Chen and Jawed Karim and Yahoo! cofounder Jerry Yang, to journalist Connie Chung and current NBA sensation Jeremy Lin, Asian and Pacific Americans have designated themselves in every aspect of American life. From the first Japanese and Chinese immigrants in the nineteenth century to today’s influx of Filipinos and Indians, Asian- and Pacific-Americans’ heritage represents one of the most vast and diverse continents, with a wide mixture of religions, ethnicities, and political views. New immigrants contribute to further diversity amongst the Asian- and PacificAmerican population. Correlating with Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month this June, Diversity Journal takes a closer look at Asian and Pacific Americans in business. Through history, trends, stereotypes and values, learn more about this underexposed minority with a long history of business evolution, growth, and success.
Asian-American Small Businesses Why do they do it? Ethnic communities have grown immensely within the past forty-five years, encouraging economic growth in these enclaves. The prevalence of Chinatowns, Koreatowns, and Little Siagons show the variety of Asian-American shops, purveying everything from food to flowers. According to the U.S. Census, Asian Americans, more than any other ethnicity, are most likely to own their own small businesses. A whopping quarter of all Koreans are self-employed, with more than 27% of foreign-born Koreans owning their own businesses. Experts and academics have attributed small business growth to the fact that many immigrants find it difficult to find a “regular job,” most often due to their lack of English fluency or employer discrimination. Therefore, they enter into business, thus creating a job for
RAVI KAPOOR Rockwell Collins
LISA WONG LACKLAND Lewis and Roca LLP
EDUARDO KIM Thompson Hine LLP
SHERIN KOSHY The PNC Financial Services Group
ROBBIN NARIKE PRECIADO Union Bank
themselves and often their families, too. This theory is true for most immigrants and ethnic minorities. Using family (and other cultural resources,) is another reason why many immigrants enter into business. Having this labor plus a network that will help set up and grow the business is important. Opening a business in an ethnic enclave, too, is often a guaranteed business success. “The passion to start my own business began formulating ever since I was a little kid. I would always observe and admire my father’s leadership and management ethics while he ran his manufacturing business in Taiwan,” said Wendy Shen, President and CEO of FLOMO/Nygala Corp. “The lessons he taught me in business, coupled with the enjoyment I got out of coaching people and being creative, gave me the experience and power to make my own business dream a reality.” Over time, Asian Americans have evolved their businesses from shops and services, like nail salons, groceries, and restaurants, to professional and skilled services, including law, medicine, and technology. Through integration and moving out of the ethnic enclaves where the former services are located and profitable, this process continues. “Asian Americans have come a long way in the last two decades when you would only see Asian doctors and cab drivers in the U.S. Now Asian Americans have truly come into mainstream America and entered various industries and fields, although Asians Americans have still a long way to go and a lot of things to learn about the art of management and leadership,” said Ravi Kapoor, Director of Business Analytics at Rockwell Collins. Partner at Lewis and Roca LLP Lisa Wong Lackland affirmed this trend: “It’s encouraging to see that law is becoming a more prevalent career choice for Asian Americans.” Added Eduardo Kim, a partner in
May/June 2012
WWW.DIVERSITYJOURNAL.COM
57