Where You Are Is Not Who You Are: A Memoir
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- Create Date：2021-07-15 11:31:02
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Ursula Burns
- ISBN：1665097671
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Summary
The first Black female CEO of a Fortune 500 company looks back at her life and her career at Xerox， sharing unique insights on American business and corporate life， the workers she has always valued， racial and economic justice， how greed is threatening democracy， and the obstacles she’s conquered being Black and a woman。
“I am a black woman， I do not play golf， I do not belong to or go to country clubs， I do not like NASCAR， I do not listen to country music， and I have a masters degree in engineering。 I， like a typical New Yorker， speak very fast， with an accent and vernacular that is definitely New York City， definitely Black。 So when someone says I’m going to introduce you to the next CEO of Xerox， and the options are lined up against a wall， I would be the first one voted off the island。”
In 2009， when she was appointed the Chief Executive Officer of the Xerox Corporation， Ursula Burns shattered the glass ceiling and made headlines。 But the media missed the real story， she insists。 “It should have been ‘how did this happen？ How did Xerox Corporation produce the first African American woman CEO？’ Not this spectacular story titled， “Oh， my God， a Black woman making it。”
In this smart， no-nonsense book， part memoir and part cultural critique， Burns writes movingly about her journey from tenement housing on Manhattan’s Lower East Side to the highest echelons of the corporate world。 She credits her success to her poor single Panamanian mother， Olga Racquel Burns—a licensed child-care provider whose highest annual income was $4，400—who set no limits on what her children could achieve。 Ursula recounts her own dedication to education and hard work， and how she took advantage of the opportunities and social programs created by the Civil Rights and Women’s movements to pursue engineering at Polytechnic Institute of New York。
Burns writes about overcoming the barriers she faced， as well as the challenges and realities of the corporate world。 Her classmates and colleagues—almost all white males—“couldn’t comprehend how a Black girl could be as smart， and in some cases， smarter than they were。 They made a developed category for me。 Unique。 Amazing。 Spectacular。 That way they could accept me。” Her thirty-five-year career at Xerox was all about fixing things， from cutting millions to save the company from bankruptcy to a daring $6 billion acquisition to secure its future。 Ursula also worked closely with President Barack Obama as a lead on his STEM initiative and Chair of his Export council， where she traveled with him on an official trade mission to Cuba， and became one of his greatest admirers。
Candid and outspoken， Ursula offers a remarkable look inside the c-suites of corporate America through the eyes of a Black woman—someone who puts humanity over greed and justice over power。 She compares the impact of the pandemic to the financial crisis of 2007， condemns how corporate culture is destroying the spirit of democracy， and worries about the workers whose lives are being upended by technology。 Empathetic and dedicated， idealistic and pragmatic， Ursula demonstrates that， no matter your circumstances， hard work， grit and a bit of help along the way can change your life—and the world。
“I am a black woman， I do not play golf， I do not belong to or go to country clubs， I do not like NASCAR， I do not listen to country music， and I have a masters degree in engineering。 I， like a typical New Yorker， speak very fast， with an accent and vernacular that is definitely New York City， definitely Black。 So when someone says I’m going to introduce you to the next CEO of Xerox， and the options are lined up against a wall， I would be the first one voted off the island。”
In 2009， when she was appointed the Chief Executive Officer of the Xerox Corporation， Ursula Burns shattered the glass ceiling and made headlines。 But the media missed the real story， she insists。 “It should have been ‘how did this happen？ How did Xerox Corporation produce the first African American woman CEO？’ Not this spectacular story titled， “Oh， my God， a Black woman making it。”
In this smart， no-nonsense book， part memoir and part cultural critique， Burns writes movingly about her journey from tenement housing on Manhattan’s Lower East Side to the highest echelons of the corporate world。 She credits her success to her poor single Panamanian mother， Olga Racquel Burns—a licensed child-care provider whose highest annual income was $4，400—who set no limits on what her children could achieve。 Ursula recounts her own dedication to education and hard work， and how she took advantage of the opportunities and social programs created by the Civil Rights and Women’s movements to pursue engineering at Polytechnic Institute of New York。
