Business

Beal, Bernard is the chief executive and top deal maker of the fourth largest black-owned investment bank in the country. The New York-based firm senior and comanaged more than $71 billion in total issues in 2001.

Bracy, Adrian is the VP of Finance for the NFL’s St. Louis Rams where she prepares and implements the annual budget and monthly financial reporting. She previously worked for the Miami Dolphins. She also serves on the board of Girls Inc. of St. Louis and the advisory council of the St. Louis branch of the United Negro College Fund.

Branford III, Napoleon is the Co-Founder & Chairman Siebert Brandford Shank & Co., L.L.C. He contributes to the strategic planning and business development of this top-rated minority- and women-owned municipal bond underwriting firm with $38 billion in senior and comanaged issues.

Burns, Ursula M. is the President / Corporate Senior VP of Business Group Operations / Xerox Corp. She currently heads a $12 billion division of the company that generates 75% of its $15.7 billion in revenues. She serves on the board of American Express and Boston Scientific Corp.

Fuller, Vicki L. is the SVP & Senior Portfolio Manager for Alliance Capital Management Corp. which has nearly $550 billion in assets. From endowments to foundations, pension plans to individuals, Fuller and her team oversee an extensive platform of fixed income portfolios.

Hughes, Cathy (b. April 22, 1947) is an entrepreneur and radio and television personality. She founded Radio One in 1979. Hughes and Radio One went on to own 70 radio stations in nine major markets in the U.S. In January 2004, Radio One launched TV One, a national cable and satellite television network. In September 2007, TV One surpassed the 40 million mark in total household subscribers.

Johnson, Earvin “Magic” (b. August 14, 1959) can easily be listed on the sports or advocacy pages. The NBA Hall of Famer truly thrived after retiring from the NBA in 1992 (once he was diagnosed with HIV). He convinced Starbucks, T.G.I. Friday’s, and Loews theaters to locate to inner city communities such as South Central LA and Harlem. Since 1992, he has built an estimated $700 million portfolio. His companies include Johnson Development, Magic Johnson Enterprises, Magic Johnson Foundation. Johnson Development specializes in building projects in urban neighborhoods.

Jordan Jr, Vernon E.serves as one of the senior executives at Lazard Frères, working to meet the investment banking needs of a diverse group of clients across a broad range of industries. He has held several presidential appointments and holds more than a dozen corporate board of director positions.

Morse, Larry is co-founder of Fairview Capital a Connecticut-based private equity firm. With over $2.5 billion in capital under management, Fairview is the nation’s largest black-owned private equity fund.

Reynolds Jr., Jim is the co-founder and Chairman of Loop Capital Markets, L.L.C. He runs one of the fastest growing investment banking firms in America. It ranked #2 on Black Enterprise’s 2007 List of the best investment banks. Reynolds is responsible for over $124 billion dollars.

Singletary, Michelle, is more than just a journalist writing about money. This business and management expert writes books, hosts TV and radio shows and is has the entrepreneurial spirit she teaches. A nationally syndicated columnist for The Washington Post, her column, “The Color of Money” is carried in more than 140 newspapers across the country. The second season of “Singletary Says”, her national TV program (TV One) where she visits people in their homes to help resolve various financial issues, debuted in November 2006.

Winfrey, Oprah is more than a talk show host and humanitarian, she is a powerful businesswoman. Her assets are worth an estimated $1.3 billion. She turns books into best-sellers through her book club, and O, The Oprah Magazine boasts some 13 million readers; at last calculation her magazine brought in revenues of $214 million.