franchise owner, you control your
life with fexible weekday hours in a professional business.
* Average annual sales stated as $4,500,709 per territory in 2011 and $2,495,112 in 2009,
according to Item 19 in the Express Franchise Disclosure Document.
For a virtual tour of our
franchise opportunity visit
www.ExpressFranchising.com
or call call (877) 652-6400.
Featur
edSp
eaker
Claim it,Own it,Live it!
Feb. 27-Mar. 2, 2013Waldorf Astoria Orlando
Orlando, Florida
www.blackenterprise.com/wps
Owns her power
through leadership.
RossExecutive Vice President
& CFO
FedEx Express
Residen
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CONCIERGE SELECT
Playing on a New CourtBasketball legend Walt “Clyde” Frazier is developing
his chops in the restaurant business
98 EDITED BY SONIA ALLEYNE @SONIAALLEYNE • PHOTOGRAPHS BY LONNIE C. MAJOR • NOVEMBER 2012
WHEN WALT “CLYDE” FRAZIER RETIRED FROM
the NBA in 1980, he had been living between New
York and St. Croix, where he had invested in property.
“When my contract ended with the Knicks, I was
looking forward to sailing into the sunset,” he jokes. In
1989, he became a licensed boat captain. “I was going
to support myself by renting out properties and sailing
tourists on my boat,” he says of his retirement plans. “I
never envisioned my autograph being worth money,
working with the Knicks [as a commentator], or being
a partner in a restaurant.”
When Frazier sat down last year with good friend,
Knicks fan, and restaurateur Michael Weinstein, he had
expanded his long- and short-term rental development
in St. Croix (www.waltclydefrazier.com) to 12 units and
a main house on 5 acres of land. But it took only two
weeks for him to agree to enter into a dining partner-
ship. In March 2012, Frazier and Ark Restaurant Corp.,
where Weinstein is CEO, opened Clyde Frazier’s Wine
and Dine (www.arkrestaurants.com/clydefraziers.html)
in New York City. “It took eight months to �nd a place
and get it going,” the former point guard says of the
10,000-square-foot restaurant, bar, and lounge. “And,
it looks like Clyde. It’s my persona.”
The length of an entire city block, Wine and Dine is a
celebration of Frazier’s professional work and fashion
style. There is even an enclosed mini basketball court
situated next to the lounge. Floor-to-ceiling court action
11 LIFE.indd 98 10/22/12 8:03 PM
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NOVEMBER 2012 • WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM 99
photos line the restaurant’s east wall. Columns are adorned with images of
Frazier in his suits, and the ceiling is covered with pinstripe and plaid cutouts
replicating his wardrobe. “The designers came to my house and �lmed my
shoes, ties, and suits—and this is the culmination.”
Wine and Dine has become Frazier’s business focal point. He is oȎen
there, greeting and mingling with diners and guests. The varied menu o�er-
ings include salads, pastas, burgers, tacos, fajitas, and main courses such as
blackened Scottish salmon with vanilla-bourbon butter and asparagus—one
of Frazier’s favorites. Being disciplined about his diet and exercise (he has prac-
ticed yoga for more than 30 years) has helped the 67-year-old Frazier manage
the demands of the restaurant business. “I was naïve and didn’t know what
to expect,” he says. He also admits to eyeing the possibility of expanding the
brand. “Luck, common sense, and being prepared is how I played the game,”
he o�ers. “It has also helped me to succeed in business.” —Sonia Alleyne
11 LIFE.indd 99 10/22/12 8:05 PM
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WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM • PHOTOGRAPHS BY LONNIE C. MAJOR • NOVEMBER 2012100
EXECUTIVE GIFT GUIDE
Holiday TreasuresFor the connoisseurs, enthusiasts, and
eclectic professionals on your list
1. Eco-friendly EssentialStylish and environmentally chic, the A2B Metro e-bike by
HeroEco (www.heroeco.com) provides a smooth and tech-
nologically advanced ride powering up to 20 mph—as fast
as one can cruise without a license. O�ering the option of
alternating between the pedals and the motor, this urban
wheeler o�ers a 500-watt electric motor, power-on-demand
acceleration, 3-inch-wide tires that have puncture protec-
tion, and front and rear lights for nighttime riding. $3,099
2. A Musical HistoryFormed in 1887, Columbia Records introduced the world to
a variety of singers across genres. 360 Sound: The Columbia
Records Story (Chronicle Books; $45) by Sean Wilentz pro-
vides an illustrative history of the recording business, race
relations, and the legendary talents Columbia recorded.
