The Minstrel on Main Street

After some deliberation, I decided to write a column about a racially-explosive logo that is an integral part of the marketing behind No Grease, Inc. the Charlotte barber shop chain. The column appears in today's paper (July 7, 2010), and explores my distaste for the company's logo -- a bug-eyed, big-lipped minstrel cooning for all the world to see.

My quandary in writing the piece is that I happen to really like the owners of No Grease, twin brothers Damian and Jermaine Johnson. The Buffalo natives have brought a fresh vision, not to mention jobs, to Charlotte's business community. Of late, their fledgling advocacy group, Urban Business Network, has been a critical force in bringing overlooked, small black businesses to the city's economic table.

But for the life of me, I can't quite grasp the logic behind the No Grease logo. As I say in my column, that logic "goes like this: symbols possess no real power and No Grease, through its solid work ethic and entrepreneurial success, embodies the notion that racist stereotypes are no match against the real truth of what we can accomplish."

While all this may be true, the reality is that lots of folks, black and white alike, find the No Grease logo to be racially offensive at worst and unsettling at best.

I'd certainly be interested in hearing your opinion on the logo. Take a look at my today column and tell me what you think.

The Leadership Vacuum

More than ever, it seems, I'm getting bombarded by pollsters, publicists, and pundits wanting to shed new light on an old subject: corporate leadership. In these head-scratching economic times, there's a glut of opinion on how the chieftains of American business ought to be guiding their organizations -- whether it's issues affecting employee morale or the bottom line.

Just last week, I found myself in a dim Knight Center auditorium watching Civil War films with an army of entrepreneurs who were mining the battle of Gettysburg for valuable leadership tips. We won't discuss the irony of the Civil War being used as a teaching tool for Southern business people. Suffice to say, folks are game these days to take good leadership ideas wherever they can find them.

In "Developing the 21st Century Leader", a study released earlier this year by the business consultancy, AchieveGlobal, pointed out various vacuums in organizational leadership from innovation to diversity. Craig Perrin, head of solutions development at AchieveGlobal, put it this way:

"The fatal flaw of business leaders is nothing new: hubris, or the delusion that business is only business, that we know everything we need to know, that we can solve any problem resulting from brash action to gain power, wealth or adrenaline rush. I think we can agree that this mindset was certainly the catalyst that led to today's lack of trust in business."

The good news, I suppose, is that the shakeout of poor business leaders isn't over. According to a new poll by Right Management, a division of the employment services giant Manpower, half of the nation's senior human resource executives expect their organizations to restructure within the next six months. Even more, the survey says, one in five HR execs expect a change in their organizational leadership during that period.

When was the last time the company you work for has changed leaders? Are you pleased with the direction the company is headed these days? What makes your company's leadership better or worse than others? Finally, who was the best leader in Charlotte you've worked for and why?

The Startup Funding War: Charlotte vs Research Triangle

Of all the facts I've reported in my column, here's one that I find most distressing: of the $459 million in venture capital investments made in North Carolina in 2008, only 10 percent landed in Charlotte and 90 percent of it flowed into Research Triangle.

I got this stat a couple months ago from the Ben Craig Center, a nonprofit advocate for entrepreneurs at UNC Charlotte. I have quoted the outfit's president Paul Wetenhall, saying that "Although Charlotte is a money center and has considerable entrepreneurial activity, its venture capital is almost nonexistent. There are many private equity firms investing in established businesses, but Charlotte does not have a single venture capital firm investing in seed, start-up, or early-stage ventures."

I was reminded of this recently when the president of a fast-growing high-tech startup expressed his frustration to me that various capital sources, from angel investors to venture capitalists to university grants and awards, tend to be biased towards companies located within Research Triangle. He said he's even been told by potential investors that they'd be more amenable to supporting his venture if he relocated out of Charlotte to the Triangle.

He says the political and business rivalry between the areas is just that pitched, and that startups pay a hefty price for that rivalry.

I'd like to hear from anyone who can support or refute that assertion. Is investment and seed capital really being steered away from Charlotte toward startups in Research Triangle, and if so, to what extent and how systematically? I'd love to better understand how 90% the $459 million in capital investments made in North Carolina in 2008 landed in Research Triangle, while only 10% here? I'd argue that one of Charlotte's short-term economic goals has to be closing that gap.

Revisiting Bob Johnson's Remarks About Charlotte

By now, most everyone in Charlotte's business community is aware of Bob Johnson's comments on the perils of doing business in Charlotte.

