In celebration of our 40th anniversary, Black Enterprise is taking a look both forward and backward at the world of black business. Our list of 40 “Titans: The Most Powerful African Americans in Business–and How They Shaped Our World” recognizes and pays homage to the entrepreneurs and business men and women who paved the way for all of us. Follow our countdown of the most important black business leaders of the four decades since Black Enterprise Magazine was founded in August 1970.

These are the men and women who fought the odds, suffered setbacks, regrouped, and eventually emerged victorious. Whether they conducted business from their own offices or the executive suite, their professional excellence, deal-making prowess, and unwavering advocacy converted promise into channels of prosperity and levers of power. These are the pioneers who withstood the elements—institutional racism, resistance from the business establishment, and lack of resources—to plant a flag on their own patch of territory.

These are the titans: bold leaders who shattered conventional modes of commerce. Because of their contributions over the past 40 years, the world of business has been transformed forever.

Be sure to pick up the commemorative 40th anniversary August 2010 issue of Black Enterprise, which contains the entire Titans list.

I arrived in Detroit yesterday for the 2009 Black Enterprise Entrepreneurs Conference curious about the psyche of the city. Battered by a crisis of faith in local government triggered by the scandal surrounding former Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, as well as the economic devastation of the automotive industry that gave Motown its name, it is easy for us non-Detroiters to assume that the city is down for the count. Nothing could be further from the truth.

When Black Enterprise Publisher and Chairman Earl Graves Sr. and CEO Earl “Butch” Graves Jr. announced that we would be bringing the conference to Detroit, it gave many of us at B.E. pause. Then, Mr. G gave us the bottom line: Detroit has been there for Black Enterprise and black business, and we will stand with Detroit in its time of need. Judging from how Detroit received us during welcome receptions to kick-off the conference, that faith will be amply rewarded by the city, both during the conference and beyond.

I attended three events on this, the Entrepreneurs Conference’s opening day. First was a V.I.P. reception hosted by IBM, one of the sponsors of the conference.The focus was not on nostalgia for the past, or the present crisis, but on future opportunities. This was underscored by a review of IBM’s  A Smarter Planet Initiative, delivered by Folu Okunseinde, industry solutions architect for IBM’s Financial Services Solutions Group. Okunseinde, who holds MIT degrees in computer science and electrical engineering and a masters from the University of Texas in Austin (at only 28), held the attention of entrepreneurs eager for solutions as he reviewed the elements of an initiative focused on helping business to exploit the growing  interconnectivity of a dynamic business environment to improve infrastructure and efficiency via the sharing of data and information. It was a conversation about were business is going, not where it’s been, and the entrepreneurs in attendance were fully engaged.

 

Claire Babineaux-Fontenot

Next, a conference pre-reception was hosted by conference sponsors Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and the Michigan Minority Business Development Council. There, speakers ranging from former Detroit Mayor Dennis Archer, to Wal-Mart Stores Inc. Sr. VP and Chief Tax Officer Claire Babineaux-Fontenot (a member of B.E.’s 100 Most Powerful Executives in Corporate America), to MMBDC Marketing Director Kenneth Harris, shared their belief in the promise of the Motor City, and that healthy minority-owned businesses are key to realizing that potential.

Last was the official Entrepreneurs Conference welcome reception, hosted by title sponsors GM and ExxonMobil, along with the Detroit Convention & Visitors Bureau. No less than newly elected Mayor David Bing, the NFL Hall of Famer and B.E. 100s CEO of The Bing Group, declared the Entrepreneurs Conference a harbinger of greater things to come for a new Detroit.

To be sure, the pain, the need for change, is not over for Detroit, any more than they are for the rest of the nation. However, the theme echoed repeatedly at each of these events, can best be expressed in a paraphrase of motivational speaker Willie Jolley: Motown’s setbacks are just a setup for a comeback. Don’t bet against Detroit, not matter how tough things are today.

