America has an urgent need for Latino and Latina executives. This book identifies a path to uplift and amplify their representation in leadership.

Latinos and Latinas will account for a third of our workforce by 2050—yet they make up only 5 percent of senior roles in corporate America. Dr. Robert Rodriguez and Andrés T. Tapia call this low percentage of Latino and Latina corporate executives today the “5 percent Shame.” 
 
Inspired by Price M. Cobbs’s seminal work on the secrets of successful Black leaders, this book seeks to understand the impact on Latinos and Latinas of the external forces of conscious and unconscious biases and of the internal forces of whether to assimilate or double down on their cultural identities in their quest to get ahead.
 
The second edition features a new foreword by Henry Cisneros, former secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development, as well as updated statistics and graphs to represent how America’s career landscape for Latinos has and has not changed and how to ensure Latinos can rise to their fullest potential.
 
Using insights from in-depth interviews with twenty highly successful boomer Latino and Latina executives and focus groups with dozens of Gen X and millennial leaders, the authors have captured lessons about how these individuals chose their career paths, addressed challenges, and seized opportunities. The discussions are interpreted through the lenses of the authors' different personal experiences as Latino leaders in corporate America and synthesized as a guide for future leaders.
 

Latinos will account for a third of our workforce by 2050, yet Latino executives make up only 4% of senior roles in corporate America--this book identifies a path to close that gap.

Dr. Robert Rodriguez and Andrés T. Tapia call it the "4% Shame"--the low percentage of Latino corporate executives today. Inspired by Price Cobbs's seminal work on the secrets of successful Black leaders, this book seeks to understand the external forces of conscious and unconscious biases and the internal forces that create tensions for many Latinos about whether to assimilate, opt out, or double down on their cultural identities in their quest to get ahead.

Using insights from in-depth interviews with twenty highly successful Latino and Latina Boomer executives and focus groups with dozens of GenX and Millennial Latinx leaders, the authors have captured les¬sons about how these individuals chose their career paths, how they addressed challenges, and how they seized opportunities. The discussions are interpreted through the lenses of the authors' different personal experiences as Latino leaders in corporate America and synthesized as a guide for future Latinx leaders.

“[The authors’] insights will facilitate the development of a rich pipeline of talented Hispanic leaders who will make a significant positive difference for a world in much need of authentic and inspired leadership.”
—David Antonio Rodriguez, PhD, Executive Vice President and Global Chief Human Resources Officer, Marriott International
 
“From navigating corporate cultures to wrestling with whether assimilation is an enabler to success, this book does an excellent job of presenting candid insights into what it’s like to be Latino in contemporary corporate America.”
—Rohini Anand, former Senior Vice President, Corporate Responsibility, and Global Chief Diversity Officer, Sodexo
 
“By giving voice to the Latino experience through insightful stories, Andrés and Robert have penned a must-read for aspiring Latino professionals and diversity and inclusion practitioners.”
—Jim Evans II, Chief Diversity Officer, Capital Group