We Are The Ones We Need

Through its memoir-esque style, ‘We Are The Ones We Need’ delves into the challenges faced by black professionals in South Africa’s corporate environment. By sharing some of her own experiences from her years working within some of the country’s top companies, Ms. Bolani focuses on themes that include structural racism in organisations and the role executives play in sustaining discriminatory practices; pay discrimination; the emotional and psychological trauma suffered by black professionals as a result of corporate abuse and the suppression of black talent, especially black women. From the beginning of the book, Ms. Bolani takes the reader on a journey that reveals her personal and professional background, her interactions with her colleagues and senior executives, as well as how her experiences impacted on her and her loved ones. She closes off the book by sharing some of her own suggestions on how we can begin to change corporate culture and its weaponisation against black professionals.