"Charlotte is a very, how would I call it, close-knit, arrogant, sometimes incestuous town," he said to a group of black business people earlier this month.

"...It's close-knit, and if you come to this town, and you look like you're one of those people that might break some glass ... it's going to be tough for them to relate to.

"The thing that concerns me is that I'm just surprised that the city doesn't do more for African-American small businesses. And I don't really understand that."

Johnson's words were harsh indeed, and might simply come down to sour grapes after a bad bet on the Bobcats? Still, I can't help wonder whether there is any truth in his statement? Has anyone heard this sentiment before; that black entrepreneurs have it especially hard in Charlotte, more than most other cities? Who are the entrepreneurs in town whose successes prove Johnson wrong, or whose failures prove him right?

Let's face it: Bob Johnson arrived in Charlotte boasting one of nation's best business minds; after founding and building Black Entertainment Television into a media juggernaut, he sold it to MTV for more than $3 billion. Somehow, though, Johnson stumbled badly in Charlotte. Most blame his aloofness to Charlotte, and his status as an absentee-owner. Others, albeit quietly, were always asking whether this Southern town was truly ready to deal with its first big-city black power broker. Any thoughts on this?

Read more: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2010/03/21/1327317/ex-bobcats-owner-blasts-charlotte.html#ixzz0jKNi3oyB

Charlotte's Middle-Class Crunch

Please pardon my absence from the blogosphere. As the Observer's new business columnist, I've spent the past couple months filling up with ideas, opinions, questions and a few rants that will start appearing in this space - along with my newspaper column.

One issue I'm really interested is this nation's disappearing middle-class. While there's all sorts of studies about what income bracket actually makes a family "middle-class", there seems to be little disagreement that this group is being squeezed from all directions.

Last month, an Obama Administration task force charged with figuring out ways to unburden America's burdened middle-class released its first annual report.

The study mostly stated the obvious. Among its conclusions: "After a lifetime of employment, American workers deserve a secure retirement. Yet for middle-class workers today, especially in the wake of the historic losses to retirement savings and housing wealth in the financial crisis, retirement seems anything but secure."

To be fair, the task force did unveil a few initiatives to address the middle-class squeeze, from tax credits to help with soaring child-care expenses to beefed-up regulations for company 401-K savings plans. The initiatives are slated for the 2011 fiscal year.

Yet meanwhile, there's plenty of angst about the ability of today's middle-class, particularly Baby Boomers, to fully recover from the depths of this unique downturn.

An article in USA Today, published last year, summarized the situation this way:

"The 77 million Americans in the Baby Boom generation face an economic storm: The Wall Street meltdown trampled their retirement nest eggs more than any other group. After losing their jobs during what they thought would be some of their peak earning years, many are struggling to get back into the workforce. Healthcare costs are rising, and declining home values mean they might not be able to count on home equity to guarantee an easier retirement."

I'd love to hear your stories about how this economy is threatening your family's security - or someone you know - in America's storied middle-class; from your ability to send your kids to college, to scaling back on the home you live in, trips you take, or car you drive, etc. The Baby Boomer generation might be hit the hardest, but I'd like to hear stories about Charlotte's crunch from anyone who is feeling it.

Is Charlotte a Great City for Entrepreneurs?

It’s a fascinating study in contradictions: on one hand, Charlotte enjoys a favorable reputation nationally as a place for launching new businesses. Out-of-towners routinely sing Charlotte’s praises as a kind of start-up nirvana, citing its young and educated workforce, muscular business center, and generally warm climate. “Charlotte has all the amenities of a metro hub with the flavor of a small Southern town,” gushed CNNMoney.com, which last year ranked the city 7th among large metro areas on its annual list of Best Places to Launch.

Yet my own talks with local entrepreneurs, angel investors, venture capitalists, and business experts suggest otherwise. As the head of one of Charlotte’s small business advocacy groups told me recently: “When it comes to supporting entrepreneurs, there’s been a lot of lip service in this town for years. This is a fairly risk-averse environment.” Another entrepreneur and angel investor who has successfully launched firms in entertainment, technology, and real estate put it another way: “This city lacks a critical mass of risk capital. You get a lot of people who talk and do nothing. I get a lot of pats on the back.”

I’d love to include more local entrepreneurs - as well as those who make their living investing in start-ups – in my column. Last Sunday (Jan. 17) , I wrote about a laid-off Wachovia exec who launched a local solar energy firm called Greenfield Power. What’s been your experience as an entrepreneur in Charlotte? Have you gotten the support you’ve needed for success? What other people, companies, and investors should I be writing about? I look forward to hearing from you!