Immigrant, Inc.: Why Immigrant Entrepreneurs Are Driving the New Economy (and how they will save the American worker)

America has a long history of immigrants arriving and finding business success, building industry pillars like Carnegie Steel and Goldman Sachs, as well as the mom and pop shops that anchored generations of ethnic neighborhoods. This tradition of immigrant entrepreneurship, so important during the industrial era, is exploding in the New Economy. With little fanfare, immigrants are creating businesses and jobs at astonishing rates. The easing of immigration restrictions in 1965 allowed for a surge of many highly skilled immigrants from non-European nations. This influx of talent fell into the detail work of advanced technology and asserted itself in an age of innovation.  The common immigrant traits of thrift, courage and family loyalty lent themselves to start ups. The result is a bold new class of entrepreneurs. Its members founded Google, Intel, Yahoo! Sun Microsystems, Cirrus Logic, Hotmail and eBay. And those are just the superstars. In industries large and small, and in communities across the land, immigrants are behind much of the innovation and job creation. It is a powerful phenomenon and one unfolding largely beneath the public radar.

Strangely, today, many people think of immigrants as low-skill workers who depress wages.  IMMIGRANT, INC: Why Immigrant Entrepreneurs Are Driving the New Economy (John Wiley & Sons; November 2009; $29.95) reveals another side of the immigrant equation. It is a powerful new book that details the many highly skilled, highly motivated immigrants who are driving the New Economy and transforming communities. Written by an immigration lawyer who represents immigrant entrepreneurs and by a journalist who specializes in international culture, this book is both a toolkit and motivational call to action, beseeching r Americans to reconnect to the entrepreneurial survival skills honed by their immigrant forefathers.

           Focusing on legal immigrants and how they gain a competitive edge in a global economy, the authors’ offer an insider’s perspective and a fascinating look into the mindset of the most successful entrepreneurs of the era. IMMIGRANT, INC reveals the unique entrepreneurial skills of the small business owners in urban centers as well as the mindset of bold capitalists who are building the industry pillars of the future, like Boston battery-maker A123Systems.

            IMMIGRANT, INC explains why immigrants are more likely to start a business and strive to be their own boss as it documents the astonishing rate of entrepreneurship already underway.  Readers learn why America’s immigrants are far more likely than non-immigrants to launch a company in not only technology but in industries like the arts, transportation, and the hospitality industries.  While it is a commonly accepted fact that immigrants are often hard-working and high-achieving, this book explores the motivations and the cultural traits behind that success story.

            Whether you are a CEO, a civic leader, or an entrepreneur, IMMIGRANT, INC offers useful insight into a powerful phenomenon. It warns of the peril of anti-immigrant attitudes and a hostile immigration process while explaining how any American can tap their "inner immigrant" to transform their lives and their companies.

Immigrant Inc. is a book that will forever change the way you look at immigrants--and America.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS:

Richard T. Herman is the founder of Richard T. Herman & Associates, an immigration and business law firm in Cleveland, Ohio, which serves a global clientele in over ten languages. He is the co-founder of a chapter of TiE, a global network of entrepreneurs started in 1992 in Silicon Valley. He has appeared on ABC's 20/20, National Public Radio, Fox News, and various affiliates of NBC, CBS, and ABC. He has also been quoted in such publications as USA Today, InformationWeek, PC World, Computerworld, CIO, Site Selection, and National Lawyers Weekly.

Robert L. Smith is a veteran journalist who covers international cultures and immigration for The Plain Dealer, Ohio's largest newspaper. He has written extensively about immigration issues and has interviewed people at all points of the immigrant experience, from undocumented field workers to millionaire entrepreneurs.

 IMMIGRANT, INC.

Why Immigrant Entrepreneurs Are Driving the New Economy

(and how they will save the American worker)

Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Publication date: November 16, 2009

$29.95; Hardcover; 256 pages; ISBN: 978-0-470-45571-5