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Bridging the Ethnic Economic divide
The Case of Ethnic Chambers Business Retention and Expansion ProgramClaudia CodyAssistant Extension ProfessorCommunity Economics
Center for Community Vitality

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Project Details and Factoids

Project Funders:The Otto Bremer Foundation, Ramsey County, Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul. Additional funders will be joining in weeks to come.Timeline:Hispanic Chamber of Commerce has convened the group since Fall of 2007. The project goes through Dec31, 2010.Financial Factoid:Average buying power of states African Americans, Hispanics and Asians roughly tripled between 1990 and 2007.Population Factoid:Minnesotas communities of color are expected to double in population size by 2030.Project Factoid:The project leaders have conducted face-to-face interviews with ethnic-owned businesses in the Twin Cities and surrounding areas. The data will be used to assist in the development of future projects with community and governmental resources that will respond to the needs of these businesses.

2008 Regents of the University of Minnesota. All rights reserved

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Project Leadership

Val Vargas CEO, Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of MinnesotaBarbara Davis President, Minnesota Black Chamber of CommerceAlice Smoot Gentry Inclusiveness in Contracting Program, Ramsey CountyIrene Rodriguez Senior Program Officer, African American Action CouncilTran Nhon Vietnamese American Business Association
Pam Standing - Executive Director, Minnesota American Indian Chamber of Commerce
Henry Ongeri President, Pan African Business Alliance
Seng Tchaa MN Hmong Chamber of Commerce2008 Regents of the University of Minnesota. All rights reserved

The Task Force (who)Between 20 and 30 people Including a 5 person leadership teamCharacteristicsRecognized and respected community leadersRepresentative of all segments of the communityAbility to work easily with othersAt least four major groups representedLocal development professionalsBusiness owners/operatorsLocal government officialsEducators

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*More Project PartnersMN Restaurant, Lodging and Resort and Campgrounds

Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development

City of Saint Paul

Hi way Federal Credit UnionImmigrant Community
Roundtable

MN State Colleges and Universities Office of the Chancellor

St. Paul Chamber of CommerceMinority Business Development and RetentionHospitality MinnesotaPlanning and Economic Development Office City of Saint Paul Charities Review CouncilMCCDMetropolitan CouncilAmerican Indian Economic Development FundState of Minnesota Human Services

Goals of Ethnic Chambers
BR&E Visitation ProgramDemonstrate to local businesses that the community appreciates their contribution to the economyHelp existing businesses solve problemsAssist businesses in using programs aimed at helping them become more competitiveDevelop strategic plans for long-range BR&E activitiesBuild community capacity to sustain growth and development

2008 Regents of the University of Minnesota. All rights reserved

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More Ethnic Chambers
BR&E Benefits Good representation of concerns of Ethnically owned Chambers membership in the geographic area of program. Development of Case Examples policy developmentImproved Public Relations with Existing FirmsStronger collaboration between local development agencies, local governments, citizens, educators, local ethnically owned businesses, and ethnic chambers of commerce.Better understanding by local leaders of the strengths and weaknesses of their communitys local business climate.

2008 Regents of the University of Minnesota. All rights reserved

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Business Selection ProcessRandom Sampling Goal: Generalize from the sample to the population from which the sample is taken.

Sample: Sampling method was stratified when possible, otherwise based on each Chambers case. No more than 30 per chamber

2008 Regents of the University of Minnesota. All rights reserved

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Main Survey AreasGeneral InformationProduct/ServiceLabor ForceTrainingTechnologyCash FlowBusiness Functions

SuppliersCustomersCivic EngagementBusiness ChangesFuture Location DecisionsCommunity Factors

2008 Regents of the University of Minnesota. All rights reserved

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Four Priority Projects in Implementation1. Advocacy2. One Stop Shop Access to Funding3. Repository4. One Roof - Joint Council Service Center

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How to Advance Diverse Intergroup Economic Development Projects?

Project ChallengesOften cohesive ingroups are in competition with one anotherHow to gather support from the dominant majority for a program targeted towards an underserved community? (Funding, other resources)

How to serve the most number of ethnic businesses with the least amount of resources and resistance from outgroups?Geographically disperse program audienceWhat is different this time?

Large Number of Known Divides Intergroup, Ingroup, and in SubgroupsEthnicityAgePolitical affiliationSexual orientationTribeCity/Neighborhood/county/countyFamily TiesRelationship among genresLevel of knowledge of American business practicesTradition of Business ownershipEmerging DividesUnknown DividesTime multiple frameworks Leaps, "fertile stalls, linear, circular, sequential, non-sequentialLeadership styles

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Advancing the Multi-Ethnic Chambers
Business Retention and Expansion Project

Encourage ContactNetworking event for all board members from each Ethnic Chamber, funders, and other members of the leadership team.Attendance to special events of team members when invited.Monthly 1 hour meetings regular contact Informal gatherings with no shop talk ( lunches, funerals, etc)WorkshopsJob Fairs

(Pittinsky and Simon 2007) In their article Intergroup leadership explored increasing positive intergroup attitudes article was published at the time this work had been initiated.Pettigrew & Tropp (2006) 203 studies meta-analysis revealed that contact typically reduces intergroup prejudice even beyond immediate contact situation.*

Leadership Asset Mapping

Discouragement of groupthink No stereotyped view of

the outgroup as evil. (Janis, 1982)

Intergroup leadership training of core project team Training on working on committees productivelyLeadership Team working AgreementCommittee Asset Mapping

Highly cohesive groups form a strong concurrence-seeking norm a phenomenon called by Janis as groupthink- often develop a stereotyped view of the otugroup as evil.Extension curriculum committees that work from leadership and civic engagement

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Emotional Responses

Interpersonal Skills

Focus on Procedure

Positive bias

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Committee Asset Mapping

Elimination of Zero-Sum Scenarios &Realistic conflict Theory

Superordinate Goal reduces Intergroup Conflict Reduces ingroup/outgroup distinctionsHelps group members recategorize their own group identity into a common group identity
(Nelson 2006)

Campbells (1965) Campbells - Theory Negative intergroup behavior may arise simply because the competition is for real resourcesSherif et al.s (1961)Robbers Cave Study conflict reduced when groups have to achieve a goal that requires them to work together ( superordinate goal). Superordinate goal reduces in grop/outgroup distinctions and help group members recategorize their own group identity *

http://mnjointcouncil.org/

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MNJointCouGroupperordinateSuncilMutual Intergroup Differentiation Model

The Minnesota Multi-Ethnic Chambers Joint Council

Mutual Intergroup differentiation Model * Promotion of dual identity (Hewstone & Brown 1986)

Each Ethnic Chamber identifies with individual subgroup(chambers) and with superordinate group(joint council)

Each chamber maintains its own identity, funding, membership while working within the realm of the joint council shared goals.

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*(Pittinsky and Simon 2007) In their article Intergroup leadership explored increasing positive intergroup attitudes article was published at the time this work had been initiated.Pettigrew & Tropp (2006) 203 studies meta-analysis revealed that contact typically reduces intergroup prejudice even beyond immediate contact situation.*Highly cohesive groups form a strong concurrence-seeking norm a phenomenon called by Janis as groupthink- often develop a stereotyped view of the otugroup as evil.Extension curriculum committees that work from leadership and civic engagement

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*Campbells (1965) Campbells - Theory Negative intergroup behavior may arise simply because the competition is for real resourcesSherif et al.s (1961)Robbers Cave Study conflict reduced when groups have to achieve a goal that requires them to work together ( superordinate goal). Superordinate goal reduces in grop/outgroup distinctions and help group members recategorize their own group identity *

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