A Brief History of African-American Leaders in Unions and the Labor Movement

This historically-focused teaching note highlights the role of African-American Labor Leaders in both the Labor Movement and the Civil Rights Movement. In doing so, it attempts to both highlight these noteworthy individuals, and demonstrate the innate connection between the labor and civil rights movements.

Adobo Connection

This case highlights how a fast food chain can maintain their company’s growth momentum, and potentially grow abroad.

Advanced Medical Technology Corp.

This case highlights how a loan officer decides whether to lend $8 million to a rapidly growing high technology company.

Amanda and Kristen: Mented Cosmetics

The case highlights the two co-founders of a black-owned beauty startup and the unmet needs within the beauty industry, examining the entrepreneurial opportunities that come from identifying an under served market, specifically within the black community.

Carmichael Roberts: To Create a Private Equity Firm?

This case highlights how private equity investment works, the private equity spectrum, the history of venture capital, stages of venture capital funds, and their location.

Clothing Chris and Chrissie

This case highlights how the case protagonist considers her options on how to grow her e-commerce clothing site.

Corey Thomas and the IPO

This case highlights whether it is the right time to take a 15-year old startup public, as it stood poised to capitalize on what appears to be the next frontier for digital technology markets - cyber security.

Doug Cook: Feldco Window Company

This case highlights how the case protagonist reflects on a growth plan to take his business to the next level.

Dr. William Carson-Intrapreneurial Innovation in the Pharmaceutical Industry

This case highlights how the case protagonist should take on the considerable task of running clinical trials. Should the trials be run in-house or outsourced? Should employees be hired who might eventually be laid off ? Or find a company with enough cultural sensitivity to run the trials in Asia?

Earl Gordon - Eastern Circle

This case highlights an African-American entrepreneur through the process of sourcing a potential acquisition, valuing a company, and securing the funding to purchase the company, deciding if he should close the deal and which financing term sheet to accept.

Ebony Magazine

This case highlights a privately held magazine company and decisions on what to do with the company's publications and brands.

Edward Lewis: Essence Magazine

This case highlights Essence, the first magazine aimed at African-American women, which was sold to Time Warner, Inc, the largest magazine publisher in the world at that time, for the highest price ever paid for a single-title magazine company. However, there is still debate about whether the last remaining co-founder, Edward Lewis, jeopardized the iconic Black brand by selling it to a white-owned company.

Eve Hall: The African American Investment Fund in Milwaukee

This case highlights the lending options that a minority chamber of commerce considers when seeking to maximum value to their constituency, the challenges minority small business owners and entrepreneurs face, the role of non-financial institutions / community-based organizations in addressing those challenges, and the financial tools available to lenders and borrowers in this segment.

Fairview Capital

This case highlights Fairview's strategic decisions that ultimately led to the growth and expansion of its investment portfolio to over $3 billion.

Frank Baker: Siris Capital Group and Titan Systems

This case highlights a private equity firm, Siris Capital Group, that must decide if they should raise their offer to take Titan Telecom private by acquiring its publicly-traded stock.

Gilbert Lumber Company

This case highlights the reasons for rising bank borrowing, estimate the amount of borrowing needed, and assess the attractiveness of the loan to the bank, allowing readers to practice ratio analysis, financial forecasting, and evaluating financing alternatives.

Jackie Taylor: The Black Ensemble Theater

This case highlights the decision on whether to build a new theater complex during an economic downturn as construction costs rise, or wait it out. Debt is unappealing, but a new facility is essential to the company's future.

Joel L. Dawson: Eta Devices

This case highlights a new technology developed to improve the efficiency of radio transmitter devices.

John Rogers and Ariel Investments

This case highlights how a CEO is deciding if he should listen to the advice of others who are urging him to "tone it down."

John Rogers, Jr. - Ariel Investments Co.

This case highlights how the case protagonist encourages Fortune 500 companies and major foundations to increase the volume of business that they do with black and other minority-owned companies. A member of John's Board of Directors has advised him to cease his leadership of this effort because it could be detrimental to Ariel Investments. Is the board member right? Is John being reckless? Is there a model that can be created to determine if and when John and other leaders should publicly express their opinions?