Profile: Andrea Harris

At a time when businesses around the world might not feel like celebrating, Andrea Harris' enthusiasm for North Carolina's economic climate and spirit of collaboration is infectious.

"You just don't find in other states the level of collaboration and partnership that you have here," says Harris, president of the Institute of Minority Economic Development (IMED), a statewide nonprofit organization headquartered in Durham. As example of North Carolina's collaborative spirit, Harris cites the N.C. Dept. of Commerce and its partnerships with local agencies, colleges and non-profit organizations such as the N.C. Biotechnology Center. 

"I do brag on North Carolina, and I don't think there's another state like it even in difficult times. I look today at people who talk about what the unemployment rate is, and I say to folks, 'You know, years ago when so many states had lots of people who were poor, the one thing about North Carolina's population is, they worked.' And it's a matter of time before they're back to work again. It's a good place to be."

According to its mission statement, IMED represents "underdeveloped and underutilized sectors of the state's economic base."  Information and business development are key components of the institute's working philosophy, and its business development initiatives are based within the "three M's" - money, markets and management. The institute also seeks to promote North Carolina's diverse population as a business asset.

The idea for The Institute of Minority Economic Development came about in the 1980s when Harris worked to help minority businesses and small businesses for the N.C. Dept. of Commerce. Often she would host informal meetings between them and the larger corporate community. Harris says the need for a formal bridge between small- and minority-owned businesses and the corporate community became apparent.

In 1986 the institute was incorporated as a non-profit, starting off in the hallway of a CPA firm in Durham. The institute grew quickly, eventually settling into a historic building on Parrish Street, known as Black Wall Street for its economic importance to the African-American community in the early 20th century. There it grew from being mainly a policy organization to one that offers hands-on training through sub-centers like the Minority Business Enterprise Center, the Women's Business Center and the Minority Executive Education Institute.

One local business woman who has benefitted from IMED is  Durham's Lisa Pineiro, a client of the institute's Women's Business Center, who was named North Carolina's 2009 Small Business Person of the Year and was selected to introduce President Barack Obama at the 2009 SBA Awards Banquet in Washington D.C.  The Women's Business Center is a partnership program between the U.S. Small Business Administrations and IMED.

Pineiro, who owned a beauty salon before opening Technical Services, Inc., an electrical contracting firm, was able to get the business advice she needed to keep her business afloat. Not only did the institute give her legal advice and guidance on how to advance in a male-dominated industry, it also gave her significant scholarships to attend training sessions at UNC-Chapel Hill and Duke. Pineiro is returning the favor by teaching seminars through the institute aimed at helping other women business owners in male-dominated industries.

"They're my biggest cheerleaders," says Pineiro of IMED.  "They congratulate me. They make sure I feel special. Sometimes small business owners, you forget that you're working for the greater good. I am contributing to our local economy, and I'm making a difference in our community."

Other IMED programs teach college students about paying off student debt, and why putting a pizza on a credit card isn't a good idea. And, through the institute's Healthy Workplace Initiatives Program, men are being made aware of North Carolina's prostate cancer rates and learning the importance of regular check -ups.

But Harris, who has worked throughout the Southeast, believes that North Carolina provides the ideal setting for the institute's efforts to work.

"We might have challenges but the one thing North Carolina is, it's more collaborative than most other places, and I've worked in these other places."

"I brag to people about North Carolina," she says. "I do believe North Carolina has a broad vision. I do believe North Carolina is a very inclusive state. When I'm in North Carolina I may talk about what's not happening, but when I step outside of North Carolina, I cannot be prouder, because, seriously, there's no other state that I've been in like North Carolina."