Black Faces in High Places: 10 Strategic Actions for Black Professionals to Reach the Top and Stay There

by Randal D. Pinkett, Jeffrey A. Robinson

A timely resource for Black professionals on how to rise to the top of their organizations or industries and, just as importantly, to stay there. 
Black Faces in High Places is the essential guide for Black professionals who are moving up through their organizations or industries but need a roadmap for how to get to the top and stay there. It highlights the experiences of other Black faces in high places who were able to navigate various crossroads, reach the top, and stay there, including insights from President Barack and First Lady Michelle Obama, Oprah Winfrey, Cathy Hughes, Bob Johnson, Ursula Burns, David Steward, Angela Glover Blackwell, Ken Chenault, Senator Cory Booker, Geoffrey Canada, and others.

Genres: Nonfiction, Business

304 pages, Paperback

Published February 8, 2022

Reviews

[Cayla · Rating 5 out of 5]

This will continue to be a reference book for me! So many good gems to keep in mind and execute at different points in life.

[Langston Clark · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a book to be studied continuously!

[Daria · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kudos to Drs. Randal Pinkett and Jeffrey Robinson for this extremely authentic, affirming, and action-oriented literary work! If you want to understand what it takes to reach the top, and stay there, as a Black professional, this is the book to read. They include conceptual frameworks and practical advice. They offer tips to build your mindsets, skill sets, and tool sets. And most importantly, they keep it real! My most salient takeaway is that we have to leverage all forms of capital at our disposal (financial, human, social, cultural, intellectual) toward the aim of significance (which is about community empowerment and social investment). Lift others as you climb, don't quit and you won't fail, and if you're the first make sure you're not the last!

[Roger Smitter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Black Faces in High Places is a book that the world is happening. In the first pages, we see something we never had in DC—a Black president. The names of the chapters show some other things: “Development Self-Massy and Find Meaning.”

It’s a different story. The author makes it mark that he is Black. And there are some words in the book: Interdependent Action Steps for Using Power and Face.” (p. 124)

And there are words that make a interesting theme: “Two Moments, Two Movements.”

[Shannan Harper · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book read like it was for business professionals, especially ones apart of the African diaspora. There were a couple of things I was able to glean from it, but I don't feel I'm apart of their primary target. But if you are a business professional, or one that plans to go into business for their selves, then I feel you will get a lot of information out of this book.

I received a copy of the book via Netgalley and am voluntarily leaving an honest review of my own thoughts and opinion

[Michael Carson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Phenomenal. Reading a second time right away while also taking better and more extensive notes. I bought a copy for my son, daughter, a nephew, and a direct report that is about to be promoted to a management role.

[stent le renoire · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book

[Bee · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 rounded up. Read for book club. The self-help/professional development isn't my genre, but I thought this was helpful, relevant, and well-ordered. As always, take what works; leave the rest.

[Kelly Robertson]

Significance is better than success
Investing in others leaves a legacy longer than yourself
Pour into others - share your capital (social, intellectual, financial, etc)

[Jules · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this book up at a Barnes & Noble. but really, this book picked me.

There's work to be done.

[Monjoa Likine · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found some great nuggets and it connected me to other great thinkers I want to study like Saul Alinsky or David Steward. Decent nod to resources available and I walked away with a handful of things I could apply to my career today.

I may still be a little jaded over my realization that most business books are just marketing tools for the author, but I found myself flipping quickly through the first half of the book which centered on mindset and somewhat philosophical theories. Always good to have mindset be reinforced, but I may not be the TA for this book since I’m looking for operational tactics.

Overall better than most of the fluff books I read this year and bonus points for having the chance to explore black excellence in detail. Ranking it a high 3.8.

[Ethan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a suggested read for any black professional. The text has a heavy male lens and would have benefited from contributions of black females. Still a lot of the book is applicable to all. The only other note I would make is that the content is business centered, so if you are not a business owner or have those aspirations, some of the later content may not be as relevant.