Ursula Burns
Born 1958 · Age 67
American business executive; Xerox CEO (2009–2016) and chair (2010–2017); first Black woman to lead a Fortune 500 company; board director and private equity co‑founder.
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Life & Career Timeline
Born in New York City
Born to Panamanian immigrant parents; raised by single mother Olga Burns in the Baruch Houses public housing on Manhattan's Lower East Side.
Graduated Cathedral High School (approx.)
Completed secondary education at a Roman Catholic all‑girls preparatory school in Manhattan (graduation year approximated from birth year).
Earned BS in Mechanical Engineering
Graduated from the Polytechnic Institute of New York (now NYU Tandon) with a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering.
Xerox mechanical‑engineering summer intern
Joined Xerox's graduate engineering internship program (for minorities) the same summer as her undergraduate graduation; program helped fund her master's.
Completed MS in Mechanical Engineering
Earned a master's degree in mechanical engineering from Columbia University; shortly thereafter joined Xerox full time.
Hired full‑time at Xerox
Transitioned from intern to full‑time employee at Xerox in product development and planning.
Stepson Malcolm born (approx.)
Malcolm (her stepson) is cited as born circa 1989 and later attended MIT.
Became executive assistant to Wayland Hicks
Offered and accepted a role as executive assistant to senior executive Wayland Hicks; served roughly nine months before returning home to marry.
Married Lloyd Bean (approx.)
Reportedly married about the time she was an executive assistant in 1990 (sources indicate she was about to marry when stepping away after 9 months as Wayland Hicks' assistant).
Executive assistant to Xerox chairman Paul Allaire
Took position as executive assistant to then‑chairman and CEO Paul Allaire; role seen as pivotal to her future advancement.
Daughter Melissa born (approx.)
Melissa Burns is noted as born circa 1992.
VP & GM, Workgroup Copier Business, London
Served as vice president and general manager of Xerox's Workgroup Copier Business based in London (1992–1997).
Returned as VP & GM at Xerox Headquarters
Assigned to a vice president and general manager position at Xerox headquarters in Stamford, Connecticut.
Named VP for Global Manufacturing
Appointed vice president responsible for global manufacturing at Xerox.
Senior Vice President, Corporate Strategic Services
Named senior vice president of corporate strategic services; worked closely with Anne Mulcahy, expanding leadership across production and strategy.
Senior VP, Document Systems & Solutions Group
Appointed senior vice president of the document systems and solutions group (served ~1 year before becoming SVP of business group operations).
Senior VP, Business Group Operations
Became senior vice president of business group operations — the first woman named to that post at Xerox.
Athena Award and media recognition (2003)
Received the Athena Award from the Rochester Business Alliance Women's Council and was named to Time/CNN's list of Global Business Influentials; repeated recognitions followed in subsequent years.
Featured on Fortune's '50 Most Powerful Women in American Business' (2003–2006)
Named by Fortune among its 50 Most Powerful Women across multiple years (2003–2006).
Named among '50 Most Important Blacks in Technology' (2003–2005)
Recognized by Black Engineering & Information Technology magazine across multiple years.
Listed among Black Enterprise's 75 Most Powerful African‑Americans
Named to Black Enterprise's list in 2005 and to their '50 Most Powerful Black Women' in 2006.
Elected President of Xerox
Promoted to president of Xerox Corporation, positioning her as Anne Mulcahy's heir apparent.
Named to President's Council on Jobs & Competitiveness (role noted in sources)
Participated in national economic and competitiveness councils during the Obama administration (public service roles concurrent with STEM leadership).
Appointed to lead White House National STEM program
President Barack Obama appointed Burns to help lead the national STEM program; she served as a leader of the initiative from 2009 to 2016.
Named CEO of Xerox
Succeeded Anne Mulcahy as Xerox CEO; became the first Black woman to lead a Fortune 500 company and the first woman to succeed another woman as Fortune 500 CEO.
