HBS Online Helped This Entrepreneur Apply a Global Perspective to His Local Community

As a child growing up in Muskegon, Michigan, Franklin Akil Fudail spent most of his time playing football and basketball. He didn't apply himself in school, and his grades suffered. Yet, at the start of his senior year, he stumbled upon a book about stocks and bonds that changed his life forever.

"Something about that book made me decide to apply myself in school instead of sports," Fudail says. "I realized if I worked hard, I could be a good student because what you do most is what you do best."

It was like a switch flipped. He stopped going to lunch and went to the library instead. For fun, he read The Wall Street Journal and business press. He wanted to be an entrepreneur like the people he read about.

"One of the proudest moments of my life was when I made the honor roll senior year in high school," Fudail says. "My grandmother was so proud. She took my report card to the restaurant where she worked to show it off. That was a big deal. I decided to go to college—something I had never considered before."

At that point, Fudail adopted four principles for life: honor, respect, discipline, and service. He traded sports for studies and set himself on the path toward becoming an entrepreneur—first in business and later in education.

He caught a Greyhound bus for a 13-hour ride to Wilberforce, Ohio, enrolling at Central State University to major in business. His determination to succeed continued through college, where he made the Dean's List throughout.

"I took as many courses as possible," Fudail says. "I didn't go to parties because I took my education seriously. I was a late bloomer academically, so I felt I had to make up time. More importantly, I wanted to continue to make my family proud."

That included his grandmother, who worked at the same restaurant for 44 years and was devoted to her job. That's where he says he got his work ethic—which didn't go unrecognized by his peers. Fudail was unanimously elected president of the National Student Business League and ranked at the top of Central State University's College of Business. After graduation, he moved back to Muskegon to start a business career.

Fudail accepted a public service job in city planning. From there, he joined the Brunswick Bowling Products company in a finance role. The company offered to pay for him to attend graduate school, but he declined to focus on entrepreneurship. He later served as an accountant for a housing commission before starting his own business in global trade.

"I got the biggest, fanciest office in town, but I had very limited revenue at first," Fudail says. "I never left the country, but I became a broker to help farmers and others find international buyers for their products. I also started a global business publication that promoted exporting."

In the process, he recognized the need for a local newspaper, starting the Muskegon Tribune in 2001. He understood sales yet knew nothing about running a newspaper, but was confident he could figure it out. Ten years in, he noticed new media popping up. To remain competitive, he started a classic rock radio station.

"I needed a lot of money fast to fund my businesses, and, around that time, my mom had a massive stroke and needed 24-hour care," he says. "A friend got me involved with promoting boxing matches at a local casino, which brought in money. I was able to present the local hospital with a big check in the boxing ring at one of my fights to thank them for taking such good care of her."

He was running the newspaper and doing boxing promotion on the side when he became alarmed by the community's low literacy rate. He wanted to help address the problem, so he created an afterschool program for kids at a local boxing club to tutor them in academics, manners, and discipline.

"My mom had enrolled me in boxing when I was eight years old because she wanted to make sure I was strong and could defend myself," Fudail says. "That experience was good for me, and I knew it would keep local kids from running the streets. But my true aim was to help kids overcome the challenges reading and math presented to a lot of young people. The group I recruited was 'rough and tumble,' so to get them to behave and focus, I ran it like a military program, with concepts I learned from reading books on military training."

The afterschool program was successful, and inspired Fudail to create a charter school built around his four guiding principles: honor, respect, discipline, and service. He embarked on a multi-year effort to open a military academy for grades K-5. Called the Muskegon Maritime Academy, its goals were to improve literacy rates, provide a focus on science, technology, engineering, and math, and teach students self-defense, self-confidence, and teamwork. To help the students succeed, he got help from a Navy SEAL to make the academy more structured than a typical elementary school.

While creating the school, Fudail decided to continue his business education, finding Harvard Business School Online's Global Business course. Though initially skeptical about online learning, the experience changed his mind. He was surprised to find he felt like he was really in school. He especially liked studying with business professionals from more than 100 countries worldwide.

"HBS Online made a believer out of me and exceeded my expectations," Fudail says. "It was better than sitting in a classroom because I was able to build relationships with brilliant classmates from places like Brazil, Kenya, and India. I learned so much from hearing their stories. It changed my whole perspective."

In the fall of 2022, the Muskegon Maritime Academy opened its doors with five classrooms and approximately 100 students.

"Everything I'm striving to do at the school came from the boxing club program I had started and financed 18 years ago," Fudail says. "I want to continue to give back."

Fudail plans to continue running the school and his other ventures while always exploring new possibilities.

As his favorite saying goes, "You only achieve what you strive for."

Are you interested in advancing your career and developing a global perspective? Explore HBS Online's four-week Global Business course.