Where You Are Is Not Who You Are

A Memoir

By: Ursula Burns

Narrated by: Ursula Burns

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 35-year career at Xerox was all about fixing things, from cutting millions to save the company from bankruptcy to a daring six-billion-dollar 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.

©2021 Ursula Burns (P)2021 HarperCollins Publishers

True trailblazer

Great synopsis of a journey well travelled. Loved this book. So many similar story lines. Thank you for sharing.

very well written book!

I enjoyed this book very much. The complexity of her career along with the ups, downs & delicate relationships she has cultivated over decades is very impressive.

I was in tears! My role model since 18!

Wow. It was truly a joy to read this memoir of someone I look up to with deep respect. Through the telling of her story my heart warmed noticing the similarities in our Catholic school upbringings, engineering majors, and career tenacity. I am so energized to continue on my corporate journey. Thank you Ursula!!! I definitely cried at the end. I appreciate you more than you know! - signed a little Black girl from Chicago <3

Excellent!

Loved it! Thank you for sharing so many facets of life with us. Very inspired!

Real, down-to-earth CEO perpective

Loved this book! Told from a very unique perspective . highly recommend you read it.

Really enjoyed it!

Ursula Burns’ story is fascinating and instructive on so many levels. A must read especially for young people of color who have ambitions of leadership.

Passionate and also highly informative!

A must for any young woman looking to grow, climb lead abd succeed. She balances true examples of leadership and her story beautifully

A must read

I recommend this book for any aspiring executive. Ursula so transparently shares her experience and it is as if she sees and gives voice to every person who has walked this journey.

The Hon. Ursula Burns

You book was so moving. I downloaded it after you recently spoke at Spelman College for President Campbell’s Courageous Conversation. You are the brilliance a mother hopes for. I teared up each time you teared up, especially at the end. I too recently lost my husband of 34 years. When you begin to speak about his transition, I teared up at the same time you did. Your story is wonderful and needed to be told.
Congratulations on all things well-done!

A Strong Leader

I have been interested in learning about Ursula Burnes’ story for years and am happy I now know more about her. I enjoyed the book and in particular, hearing her narrate and deliver her own story to get the most impact. She really rose to amazing heights from her humble beginnings and I have a lot of respect for her. Plus I like that the story wasn’t terribly long yet was engaging and interesting throughout.