Our Separate Ways, with a New Preface and Epilogue: Black and White Women and the Struggle for Professional Identity (Revised)

Gender equality is at a crossroads. Let your diverse talent shine. In Our Separate Ways, Ella Bell Smith and Stella Nkomo take an unflinching look at the differences between Black and white women's experiences at work. Based on groundbreaking research, the book compares and contrasts the experiences of 120 first-generation Black and white female managers in the American business area. In-depth histories bring to life the women's powerful and often difficult journeys from childhood to professional success, highlighting the roles that gender, race, and class played in their development. Now, with an updated preface and epilogue, this book provides candid discussions of the continuing challenge of achieving race and gender equality in the midst of deep national political and ideological divides. You'll discover how white women have--perhaps unwittingly--aligned themselves more often with white men than with Black women and see how systemic racism and biases still exist today. But you will also learn what organizations can do to leverage the talents of all women and create workplaces free of systemic racism. Whether you lead an organization, work in HR, or just want to understand the dynamics at play, you will discover ideas for creating a better workplace and encouraging equality for everyone.

About the Author :
Ella Bell Smith is a professor at Tuck School of Business. She has served as a consultant to Fortune 500 companies and to many public institutions. She is the coauthor of the widely acclaimed Our Separate Ways: Black and White Women and the Struggle for Professional Identity and Career GPS: Strategies for Women Navigating the New Corporate Landscape. Stella M. Nkomo is a professor at the University of Pretoria. Nkomo is coauthor of the critically acclaimed book Our Separate Ways: Black and White Women and the Struggle for Professional Identity. She is a sought-after speaker and consultant to organizations in South Africa, Europe, and the United States. Lisa Renee Pitts is an award-winning actress in theater, television, and film, as well as an accomplished audiobook narrator. She has been seen Off-Broadway, in Europe, and in regional theaters across the United States, performing leading roles in such prominent plays as A Raisin in the Sun, Doubt, Waiting for Lefty, Valley Song, and Our Town. Her television appearances include The Shield and Law and Order, and she played the recurring role of Allison Sawyer on the hit family drama Lincoln Heights for the ABC Family Channel. Lisa's audiobook titles include biographies, fiction, nonfiction and children's novels, including Pushkin and the Queen of Spades by Alice Randall, for which she won an AudioFile Earphones Award for excellence in narration. Other notable titles are Left to Tell by Immaculee Ilibagiza, Better Than I Know Myself by Virginia DeBerry and Donna Grant, and My Name Is Not Angelica by Scott O'Dell. Lisa is a graduate of Rutgers University, where she received her B.F.A. in Theater Arts. She lives in Burbank, California.