Ursula M. Burns: A historic succession

On 1 July 2009, the date on which she will officially take on her new role, Ursula M. Burns will be the first Afro-American women to head a large US company. What is even more significant is that she will be succeeding a woman! Anne Mulcahy, 56 years old and CEO of Xerox, will be handing over the flame to her number two.
The itinerary of Ursula M. Burns is exemplary. Joining Xerox in 1980 for an engineering internship, she gradually climbed the ranks and in 2007, became President of Xerox. It was from then on that she started working closely with Anne Mulcahy. By succeeding her former head, Ursula M. Burns is tackling a heavy task. Firstly, she must show herself to be a worthy successor of the highly respected CEO who managed to save the photocopying giant from bankruptcy. But above all, Ursula is going to head a company that suffered an 18% fall in the first quarter and who is preparing to eliminate 3,000 jobs. Many professionals believe that this mother of two adolescents has what it takes to succeed. A woman of character, Ursula M. Burns is well known for her experience of industry, her technical expertise and her risk management skills.