““I’m in this job because I believe I earned it through hard work and high performance. Did I get some opportunities early in my career because of my race and gender? Probably…I went to work for a company that was openly seeking to diversify its workplace. So, I imagine race and gender got the hiring guys’ attention. And then the rest was really up to me”” –Ursula
Burns, Chairwoman and CEO of Xerox (Byrnes and Crockett, 2009).
These previous words by Ursula Burns display her resilience to prove her worth to the business world, regardless of her gender and the color of her skin. The basic idea of this case was to display the significance of Burns’ helm at CEO and what she has done to attempt in making Xerox the leading company in its industry again. In terms of breaking diversity barriers, Burns became the first African-American woman to lead a major U.S. corporation and the first CEO to take the reins from another woman, which was Anne M. Mulcahy (Byrnes and Crockett, 2009). However, Burns had been a staple at Xerox, working at various influential roles over the past few decades. From starting as an summer intern at Xerox in 1980, to working in the custom systems division in the 1980’s, to holding the general manager and vice president worldwide manufacturing position in the late 1990’s, and finally being groomed by Mulcahy to eventually become Xerox’s CEO, Burns built up a resume full of a variety of experiences and deliverables (Byrnes and Crockett, 2009). Once becoming
For this project there was an opportunity for me to interview anybody on the topics of intersectionality and gender discrimination that happens in peoples workplace. I choose my roommate Ria who is 24 years old which is more in the younger side to people might seem as she will not have many encounters with the topics mentioned. In that case, I want to show how it’s the opposite being young Mexican women there comes more discrimination and not many employers hire them. In order to get a better understanding of how other people can be towards some employers I asked her many questions about her jobs environments which are Denny 's and Jasmine Adult Day Health Center. This important to see how young Mexican women or women in general get criticized for their gender and some for their race.
Gender bias has continued to be constructed in communication through marked forms. In Lean In, Sheryl Sandberg discusses, “When people talk about a female pilot, a female engineer, or a female race car driver, the word “female” implies a bit of surprise”(Sandberg, 140). If everyone continues not to discuss gender bias then the world will continue to use marked forms, which Sandberg sees as a tool for people to be-little others (Sandberg, 140). She concludes this thought by saying “We can no longer pretend that biases do not exist, nor can we talk around them. The result of creating a more equal environment will not just be better performance for our organizations, but quite likely greater happiness for all”(Sandberg, 158).
In business , diversity has seen action in the managing of human resource as essential capital in fostering businesses at a global scale . Diversity is also seen as a concept where differences can be a powerful resource . Based on the Case facts, Xerox value diversity as the most priceless resource to drive the company towards achieving its goals.
Although, I am not the type of person who judges people based on their superficial characteristics, after reviewing the examples depicted in the multimedia analysis, I did find myself judging
Women treat men with equal respect, whereas men do not. “Women tend to be receptive to both men and women in superior roles, found a 2014 study titled A Man’s (Precarious) Place. Men, on the other hand, were more likely to be threatened by women in superior positions and were more assertive with female leaders, according to the study.”(Kirkham 2015). Elyssa Kirkham states that women are more willing to receive input from men. This capability creates diversity within the workplace. Diversity leads to more talent within the workplace, an advantage for companies determined to strive. Pallab Dutta, of Demand Media, states, “Access to a larger talent pool is one of the biggest advantages of having an employment recruitment policy that values diversity.”(Dutta 1). This diverse environment leads to more talent, which results in “creative solutions for problems and better organizational productivity”(Dutta 1). Having employees that can endorse equality, accept both men and women’s input, is key to success within a business. Without it, a companies who do not support equality will not thrive. This acceptance towards both men and women creates a positive atmosphere within the workplace. This positive energy, that women acquire, inspires motivation within employees which results in an increase of business
This is quite a simple concept of giving equal opportunities to all qualified applicants despite gender, race, religion etc. but it is the way its said that makes it powerful. A person should be hired on the basis of ability and production rather than gender or race. I was not aware that women had used the Civil Rights Act to gain some equality and opportunities, such as hiring processes (men and women treated equally), and also women’s ability to move up and be promoted. We also saw the categorical requirements, such as height and weight, removed. Once women were inside the workplace they faced a new set of problems, sexual harassment, poor treatment and no accommodations for pregnancy. Women being encouraged or even forced to wear provocative clothing, being sexually harassed and being on the end of lewd jokes was another obstacle women had to overcome. I believe this is where popular culture comes into play more than anything. If all ideas about women in the workplace stem from a time period where they were discriminated against and looked at to be lesser than men, then once they arrive in the workplace they will most likely not be treated fairly. It must have been tough for the pioneers of women in the workforce having to deal with all these obstacles. Pre-existing thoughts, viewpoints, ideas and assumptions based on popular culture made it that much more difficult for women to break down the barrier in the workplace.
Maria also claims that the reason for her low job evaluation is because of a built-in bias on part of her White male supervisors because she is the only woman and the only person of color in the department. Maria alleges that the company is engaging in discriminatory practices, however, the company states that Maria has had disciplinary action against her regarding attendance, she is loud and aggressive with co-workers and that the ability to clear communication was an imperative element of the position.
didn’t belong and that she wouldn’t succeed. Especially, in an industry that is systematically bias.
Despite her high status at her job, she still faced discrimination from other races and gender. But then, she used the circumstances as a reason to thrive harder
Gender, ethnicity, and race inequalities and the issues surrounding them in the workplace have been on the forefront of society’s mind for decades. The problem of inequality in the workplace has become one of the most important and vital issues in our society today. In order to understand fully the reasons for these inequalities, one must try to understand the factors that cause gender, ethnicity, and racial issues within the workplace, yet in this case, we will tend to focus mostly towards gender inequality in the workplace. One typically thinks locally
On November 14th, I attended the Panel of Powerful Women presentation. This panel consisted of women sharing their experiences the their field of work and study and how their subject position affected these experiences.Many women shared stories of discrimination in the workplace, such as one women who spoke about her experience running for office in her small town. She faced a lot of challenges because going into it she didn't know how corrupt the system truly was and that there essentially was no path for her to succeed since she was the first black woman to run for office. Another spoke about how her family background inspired her to get an education. Her parents were immigrants with five young kids and her mother was adamant that all her
As the CEO of Xerox Ursula Burns demonstrates many strengths and weakness, some of which stand out more than others. Ms. Burns is very innovative not only in her leadership style, but also in the products and services the company now offers. Last year in 2012,
When trying to find someone to interview to learn about their experiences with gender in the workplace my mind went completely blank. I couldn 't think of anyone that would be suitable to interview for this assignment. However thanks social media and the internet The themes I notices throughout this interview wa the disparity between men and women in her work place in terms of work resources. As well as women showing aggression toward other women in the workplace. The final theme I noticed was the how her company is trying to make things more equal in her workplace.
Xerox defines diversity as a priceless resource and a key to their success. It more than just race or gender. By incorporating in a company like xerox different cultures and ways of thinking it expands the mind set of the company and leads toward creating innovative solutions and business opportunities (Xerox).
There are two major cultural divisions, Hispanic and Caucasian, to further complicate the work environment the ratio of Male to female workers is 20 to 1. No effort from either group of being sensitive to the others existence is apparent. (DuBrin, 2004, p. 67). Management’s main concern is for “ethnic diversity” to the point of not having issues with the equal employment opportunity act.