3. A Classic CollectionThe 25th Anniversary of Graceland box set (www.paulsimon.com)
honors Paul Simon’s controversial, but much-celebrated collabora-
tion with musicians from South Africa. The set comprises two CDs, a
deluxe book, notes, lyrics, and two DVDs: the original 1987 “African
Concert” and the documentary �lm Under African Skies. $106
4. Light UpThe right tools make cigar smoking an art: ST Dupont Black Chi-
nese Lacquer with Yellow Gold Finishes: $1,300; ST Dupont Ligne
1 Yellow Gold Diamond Head Lighter: $825; Davido� 5 Robusto
Cigar Case in Havana Leather Finish: $209; Davido� Double Guil-
lotine Cutter in White Gold Plate and Diamonds: $5,000 (www.
theshopsatcolumbuscircle.com/shops/davidoƑ-of-geneva-ny).
5. Touch for TasteWith 3,500 interactive recipes from 100 acclaimed chefs, a Web
browser, and personalization and friend-sharing options, the
unique, kitchen-proof la tablette QOOQ (www.qooq.com/en/)
from France is the �rst touch tablet for aspiring chefs. $399
6. House CallFashioned aȎer a doctor’s satchel, the Bombay Bar Bag is
complete with bar tools such as a Boston shaker, Japanese bar
spoon, bird’s nest strainer, muddler, ice pick, squeezer, and more.
Perfect for the on-the-go party planner. $495 —Sonia Alleyne
6
3
2
5
11 LIFE.indd 100 10/22/12 8:11 PM
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CAPTION
GOES HERE.
TYPE IS SET
IN GOTHAM
BOOK 7/9, -10
TRACKING.
NOVEMBER 2012 • WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM 101
1
4
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NOVEMBER 2012 • WWW.BLACKENTERPRISE.COM102
What’s it worth to get first-person insight from a top 100 CEO?
How about Xerox CEO Ursula Burns, the most powerful black female
executive in corporate America?
Each year, the Women of Power Summit, hosted by State Farm,
brings together the nation’s most accomplished and influential
businesswomen for three days of top-notch professional devel-
opment and executive leadership training. The speaker lineup for
WPS2013, set for Feb. 27 through March 2, 2013, at the Waldorf
Astoria Orlando, once again raises the bar, with Burns, Sam’s Club
CEO Rosalind Brewer, and TV One Founder Cathy Hughes, among
those set to share the insights and strategies that enabled their
unprecedented business achievements.
For more information and to register, go to www.blackenterprise.
com/events/women-of-power-summit.
Also follow #WPS2013 for updates on Twitter.
On Oct. 19, 2012, BLACK ENTERPRISE
joined Rev. Dr. DeForest B. Soaries Jr. at the
First Baptist Church of Lincoln Gardens in
Somerset, N.J., to help launch The Billion
Dollar Challenge (www.billiondollarpay
down.com). A national debt pay-down
initiative and website created to help Ameri-
cans eliminate a
billion dollars in
personal debt,
The Billion Dol-
lar Challenge
emerged out
of Rev. Soaries’
dfree financial
strategy f irst
introduced to
a nat ionwide
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tary Almighty Debt. Soaries, the senior pas-
tor of FBCLG, is partnering with a number of
sponsors on the effort, as well as entertain-
ment, sports, and business notables includ-
ing actor and author Hill Harper, actor Tisha
Campbell-Martin, WNBA All-Star Cappie
Pondexter, and BCT Partners Chairman and
CEO Randal Pinkett. BLACK ENTERPRISE
is a national media partner for The Billion
Dollar Challenge and will host a “Wealth
for Life” debt pay-down group, as well as
contribute personal finance and money
management content on the site.
FeaturedSpeake
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Powerhouse Speaker Lineup
2013 WOMEN OF POWER
A valuable opportunity to learn from
Xerox CEO Ursula Burns.
Ursula Burns
Black Enterprise Women of Power Summit
Hosted by STATE FARM®
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All Access
Black Enterprise (ISSN: 006-4165) is published monthly by Earl G. Graves Publishing Co., Inc., 130 Fifth Ave., New York, NY 10011. Telephone: 212-242-8000. Microfilm of back issues is available from University Microfilms, Inc. Midwest
Advertising Office: 625 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago, IL 60611. Telephone: 312-664-8667. Subscription rates in the U.S. and its possessions: $22 one year; $44 two years; $66 three years. Foreign subscriptions add $15 per year, payable in
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Timberloch Place, Ste.B, The Woodlands, TX 77380. Or call 887-652-5295. Or call 866-879-9144. For subscriptions and other subscriber services, call 800-727-7777.