I’m thinking this may turn out to be one of the best Entrepreneurs Conferences ever. You can look for future blog posts here at BlackEnterprise.com, as well as follow me on Twitter, to see if I’m right. But even if I’m not, I’m glad that at Black Enterprise, we chose to stand with Detroit. Let’s do this.

Alfred Edmond Jr. is the editor-in-chief of BlackEnterprise.com

Bing

In what Detroit newspapers called “a stunning victory” local businessman Dave Bing was elected mayor Tuesday and will finish serving the remaining term of convicted Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick.

The former Detroit Piston defeated interim Mayor Kenneth V. Cockrel Jr. yesterday in a runoff election by 52.3% to 47.7%. Only 15% of registered voters cast ballots.

“The real work starts now,” said Bing, 65, an NBA Hall of Famer and owner of the Bing Group, (No. 35 on the BE Industrial/Service 100 list with $131 million in revenues), in his victory speech last night.  “I will bring efficiency, transparency, honesty and integrity back to the mayor’s office,” he said to cheers and applause.

Bing faces tough challenges ahead, including addressing the city’s unemployment rate that hovers at 22.8%, and a budget deficit that Cockrel had estimated at between $250 million and $300 million, dwindling revenues and previously unchecked spending, according to the Associated Press. Bing will also need to work to halt widespread crime and oversee the expansion of Detroit’s outdated convention center.

“We will start immediately and try to attract jobs back into the city of Detroit. We will [try] to make sure our neighborhoods are safe.”

Bing plans to work with people outside of the city’s limits to bring in money to salvage the COBO Convention Center  rehabilitation plan that did not pass under Cockrel’s administration, says the Detroit Free Press. Throughout his campaign, Bing accused Cockrel of lacking the leadership skills necessary to get the city council behind the COBO project, which is high on Bing’s agenda.

“You have not seen the last of me,” Cockrel told supporters as they chanted: “Run, Ken, run” in reference to a possible second race for mayor. Cockrel was city council president before Kilpatrick’s departure automatically promoted him to mayor. He’ll now return to that job.

Bing will serve the rest of Kilpatrick’s term through Dec. 31. Kilpatrick was convicted of perjury related to a sex scandal involving his chief of staff. Another mayoral primary will be held in August and a general election in November to decide who will serve as mayor for the four-year term that starts in 2010.

Detroit Mayor Ken Cockrel and businessman Dave Bing agreed on very little at their second mayoral debate Wednesday evening, except that — as General Motors, a top Detroit employer goes bankrupt — the city is in desperate need of revenue and jobs.

Bing went into the debate in attack mode saying that Cockrel lacked leadership in convincing the Detroit City Council to transfer authority of the Cobo Convention Center to a regional authority. Cobo, which produces 16,000 jobs, is at the center of a battle between Cockrel and the city council. Bing, owner of the Bing Group (No. 35 on the BE 100s Industrial/Service List), also said that the 2009-2010 fiscal year budget Cockrel presented Monday has a lot of “fuzzy math.” Cockrel reminded the Detroit Economics Club audience that for all of Bing’s criticism, he had not created any alternatives and was short on specifics.

Detroit News Columnist Laura Berman felt that both candidates were too vague, and from her observations viewers seemed frustrated. Besides Cobo, the moderators queried the candidates about short term solutions to the 22.8% unemployment problem, and how to prevent unethical behavior in their administration.

Speaking of which, the winner of the election on May 5 will replace convicted former Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick. A third and final debate will be held April 23.

Marcia A. Wade is a reporter at BlackEnterprise.com

Cockrel

The collapse of the auto industry isn’t the only thing making headlines in Detroit. The race to succeed Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick is heating up in anticipation of the May 5 election between interim Mayor Kenneth Cockrel Jr., the former City Council president, and Michigan businessman Dave Bing. After the 15-candidate, non-partisan election last February Bing received 29% of the vote and Cockrel 27%.

