Ursula Burns grew up on the Lower East Side of Manhattan in a low-income housing project. Her single mother raised three children, juggling several jobs at once in order to put Ursula and her siblings through quality schools. Burns has been candid that she has been financially savvy from the start and sought an undergraduate education and master’s degree from programs that paid for her to learn. Burns got her big break with Xerox in the summer of 1980 as a mechanical engineering intern with the company that was serendipitously supporting minorities at the time with a graduate engineering program. Burns was immediately hired by Xerox as a full-time employee and the rest is copy history. She powered through managerial roles in both engineering and management and landed the coveted position of Xerox president in 2007 and two years later in 2009, CEO. She capped it off by accepting the job of Chairman of the Board in 2010. At 63 years old, Burns is as committed as ever to being a bold leader in the push to support minority women in the business world.  

Burns’ paternal grandfather arrived in Panama from Nicaragua to work on the construction of the incredibly innovative Panama Canal. Americans are often taught the history of this magnificent structure, but from a one-sided perspective. It is only the white, male engineers who are lauded in history books when in fact, thousands of immigrants of color perished in the arduous building process. Ursula Burns’ father stayed on during post-construction while the rest of his family went home to Central America. The US government was offering an enticing deal at this historic point in time to create more hands on-board in a time of need. These men were offered a position to fight in the Korean War and if they happened to survive, they were granted access to a coveted green card. In Burns’ words, “You basically bribe someone to risk their life so that they can get a better life.” This situation happened time and time again with almost no consideration for the lives of these workers or any sort of financial security for their families. Burns is insistent that society needs to understand and recognize that the white men engineering these incredible structures, in fact, could not have completed this grueling work without the undertaking of immigrant laborers.

Burns is determined to bring stories to light that have historically been either rarely discussed or severely marginalized. The 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre is one such story that has been essentially erased from school history books. Over 300 African Americans were brutally killed and more than 8,000 were displaced when this once thriving, nationally recognized “Black Wall Street,” officially named the Greenwood District, was destroyed after a young black man was wrongly accused of attacking a white woman in an elevator. The well-known community was home to successful banks, restaurants and residential homes. Burns insists that the rhetoric perpetuated historically is one that intends on keeping African Americans feeling that, after such a targeted, intentional and horrific act, their indignance and rage are unwarranted. The fact remains that the Tulsa Story is still one that is relatively unknown, and Burns is committed to changing that.

Burns’ recent memoir, Where You Are is Not Who You Are, is the candid story of her own life and success in the business world. She is also an advocate for racial equality, in the workforce and in all aspects of life, but inclusive capitalism is where she has chosen to focus her energy. Burns often comments candidly that her story was not one where people expected her to succeed. In fact, imagining herself as the CEO of a massive global company was almost unimaginable. It was a fight from the beginning for this whip smart, outspoken leader in the making. Burns now makes it a mission to share her story in order to inspire others who might not see themselves in roles of leadership or power. Her grit and resolution are an inspiration to a new generation of young people who are questioning the status quo and finding unlikely answers within themselves.

Burns was not a kid who was supposed to succeed. In fact, she should have been invisible according to society, given the fact that she grew up in an underserved community in the Lower East Side of Manhattan. Instead, her humble upbringing did the opposite…it inspired her. It also taught her to be resourceful, intrepid, and transformative, depending on the task at hand. When others said no, Ursula Burns kept looking for a yes. In the end, the outspokenly candid Burns found her voice. She reminds herself of this feat every day in hopes of inspiring others like her.

Ursula Burns tells it like it is. The legendary businesswoman has said many times that the idea of a strong professional woman having it all is a myth. In fact, in the eyes of Burns, in order to achieve her meteoric success, she needed regular help and support along the way. One of her biggest supporters was her loyal, late husband, businessman Lloyd Bean. Bean put off his own career and unconventionally took a more active role in raising their children while Burns was climbing the corporate ladder. However, society still looked down on Burns for her focusing on her career instead of her family. According to Burns, it would have been impossible for her to attend every single event to support her children. In fact, she just doesn’t see the point. Being present as a parent was enough for her and she wasn’t having the “Mom guilt” that is often associated with being a mother who has a successful career. As Burns puts it, businesses are still designed for the male employee. Balancing family and work are issues that mothers continue to face. Men for the most part, do not come up against these adversities.

Burns doesn’t want to change anything about her own race, she wants to change how others react to her ethnicity. Raised by a single mother on welfare who earned a meager $4,400 per year, her mother’s spirit still echoes in Burns long after her mother’s dead. Burns wants society to see her mother for who she was — a formidable, hard-working human being who juggled several jobs at once in order to give her three children a better shot at success. To Burns, her mother would still be seen as just a poor, uneducated black woman. Burns is insistent that she was so much more, having the insight and the cheerful persistence to continue pushing for her children’s achievements. Burns says that whenever she is struggling to make an important decision or choice, she asks herself what her mother would have done. In a way, Burns is honoring her mother’s legacy and defying the naysayers who would have disregarded this righteous, industrious figure in the past.

on The Carlos Watson Show, Season 4!

In 2009, Burns became the first Black female business executive to lead a Fortune 500 company. She has repeatedly said that as a young woman at the cusp of her educational and business career, she actively and intentionally sought quality programs that paid for her higher education. She also very candidly talks about seeking employers who supported her financially. She stayed in the role as head of Xerox until 2016 and proudly became Xerox’s Chairwoman from 2010 until 2017. Since then, Burns has left an indelible mark on the business and entrepreneurial world, continuing to be a driving force in promoting STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education) education for students through a coalition led by then-President Barack Obama in 2009. Burns also continues to be at the forefront in finding innovative and creative ways to improve leadership and representation in these fields. She is an active founding member of the CEO-initiated nonprofit, Change the Equation, which aims to promote experiential learning in the fields of mathematics and sciences.

Burns believes in the power of mentorship. As much as she finds it essential to continue growing in her own career, she is also committed to inspiring young people, and in particular black women who might have that fierce ambition but few opportunities to harness it and use it to their advantage. This mantra has been with Burns from the start, that leadership and guidance are the responsibility of those at the top. It’s now her time to use her savvy experience in the business world and beyond to inspire future leaders of tomorrow, and in particular, those who might not have the support needed in order to climb to the top.

“It is no longer acceptable for you to judge me based on these things that have nothing to do with your knowledge of me,” says Ursula Burns. She is resolute in her quest for historical representation for people of color. Whether it be from consciously reteaching and rewriting history to include events that have been swept under the rug or actively supporting the removal of such blatant symbols of hate as Confederate monuments and memorials, Burns is here for it. As she puts it, continuing “as is” creates a standard that says it’s acceptable to repeat the same behavior. Fitting everyone into sterile, color-coordinated categories also needs to go. Our world needs to be a world where going against the grain and not conforming to society are actually welcomed and encouraged.

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