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CLASSIFIEDSCLASSIFIEDSCCC
BLACK ENTERPRISEBLACK ENTERPRISE Classi fieds is a monthly feature. All classified ads are accepted at the discre-tion of the publisher. Although be makes every effort to check the authenticity of our classified ads, we accept no respon sibility or li-ability for the contents therein. The advertiser warrants that the advertisement will not contain any matter that is libelous or vio-lates any person’s right of privacy or constitutes copyright infringe-ment or is otherwise contrary to law. The advertiser assumes all responsibility in this connection and will hold be harmless from any claim, loss,damage (includ-ing reasonable attorneys’ fees) that be may incur or suffer by reason of the breach of adver-
tiser’s warranties.
Con tact Angela Wright:
212-886-9534; or
e-mail:
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Remember: All big companies started out small. Advertise in the B.E. Classifieds.
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EDITED BY ALISA GUMBS @ALISAGUMBS • NOVEMBER 2012104
Randy Jackson
How did you get involved with
Taking Diabetes to Heart?
When I was diagnosed with diabetes in
2003 and I went online there was not a lot
of information. You could go to doctors—an
endocrinologist, internist, or specialist—to
find out stuff. I wanted to do an education
outreach program and so did Merck. So we
teamed up together. This program is about
trying to help people better manage Type 2
diabetes. It is a detrimental disease, because
people with Type 2 diabetes are two to four
times more at risk of developing a stroke,
heart disease, or other complications that
could lead to death.
What changes have you
made to your lifestyle?
I grew up in that lovable dirty, dirty, dirty
South: Baton Rouge, Louisiana. So, eating food
down there is the king and queen of it all.
Everything has a ton of butter. The vegetables
have sugar on them. It needs to taste good;
you are supposed to worry about the calories
and what it does to your body later. I had to
AMERICAN IDOL JUDGE, EXECUTIVE
producer for MTV’s America’s Best Dance Crew,
and Grammy Award-winning musician Randy
Jackson has recorded, produced, and toured
with many well-known artists—including R&B
diva and AI’s newest judge Mariah Carey—dur-
ing his 30-plus-year career. Now he is embark-
ing on a different kind of venture. Jackson is
touring the country with global healthcare
leader Merck & Co. for the Taking Diabetes to
Heart program (www.takingdiabetestoheart.
com). Diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes in 2003,
Jackson, now 56, will discuss how he manages
his condition to help others understand the
serious complications. Here, Jackson opens
up about using his personal experience to “set
the stage” for people to commit to a diabetes-
friendly lifestyle.
For more of Randy Jackson’s Q&A, see Web Extras at www.blackenterprise.com/magazine.
get rid of all of that in my life. I was unhealthy. I had a sedentary lifestyle. I weighed
350 pounds. I worked with my doctors to come up with a treatment plan. I changed
my diet. I exercised. I started simple—walking 15 to 20 minutes a day.
What is the biggest challenge in managing diabetes?
It doesn’t take a long time to create unhealthy habits, but it takes years sometimes
to break them. Every January people sign up for the gym, but by March they don’t go
anymore. When you have a busy lifestyle or you have job or family stress, it is easy to
let things go. You always think that it is going to happen to someone else. My dad had
diabetes. There are 26 million people living with diabetes in the U.S., and 90% are Type 2.
It hits our community, African Americans, the hardest, along with the Latino community.
Besides diabetes—and music—what else are you passionate about?
I am a creative business guy. The Randy Jackson Eyewear collection is available in
Pearle Vision, Sears, Walmart, and [boutique] stores across the country. That is some-
thing dear to me. I also have a line of watches on HSN. I am an entrepreneur at heart.
—Carolyn M. Brown
with
Backtalk
COMING NEXT ISSUE:
THE BUSINESS OF ENTERTAINMENTGet more Backtalk at www.blackenterprise.com/backtalk
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FOR THE MOVERS, SHAKERS
& RAINMAKERSFOR THE ONES WHOMAKE IT HAPPEN ON THE GO
WHO ACCOMPLISH GREAT THINGSWITHOUT LOSING SIGHT OF THE IMPORTANT THINGS
FOR YOU, WE’RE MARRIOTT.Marriott.com/ForYou
09.25.2012 08:22 BE3501_1012.pdf
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10.22.2012 17:50 BE3541_1112.pdf
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