Led acquisition of Affiliated Computer Services (ACS)
Spearheaded Xerox's acquisition of ACS, a major move shifting Xerox toward services; acquisition value reported at approximately $6.4 billion.
Appointed Vice‑Chair, President's Export Council
President Obama appointed Burns vice chair of the President's Export Council; she served as vice chair 2010–2015.
Named Chairman of Xerox Board
Promoted to chair of the Xerox board (held chair 2010–2017 while serving as CEO through 2016).
Commencement address – University of Rochester
Delivered the commencement address at the University of Rochester (among other universities in subsequent years).
Honorary degree from University of Pennsylvania
Received an honorary degree and/or was featured as a commencement honoree (University of Pennsylvania commencement mentions, 2013).
Honorary degree from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Received an honorary doctorate from RPI (May 2013).
Elected International Fellow, Royal Academy of Engineering
Named an International Fellow of the U.K.'s Royal Academy of Engineering in recognition of engineering leadership.
Ranked #22 Most Powerful Woman by Forbes
Forbes rated Burns the 22nd most powerful woman in the world in 2014.
Chair, President's Export Council
Promoted from vice‑chair to chair of the President's Export Council (served 2015–2016).
Commencement addresses and honorary degrees (2015)
Delivered commencement addresses and received honorary recognition at institutions including Williams College and Howard University (2015).
Led Xerox split creating Conduent
Oversaw the corporate separation of Xerox into Xerox Corporation (document technology) and Conduent Incorporated (business services); split announced/executed in 2016–2017.
Stepped down as Xerox CEO
Left the CEO role in December 2016; Jeff Jacobson succeeded her as CEO.
Left Xerox board and chairmanship
Resigned as chairman and left the Xerox board in May 2017 after the company separation finalized.
Joined Teneo as Senior Advisor / Non‑Executive Chairwoman later
Became a senior advisor to Teneo (June 2017) and later is noted as Non‑Executive Chairwoman.
Elected Chairman of VEON
VEON's board elected Burns as chairwoman in July 2017; VEON is a global telecom services company.
Joined Uber board of directors
Appointed to the board of directors of Uber Technologies in late September 2017 during a major board restructuring.
Named among 'America's Top 50 Women In Tech'
Featured in 2018 lists highlighting top women in technology in the U.S.
Appointed CEO of VEON
With the sudden CEO departure, Burns served as executive chairwoman then was appointed CEO of VEON in December 2018; she held both chair and CEO roles until mid‑2020.
Husband Lloyd Bean died
Lloyd Bean, her husband and a Xerox scientist, passed away in 2019; they had lived in Rochester, NY.
Appointed to board of Waystar
Joined the board of directors of Waystar in 2020 (press release July 29, 2020).
Stepped down as VEON CEO (co‑CEOs appointed)
In February 2020 VEON appointed co‑CEOs Kaan Terzioğlu and Sergi Herrero, succeeding Burns as CEO. In June 2020 Gennady Gazin succeeded her as chairman.
Co‑founded Integrum Holdings (private equity)
Partnered with Tagar Olson and Richard Kunzer to co‑found Integrum Holdings, focusing on technology‑enabled services.
Published memoir 'Where You Are Is Not Who You Are'
Released a personal memoir in 2021 recounting her life and career.
Vice Chair, Dept. of Commerce Advisory Council on Supply Chain Competitiveness
Joined the U.S. Department of Commerce advisory council as Vice Chair to advise on supply‑chain competitiveness (February 2022).
Integrum raised inaugural fund of $1.1 billion
Integrum Holdings raised approximately $1.1 billion for its inaugural fund focused on technology‑enabled services investments.
Continued board roles
Continues to serve on boards including ExxonMobil, American Express, Endeavor Group Holdings, IHS Towers, Uber (joined 2017), and others; also provides counsel to non‑profits like Ford Foundation and the Met.
Nominated to TSMC board
Nominated for election to the board of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company in April 2024.
Key Achievement Ages
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