---Oprah means business---
On Friday, May 16, Black Enterprise will name Oprah Winfrey’s Harpo Inc. its 2008 Black Enterprise 100s Company of the Year. The announcement will be made before an audience of nearly 2,000 African American business people and entrepreneurs at the Black Enterprise Entrepreneurs Conference and Expo hosted by General Motors in Charlotte, North Carolina. Winfrey is not just a talk show host and is more than a mere business woman. She is a legend, an icon—but mostly, a mentor. Her unprecedented success in American business serves as the undisputed blueprint for entrepreneurs. Her leadership has broken down barriers; her business instinct the stuff of legend; and her innovation unprecedented. She has spent her entire career beating the odds—and has inspired millions of business-minded minorities in the process. On the heels of her Company of the Year honor, Winfrey gives an exclusive interview to Black Enterprise Editorial Director Sonia Alleyne, discussing her business beginnings, mistakes, lessons learned, and her defining philosophy that is inspiring future business moguls. In Black Enterprise ’s June issue cover feature, “Oprah Means Business,” Winfrey talks about the winning formula that has taken Harpo Inc. from a five-person production company to a 430-employee multimedia conglomerate that grossed $345 million in 2007 (No. 14 on the be Industrial/Service 100 list). Today, she is one of a handful of Black billionaires across the globe; her net worth estimated at $2.5 billion. As the 54-year-old dynamo prepares to unveil the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN) in 2009—in which she will hold a 50% stake—she asserts that divine inspiration, not strategic planning, is the key to her company’s success: “I haven’t planned one thing—ever. I have just been led by a strong instinct, and I have made choices based on what was right for me at the time.”

Myrlie Evers

Congressman James Clyburn

Business World Index

---The O Team: May 19 issue of Newsweek (on newsstands Monday, May 12)---
In the May 19 Newsweek cover story, "The O Team" (on newsstands Monday, May 12), Senior White House Correspondent Richard Wolffe and Editor-at-Large Evan Thomas look at Obama's management and leadership style and examine how it will translate if he's the nominee against Republican John McCain in the fall, when the campaign could turn negative. A senior member of Barack Obama's campaign staff tells Newsweek he's only seen the presidential candidate yell twice in four years. Obama was explicit from the beginning: there was to be "no drama," he told his aides. "I don't want elbowing or fingerpointing. We're going to rise or fall together," according to a report in the current issue of Newsweek. Obama wanted steady, calm, focused leadership; he wanted to keep out the grandstanders and make sure the quiet dissenters spoke up.

---Myrlie Evers-Williams, widow of civil rights leader Medgar Evers, endorses Barack Obama---Myrlie Evers-Williams, widow of civil rights leader Medgar Evers, recently endorsed Senator Barack Obama citing his unique ability to bring people together and achieve real change we can all believe in. “I am deeply honored to announce my support for Senator Barack Obama. Over the course of this campaign, I have watched with pride as Barack Obama has inspired a new movement for change. Countless Americans of every race, economic and political background are engaged in our democracy with a passion and commitment not seen for generations. Like my husband Medgar Evers and other great leaders of the Civil Rights Movement, Barack Obama embodies a deep well of courage, integrity, compassion, strength and sound judgment. He offers the kind of leadership that we need in the White House as our nation grapples with chronic issues like rising gas and food prices, skyrocketing healthcare costs, a flagging housing market, job insecurity and a misguided Iraq war. Barack Obama is a living testament to Medgar’s work. He is the strongest candidate to unite our country around the common challenges we face. That is why I support Barack Obama for president.”

---Race, gender and business ownership---
The dynamics of the intersection of race and gender were the focus of research findings released at the national symposium "Research to Roadmap: Accelerating the Growth of Businesses Owned by Women of Color" convened by the Center for Women's Business Research. The research explored the impact of race and gender on the growth of businesses owned by women who are African-American, Asian, Latina and other ethnicities. Women of color are starting businesses at rates three to five times faster than all other businesses. However, once in business, their growth lags behind all other firms. "It is important that as a country and a business community, we learn how to support the growth of this dynamic sector of women business owners," said Margaret A. Smith, chair, Center for Women's Business Research. "This research encourages action and helps public- and private-sector policy makers formulate well grounded decisions to increase opportunities for the nearly two million businesses owned by women of color."

---EBONY Exclusive: Chris Brown---
In an exclusive interview with Ebony magazine, Chris Brown, the R&B crooner opens up about a number of issues. "I wanted to do something more along the lines of a grown record," explains Brown about the June re-release of his sophomore album. His full story in EBONY magazine hits stands nationwide Monday, May 12.

---Commencement at Tuskegee University---
Tuskegee University recently graduated approximately 500 students during its annual commencement. Dr. Benjamin F. Payton, Tuskegee University President, said. "Our tradition of holding this wonderful occasion on Mother's Day is yet another way of marking Tuskegee's rich legacy of excellence and service, along with embracing inclusive, deep community and national values." Graduates were addressed by Congressman James E. Clyburn (D-S.C.), Majority Whip for the 110th Congress of the U.S. House of Representatives. The civil rights activist, politician and philanthropist, who has served the 16th District of South Carolina since 1993, is the second citizen of that state and the second Black to be chosen for the third-ranking position in the House. Congratulations to all of the 2008 graduates!

---Are you ready for retirement?---
Women are at a much higher risk than men of facing economic uncertainty in retirement and, on average, they'll enter retirement with considerably less savings than men. Women face these unique challenges because they spend fewer years in the workforce, earn less income and have longer life spans than men, according to a report released entitled, The Female Factor 2008: Why Women are at Greater Financial Risk in Retirement. The report finds that women earn 77 cents for every dollar earned by men, which translates into a median retirement income of just 58 percent of men's. Additionally, due to family caregiving responsibilities, women are in the workforce an average of 12 years less than men. This translates into fewer years saving or participating in an employer-provided retirement plan. The median salary for a woman working full-time in 2006 was $32,515 compared to $42,261 for men. The disparity is even more dramatic for minority women, with African-American women's median income at $27,535 and Hispanic women's median income at $22,285. Women also live, on average, five years longer than men and are far more likely than men to be widowed and living some part of their retirement years alone.