Black MBA - Winter 2008/2009 - (Page 36)

FEATURE Olympics Going for Gold As President-Elect Obama Helps Chicago’s Chances of Landing the Olympics, Studies Show the Significant Financial Benefits of Hosting the Games By Jerry Thomas After upsetting leading Democratic and Republican frontrunners to become president of the United States, Barack Obama is pushing for another come-from-behind victory by campaigning for Chicago to win the 2016 Olympics. Obama, who lives just a few blocks from Chicago’s proposed Olympic stadium, appealed to the general assembly of European Olympic Committees to pick Chicago over Madrid, Tokyo and Rio de Janeiro, the other three contenders. Cheryle Jackson In November, he made a personal appeal in a taped video message. “The United States would be honored to have the opportunity to host the games and serve the Olympic movement,” said Obama, wearing a dark suit and sitting at a desk in his Chicago transition office. “As Presidentelect, I see the Olympics and Paralympic Games as an opportunity for our nation to reach out, welcome the world to our shores and strengthen our friendships across the globe.” The International Olympic Committee (IOC) is expected to announce its decision next October. By all accounts, Chicago received a big boost in November from the president-elect’s postelection night festivities. As international media crews converged in Chicago to cover his historic victory speech, they also provided the world with a glimpse of some of Chicago’s treasures: Millennium Park, the Shedd Aquarium, Soldier Field and the city’s gleaming skyline, rising tall and broad off the banks of Lake Michigan. The world’s most glamorous sporting event has already been the focus of intense discussions in Chicago as groups jostle for access to the games, which offer civic pride but also lucrative business opportunities from the estimated $5 billion that will be spent in Chicago if it is named the host city. The games are administered by Chicago 2016, a private, nonprofit group expected to spend $3 billion, including $380 million on information systems and telecommunications, $160 million on transportation, $60 million on advertising and promotions and $1.5 billion on the construction of Olympic venues and upgrades. The games are projected to create 81,000 jobs. With all this possibility, African-American leaders in this city of 2.9 million, which is 37 percent Black, have taken steps not to be left behind if the IOC selects Chicago. Credit this progressive action to lessons learned from the Los Angeles Olympics in 1984 and the Atlanta Olympics in 1996. Last year, the Chicago Urban League and the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University released a joint study of the potential economic impacts and business opportunities presented by the Chicago games, titled “The Chicago 2016 Olympic Games and Minority Inclusion: Economic Impacts and Opportunities.” Several other civic and community organizations have held meetings with Chicago 2016 and city officials demanding a fair share of the Olympics pie, especially since most of the new construction will occur in predominantly Black neighborhoods just south of Grant Park, where Obama gave his acceptance speech. “There are a lot of benefits attributed to the games,” says Walter Glover, chief financial officer for the United States Olympic Committee, the organization that selected Chicago as the U.S. bid city. “A city that hosts the games will get a tremendous amount of new infrastructure, athletic facilities, housing and highways. We saw it in Beijing and Salt Lake City. The Olympics leave behind what we call legacy facilities, a place for swimming, basketball and various sports.” Glover, who earned an MBA from Virginia Commonwealth University, says there is a lot of energy around the Olympics. “It is an opportunity to showcase and revitalize the city by putting in new facilities that can really help to improve the city not only from an infrastructure standpoint, but overall in terms of ranking and status,” he explains. “It will have far-reaching implications by making it more visible to the world and attracting more visitors to Chicago. During the games, and certainly leading up to the games, there will be a lot of hype, and people will be interested in the city in a way that they never have been before.” A primary goal of Cheryle Jackson, president and CEO of the Chicago Urban League, is to make sure these economic opportunities are extended to the historically underinvested. “Chicago has a storied history of a lack of minority participation, particularly of African Americans not fully participating in contracting and procurement opportunities,” says Jackson, who made economic empowerment the Urban League’s main thrust when she assumed the office several years ago. “On one hand, there’s a great opportunity. On another hand, it’s the same old, same old. Will African Americans be able to participate? There is hope, but a good measure of concern, about whether or not we will be able to play and have a seat at the table. The Chicago Urban League is hypersensitive and focused on that issue. We will try to make sure there is fair participation.” With established Black-owned firms in construction, financial services and communications, Steven Rogers, the Gordon & Llura Gund Family Distinguished Professor of Entrepreneurship at Kellogg, says there is no reason why Black businesses should not be at the same table as major players. “It is no mistake that we have more Black businesses in 36 BlackMBA • Winter 2008/2009 • www.nbmbaa.org http://www.nbmbaa.org

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Black MBA - Winter 2008/2009 Contents Preserving Dr. King’s Legacy: Harry E. Johnson is Six Years and $100 million into his First Fundraising Effort Online: www.nbmbaa.org and www.blackmbaonline.com Up Front: Inauguration Takes Over D.C. From the President: Connecting With the Basics The First 100 Days – Already in Progress Back to Basics: Finances 101 Is the Middle Class Disappearing? – Your View From Medals to MBA Conference Highlights Market Forces: The Job of Trying to Find a Job in a Tight Market Applying to an MBA Program?: Avoid Making these Five Critical Mistakes How They Did It: Catching up with the Winning Teams from NBMBAA’s 2008 National Case Competition Change It Up: If a New Job is at the Top of your New Year’s Resolutions, it’s Time for Careful Planning and Preparation Bull Market: Now is the Time to Take Advantage of Web 2.0 On the Move: Member News, Promotions and More Backstage at BET: NBMBAA’s Leadership Institute Takes on BET’s Case for Growth Toronto Rising: NBMBAA’s Toronto Chapter is on a Progressive Track, Building Strong Partnerships and Exposure as Membership Climbs NBMBAA® Chapters: Find Your Local Chapter Here Do What You Love: Turning Your Passion into a Successful Business Requires Patience, Planning and Plenty of Hard Work Above and Beyond: Meet the Winners of the 2008 Wells Fargo/NBMBAA Entrepreneurial Excellence Award Decorating by Design: Michelle Rider Leaves Corporate Life for Entrepreneurship Culture Shock: Black Museums Nationwide Appeal for Greater Support from the People whose Heritage they Strive to Preserve Gear Up for 2009: Books to Herald Success in the New Year Advertiser Index: Who’s Who in the Issue

Black MBA - Winter 2008/2009

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