Whoever wins the bid will have their hands full. Detroit’s unemployment rate of 22% is one of the highest in the country and a major issue of the campaign. Also, at 4.8 times the national average, Detroit has the highest foreclosure rate among the nation’s 100 largest metro areas, reports RealtyTrac Inc. Abandoned homes and unemployment has contributed to crime in the city. Violent Crime in Detroit is almost four times the national average.

“If the rest of the country is catching Hades, Detroit is catching full fledged Hell,” says Cockrel, who has the support of the United Autoworkers of America.

The latest news is the fate of the Cobo Convention Center, home to the North American International Auto Show, which brings $300 million into the city annually. Cockrel supported a deal that would transfer ownership of the center to a five-person regional authority, but the City Council rejected the deal for fear that the city would lose jobs and revenue. Cockrel vetoed their rejection and put the deal back in motion. He says that the deal protects the city’s interests and Detroit will have a representative seated on that authority. Now, the City Council says his veto was unlawful and is suing Cockrel.  He met with the City Council for two hours today to discuss Cobo, but neither would comment about that discussion, reports the Detroit Free Press.

A planned closed-door session of City Council yesterday to discuss litigation that could derail Cobo expansion plans didn’t happen because not enough council members showed up.

Bing thinks that Cockrel lacked leadership in getting the council to pass the deal.  “The in-fighting that we are going through now is nauseating,” said Bing in regards to disputes between the mayor and the city council. “We need a leader. I think Cockrel is a good politician, but he is not a good leader.”

Cheryl Smith, sergeant-at-arms of the Detroit Police Officers Association, which threw unanimous support to Cockrel, says that Cockrel should be mayor. “His experience absolutely qualifies him to be the leader of the City of Detroit,” said Smith. Since becoming mayor, Cockrel opened five new police mini-stations and re-opened Detroit’s 10th Precinct.

Bing is also concerned about public safety in Detroit, and hopes to improve response times for serious crimes, fires, and medical emergencies. The Detroit Firefighters Association has endorsed Bing.

Bing has lived in the suburbs of Detroit since his stint playing for the Detroit Pistons and Cockrel says that he is too far removed from the problems within the city.

“I think my opponent is a good man. He has created jobs for the city of Detroit,” says Cockrel. “I give him credit for that, but you can’t know the city and the issues if you don’t live here. He lives in a gated community in the suburbs.”

Bing

On the other hand, as owner of automotive supplier The Bing Group (No. 35 on the BE Industrial/Service 100 list with $131 million in revenues), Bing’s business knowledge has garnered him a great deal of respect. The Detroit News endorsed Bing, saying he knows how to create jobs because he has been doing it for 32 years.

“I know how to do that. I’ve been successful at it, and that is what our city needs; somebody who can create jobs,” says Bing

Cockrel says he wants to train workers in the skills demanded by the emerging green economy and wants to restore the city’s Workforce Development Department which became a “dumping ground” for political hires under Mayor Kilpatrick.

Kilpatrick, who was once seen as a promising young leader, had a mayoral career ruined by a perjury conviction and sex scandal. He was found guilty after covering up an extramarital affair with his former chief of staff, Christine Beatty. He served 99 days in the Wayne County detention facility in Detroit. The Detroit city charter dictated that Cockrel would step in after Kilpatrick resigned. Like Kilpatrick, neither candidate has been upfront with the electorate.

Cockrel and Bing went mano-y-mano in their first mayoral debate last week, and integrity guided the discussion. Bing was accused of exaggerating his educational achievements and until the debate, Cockrel refused to disclose his personal financial records.

They are debate again April 15 at the Detroit Economic Club and on April 23 at the studios of WXYZ.

Bill Ballenger, editor of the newsletter Inside Michigan Politics, says that in the wake of Kilpatrick Detroiters are looking for a mayor with integrity who is willing to lead a transparent administration, and make the interests of Detroit citizen’s a top priority.

The winner will need to run again in August for the regularly scheduled 2009 mayoral primary, followed by the general election in November.