Carla Ann Harris at Morgan Stanley

This case follows Carla Ann Harris, an African-American executive on Wall Street, from her childhood to the eve of her 20th year at Morgan Stanley. In addition to her professional identity as an investment banker, Harris is also an accomplished gospel singer, an observant Catholic, a philanthropist, a public speaker, and a writer. Along with her successes and accomplishments, she has also faced setbacks and challenges. Despite the negative experiences African-American women face on Wall Street, Harris feels she has been successful because she "brings her authentic self to the table." A unique aspect of Harris' story is that throughout her journey she nourishes other aspects of her identity, such as her singing, her devotion to her faith, and her desire to help others—a difficult feat in the financial services industry given the culture of long hours, competitiveness, and cynicism. The case ends with a career decision: Harris must decide whether to start an ambitious program for emerging female and minority asset managers (the Emerging Manager Program or EMP). The program represents a way to bring together her professional expertise and personal passion to help people thrive in their work, but like all entrepreneurial ventures it has associated risks. The case helps students to understand how one's own identities are central to one's career development, relationship building, and professional growth; to consider how maintaining unique aspects of oneself can help people succeed in a challenging organizational culture; and to provide a forum for discussing issues of race and gender in a profession in which there are few minorities and women at senior levels.