The Bradford-Osborne Research 2021 Award recognizes
Robert Fairlie
Professor of Economics, University of California, Santa Cruz
Tuesday, November 2, 2021
Following a presentation of his work, Professor Fairlie joined Bill Bradford, Al Osborne and Rachel Atkins, Assistant Professor/Faculty Fellow at NYU Stern for a panel discussion to explore on fertile areas for future academic research on race and entrepreneurship.
Peter Younkin (University of Oregon, Lundquist College of Business) and Venkat Kuppuswamy (Northeastern University, D’Amore-McKim School of Business) are the inaugural award winners for their paper “ The Colorblind Crowd? Founder Race and Performance in Crowdfunding” ( Management Science, 2017). The review committee was impressed by the unique combination of methods and concrete/evidence-based recommendations regarding the disadvantage that African American men face when attempting to raise funding.
Timothy Bates, distinguished professor of economics at Wayne State University (retired), is the inaugural Lifetime Leadership Award winner. Since 1973, Bates has published nearly 100 peer-reviewed articles, 30 articles in business and mainstream publications, and five books on issues related to entrepreneurs of color. Prior to teaching at Wayne State, he was chair of the urban policy analysis graduate programs and professor of urban policy analysis at the New School for Social Research as well as chair of the Department of Economics at the University of Vermont. Bates has also taught at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, UC Berkeley and UCLA. He received his Ph.D. in economics from the University of Wisconsin.
William "Bill" Bradford
Emeritus Dean and Emeritus Professor, Foster School of Business, University of Washington
Alfred E. Osborne, Jr.
Professor and Faculty Director, Price Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation, UCLA Anderson School of Management
The Bradford-Osborne Research Award is named for its founders, Bill Bradford and Al Osborne, who, over their 40-plus-year careers, have published more than 60 research articles focused on entrepreneurs of color and the dynamics of their businesses. Their funding of this award is yet another of their many innovations.
In addition to recognizing groundbreaking research, the award seeks to stimulate additional research, provide public and corporate policymakers with insights to guide decision making and equip business support organizations to deliver impactful programming.
While not often in the spotlight, small businesses in the U.S. account for nearly 50% of the private-sector workforce. Between 2002 and 2016, small businesses owned by people of color added 4 million new employees, accounting for all the net new jobs at small businesses. While these businesses are adding employees at a faster rate than those of their white peers, they remain smaller and more fragile. Research like that done by Bradford and Osborne addresses both the opportunities and challenges for these businesses.
William “Bill” Bradford is an emeritus dean and emeritus professor of the University of Washington’s Foster School of Business. Alfred E. Osborne, Jr., is the founder and faculty director of the Harold and Pauline Price Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation at the UCLA Anderson School of Management, where he is also a professor of global economics, management and entrepreneurship.
The online application for the 2022 Bradford-Osborne Award will be available in November and must be submitted by March 31, 2022. For more information or to be notified when the application is available, please contact Michael Verchot at mverchot@uw.edu.