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Introduction

            A leader is an individual who can create a vision of the future and inspire and motivate people to move towards that vision. One of the great leaders in the American history is Sarah Breedlove popularly known as Madame C.J Walker. Born in 1867, Madame was an American entrepreneur and philanthropist (Henderson, 1994). She was one of the first African American self-made millionaires in the country. Madame made her fortunes in the beauty industry by selling hair care and cosmetics products through the company she founded by the name “Madame C.J Walker manufacturing company” (Stille, 2016). Madame died in 1919 at the age of 51from hypertension complications and kidney failure (Stille, 2016). Walker was a great leader and a successful business woman because she managed to build a multimillion company, created job opportunities for thousands of people and participated in philanthropic work.

            In the late 1880s, Breedlove developed a scalp disorder that affected the growth of her hair. Walker began consulting her brothers and in due course began experimenting with both hair care treatments and homemade remedies in an attempt to manage the effects of the disorder. After moving to Denver in 1905, she realized she could develop her own products. She changed her name to Madame C.J Walker and established her own company. Her husband helped her with advertisements. The business started selling a scalp healing treatment that Sarah argued had been revealed in a dream (Prieto et al., 2019).

            The business grew significantly within a very short period of time and she was able to expand the business to new locations. In 1908, she opened a factory and a Lelia College in Pittsburg. In this college, she taught hair culturists scalp treatment method to her students. Business operations were transferred to Indianapolis by 1910 as the company had become highly Successful.The Company continued to expand in the early 20th century and also provided training to sales beauticians. These beauticians became agents for the company and advocate for Walkers philosophy of “cleanliness and loveliness” (Stille, 2016).

            In the late 1800s and early 1900s, most African American women could not get decent jobs. Some of them were jobless and depended on their husbands for their upkeep. Recognizing this trend, Walker established a college and trained other women especially black American women to become beauty culturists. During the peak of her career, between 1911 and 1919 Madame and her company created job opportunities for thousands of women who worked as sales agents (Phipps & Prieto, 2018).

            The company had trained more than twenty thousand women by the end of 1917. These agents normally dressed on black skirts and white shirts and visited houses across the United States offering the company’s products. Additionally, Madam encouraged women to become financially independent by showing them how to budget and establish their own enterprises. She organized women who she had trained into local clubs and states in 1917. This led to development of the “National Beauty Culturists and Benevolent Association of Madam C. J. Walker agents” (Stille, 2016). After her death, the company expanded further and entered to new territories crated thousands of jobs for women.

            As Madame’s wealth increased, she became more vocal about her ideas. She was also more involved in organizations and less fortunate in the society. One of her most notable contributions was $1000 to the “Young Men’s Christian Association” (Stille, 2016). Madame also provides scholarships for students at several black boarding schools and colleges as well as financial support retirements homes, orphanages and to preserve Frederick Douglass’s home. Her college allowed women from poor communities to gain knowledge and skills to help them become financially independent. Madame was committed to give back to the community through other similar initiatives (Phipps & Prieto, 2018).

            Other beneficiaries of her philanthropy include Haines Normal and Industrial Institute and Palmer memorial institute. Walker also became more vocal on political matters. She advocated for African American soldiers who participated in the World War I in France. She also spoke against lynching in 1917. She also delivered numerous lectures on social, political and economic issues at various conventions. Before she died, Madame pledge $5000 to the anti-lynching fund. Her contribution in the political arena was significant and cannot be ignored. 

            In conclusion, Madame C.J Walker was a great leader and a successful business woman because she managed to build a multimillion company, created job opportunities for thousands of people and participated in philanthropic work. Under her leadership, Madame C.J Walker grew and expanded to different locations in the United State and other countries. Her company created numerous jobs for women who would have otherwise remained jobless. She also encouraged women to establish their own companies and become financially independent by training them how to budget. Her political contribution also helped to create a democratic America where the rights of all individuals are respected.

References

Henderson, A. B. (1994). Feldman, Lynne B., and John N. Ingham, African-American Business Leaders: A Biographical Dictionary (Book Review). Business History Review, 68(2), 289. Retrieved from https://search.proquest.com/openview/7e8e65cc613bb35914684111342e4604/1?pq-origsite=gscholar&cbl=1816411

Phipps, S. T., & Prieto, L. C. (2018). The business of black beauty: social entrepreneurship or social injustice?. Journal of Management History. Retrieved from https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/JMH-06-2017-0029/full/html

Prieto, L. C., Phipps, S. T., Prieto, L. C., & Phipps, S. T. (2019). The Beauty of Entrepreneurship: A Tribute to Two Pioneering Social Entrepreneurs', African American Management History: Insights on Gaining a Cooperative Advantage. Retrieved from https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/978-1-78756-659-020191008/full/html

Stille, D. R. (2016). Madam CJ Walker: The Inspiring Life Story of the Hair Care Entrepreneur. Capstone. Retrieved from https://books.google.co.ke/books?hl=en&lr=&id=dA7ZDAAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PA5&dq=Madame+C.J.+Walker+&ots=W1zv2qinct&sig=E1q6OrG2RxjkKDBYDG-Kyd4glNg&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=Madame%20C.J.%20Walker&f=false