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Response to Nick Cleg's speech Glass Ceiling is experienced by black and ethnic minorities. A black person has to exceptional to rise above the field. If average, they will get passed over for promotion. Loyalty, and knowledge of the job, counts for nothing. Those with great qualifications and experience get rejected at interview stage and are told - they are over-qualified. This is endemic in the UK, as well as in America. It cannot even be described as a minority issue, since in black countries where whites are a minority, they are still able to get the top jobs. Notice how a black person is scrutinised more than white people. Note how Kelly Rowland is bashed for taking time out to do her career duties. However other judges who do the same, are not given the same attacks by the press. In football, as soon as a black manager has been appointed in a premiership team, they are summarily dismissed after a few months of bad games. They are not given a chance to grow and develop in the role. Compare John Barnes, Chris Hughton, Paul Ince.
Its the anniversary of the Scarman Report of 1981. The Lawrence Enquiry came years later. Echoing many of the discoveries of Lord Scarman. The findings of those reports are comparable to modern times, and nothing has changed. Maybe we just have to accept these as facts of life and work our way around the issues. Tony Wade - in his book "They made a million" outlines the difficulties he had 30 years ago, when they were trying to raise funds to expand their business. It's the same now. Perhaps even more difficult, for now we have the credit crunch, and even banks cannot repay their debts never mind anyone else. If the Government is putting an inquiry in place, and measures to help black businesses, that would be good. But in the meantime, black and minority business owners have to forge their own way forward. Make it anyway. Many will fall by the wayside, but if one does not try, we never know if success was possible. Many talk about Black and Minority Ethnic people pulling together to find a way. Saving together, investing together, and this is one of the solutions Black Economics encourages. If we wait for the Government for jobs, and equality of treatment - we have a long wait. But pulling together is the subject of many discussions - with very little action to follow up. Thanks Nick for the reminder of our realities, but no solutions were given. He reminds us that surveys have indicated that 35% of individuals from black African origin say they want to start a business, but only 6% actually do. I would venture that finance is only one of those areas of difficulty. The other is lack of experienced business people to work with the ambitious for mentoring or business coaching; expert knowledge is not always sought to make the business successful; the courage and drive to ensure a business person starts on the road is quickly distinguished when there is a lack of support around them. Banks first point of refusal is usually the credit rating. Many people are refused by the computer, before they have even had a chance to say 'business plan'. But it should be borne in mind that a good idea can make money, regardless of previous money problems, enabling that person to pay off their debts and help others. Consider Donald Trump, Peter Jones or Simon Cowell. Somebody had to take a chance on them, else they would not have graced the world stage and be such a benefit to their country now. Where is the personal service that was available once, when you could sit in front of a bank manager, explain your idea, and walk out with a loan approval. The second point of refusal is a business plan which is not persuasive enough. This can be rectified. There is a plethora of Business support services who will write the plan for business owners. But business owners also need to know their own limitations and work with a partner who is able to handle the paperwork and the marketing. There needs to be a support system within communities for their businesses, whether its from families and friends. Typically black entrepreneur's have to go it alone with little or no support and as a consequence there is a high failure rate. It is important to remind people however, that 3 businesses might fail, but a 4th business might be extremely successful - so we remind people not give up. It was also fascinating to discover that in the public sector, men from ethnic minorities working full time now earn slightly more than their white male colleagues. Public sector has generally been open to hiring a more diverse workforce, particularly in local authorities where there is a high black and minority ethnic population. There are prolific black business owners in this country, whose companies turnover millions. Eg Wade Lyn, Roger Lynn, Laban Roomes, Patrick Fredereks, Rene Carayol, Joy Nichols. There are many talents within Black and Ethnic minorities. Truly, if these were unleashed, it would be of tremendous benefit to the whole country, not just those communities. There are 20,000 black-owned businesses in the UK, however the majority remain small, with only 1 or 2 employees. There are too many barriers to growth. Black Economics encourages these talents, some of these businesses are listed on our website. Black Economics is also working to break down these barriers to growth. Black Economics |
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