Burns writes about overcoming the barriers she faced， as well as the challenges and realities of the corporate world。 Her classmates and colleagues—almost all white males—“couldn’t comprehend how a Black girl could be as smart， and in some cases， smarter than they were。 They made a developed category for me。 Unique。 Amazing。 Spectacular。 That way they could accept me。” Her thirty-five-year career at Xerox was all about fixing things， from cutting millions to save the company from bankruptcy to a daring $6 billion acquisition to secure its future。 Ursula also worked closely with President Barack Obama as a lead on his STEM initiative and Chair of his Export council， where she traveled with him on an official trade mission to Cuba， and became one of his greatest admirers。
Candid and outspoken， Ursula offers a remarkable look inside the c-suites of corporate America through the eyes of a Black woman—someone who puts humanity over greed and justice over power。 She compares the impact of the pandemic to the financial crisis of 2007， condemns how corporate culture is destroying the spirit of democracy， and worries about the workers whose lives are being upended by technology。 Empathetic and dedicated， idealistic and pragmatic， Ursula demonstrates that， no matter your circumstances， hard work， grit and a bit of help along the way can change your life—and the world。
Reviews
Sharon Griffitts
，
This book started a bit slowly for me but improving as I continued to read。 Ursula began life in poverty in the projects in NYC。 Her mother’s belief in her child and insistence they work hard propelled Ursula and her brother to seek and find success。 As a bit of a pioneer myself， having graduated from medical school on 1975 when there were only a handful of women I identified with her position as a black female in a school of engineering。 Role models were hard to come by。Interestingly we share a This book started a bit slowly for me but improving as I continued to read。 Ursula began life in poverty in the projects in NYC。 Her mother’s belief in her child and insistence they work hard propelled Ursula and her brother to seek and find success。 As a bit of a pioneer myself， having graduated from medical school on 1975 when there were only a handful of women I identified with her position as a black female in a school of engineering。 Role models were hard to come by。Interestingly we share another similarity in that we both married much older men in our profession。 Ms Burns does not shy away from revealing her faults which I admire。 Also she constantly refers to her mother’s hard work and sacrifices in caring for her children。 She includes many admonishments received from her mom。 My favorite: Don’t let the world happen to you。 You happen to the world。 。。。more
Jill Reads
，
Ursula is a badass and the world's first Black female CEO。 Her memoir about her 3+ decades at Xerox was an up and down ride， with mostly ups。 She doesn't pull any punches with how challenging it is to be a female on the rise in corporate America。 And an African American one at that！ Ursula earned her coveted seat at Boardroom tables across the world--and even in the Situation Room and on Air Force One。 She is to be applauded for her tenacity， grit and her ability to work harder than anyone else Ursula is a badass and the world's first Black female CEO。 Her memoir about her 3+ decades at Xerox was an up and down ride， with mostly ups。 She doesn't pull any punches with how challenging it is to be a female on the rise in corporate America。 And an African American one at that！ Ursula earned her coveted seat at Boardroom tables across the world--and even in the Situation Room and on Air Force One。 She is to be applauded for her tenacity， grit and her ability to work harder than anyone else in the room。 Because when you're a Black female， you have to。 Everyones eyes are on you。 I admire her greatly for speaking the truth about her failures and how she learned from them。 At times， she was harsh and abrasive and was called out for it。 Even by the CEO whose position she would eventually succeed。 But Ursula is an engineer by trade， and she gets things done。 She isn't the nurturing type and didn't change who she was （at the heart of herself） to become one of the most powerful women in business。 I'm grateful for the chance to read an advanced copy of this book， via NetGalley， and listen to the audio version on the Cloud Library app。 。。。more
Lolita
，
To work hard and become a CEO of a Fortune 500 Company along with being an African American Woman in a world full of change and challenges is hard but attainable and well deserved， especially when we see men mostly in these roles。 In this book the Author explains how to find balance between work and family and with that comes Opportunities， Dedication， and Purpose。 She believes everyone has a story， you just have to slow down and put pen to paper and allow your mind to share， because your story To work hard and become a CEO of a Fortune 500 Company along with being an African American Woman in a world full of change and challenges is hard but attainable and well deserved， especially when we see men mostly in these roles。 In this book the Author explains how to find balance between work and family and with that comes Opportunities， Dedication， and Purpose。 She believes everyone has a story， you just have to slow down and put pen to paper and allow your mind to share， because your story will allow other women of color and all races see if she can do it， so can you！Diva Reviewer - Vicki 。。。more
Abi
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