Ursula Burns

Ursula Burns is the former chairwoman of VEON, an international telecommunications services provider, a position she held from 2017 to early 2020. She is best known for having served as the Chairman of the Board of the Xerox Corporation from 2010 to 2017 and as its Chief Executive Officer from 2009 to 2016. When she was appointed Xerox's CEO in 2009, she became the first Black woman to serve as CEO of a Fortune 500 company.

She joined Xerox as an intern in 1980 and during her career, she held leadership posts spanning corporate services, manufacturing, and product development. During her tenure as chief executive officer of Xerox, she helped the company transform from a global leader in document technology to the world’s most diversified business services company serving enterprises and governments of all sizes. Shortly after being named CEO in 2009, she spearheaded the largest acquisition in Xerox history, the $6.4 billion purchase of Affiliated Computer Services.

In 2016, she led Xerox through a successful separation into two independent, publicly-traded companies -- Xerox Corporation, which is comprised of the company’s Document Technology and Document Outsourcing businesses, and Conduent Incorporated, a business process services company. The separation of the two businesses has enhanced their competitive positions and created significant value creation opportunities.

Burns regularly appears on Fortune’s and Forbes’ list of the world’s most powerful women. She helped lead the White House national program on Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) from 2009-2016, currently sits as the Chairwoman of the Board at Teneo Holdings LLC and is on the board of Exxon Mobil, Endeavor, and Uber, and was previously on the board at Nestlé. She is also Co-Founder of Integrum Holdings, a private equity firm. Burns is on the Board Diversity Action Alliance, leading an effort to support diversity on corporate boards.

An absolute force and American icon, Burns shares her executive insights on leadership in a time of disruption, and instructs leaders how to answer the call to create more inclusive and diverse organizations. Her powerful and important conversations challenge and inspire audiences.