Meet Layla Shabazz, an African American Muslim woman living in the City of Toronto, Ontario. She's been living in the GTA for over a decade now, having moved there from her hometown of Chicago, Illinois. Six feet tall, curvy and bodacious, with dark brown skin, golden brown eyes and long dark hair stylized into a neat Afro, Layla looks much younger than her forty three years. Layla Shabazz, a Loyola University Faculty of Management alumnus and proud member of the Nation of Islam, has made her mark on the City of Toronto, Ontario. In the Canadian business sector, Layla Shabazz is a force to reckon with. The grand dame of the Black professional leagues of Toronto.
When Layla Shabazz moved to the City of Toronto, Ontario, from her hometown of Chicago, Illinois, in 2011, she was blown away by the size, scope and beauty of the GTA. In many ways, the City of Toronto was for Canadians what the City of New York was for Americans. A bustling metropolis that embodied the best hopes and dreams of Canada. With so many immigrants from Africa, the Arab world, Latin America and Asia calling Toronto home, Layla expected to see a lot of diversity in the big companies. Well, while Toronto corporations are diverse, the executive branches tended to be lily-White, with a sprinkling of Asians. Layla intended to change that...
Layla Shabazz spent the next decade climbing the ladder at Carpathia Enterprises, and she managed to get her own people in positions of power. Layla recruited Louis Joseph, a Haitian-born businessman from Miami, Florida, away from his teaching position at the University of Miami Business School and offered him a six-figure salary to become head of human resources at Carpathia Enterprises. In turn, Louis Joseph increased the company's Black hires from zero point two percent to five point eight percent within a few years.
Layla Shabazz loves the City of Toronto, but finds that a lot of minorities in Canada lack ambition. Layla met her counterparts, Black women and Black men making six figures at big companies in the GTA, and formed the Black Canadian Chamber of Commerce. The members weren't just rich Black executives, however. Layla made sure that lots of Black folks who were small business owners got recruited as well. Layla encouraged Black Canadians to read Black Enterprise, the legendary magazine which had been inspiring her for most of her life.
To many people, Layla Shabazz is indeed a mystery. This lovely dame is leading a double life. By day, Layla works as a managing executive with the Acquisition Department of Carpathia Enterprises, the best foreign-owned rideshare service in Canada. They're giving Uber some major competition everywhere from Canada to the U.S. and Eastern Europe. How cool is that? This is largely due to innovations spearheaded by Miss Shabazz. By night, Layla becomes something else entirely. Mademoiselle Noire, Queen of the Toronto BDSM scene.
"I've been doing this for a long time," Layla said to her co-worker Abdullah Jama, and the young Somali-Canadian Muslim gentleman nodded sagely. The two of them were working after hours at the Canada headquarters of Carpathia Enterprises, located in a high-rise building on Bay Street. Abdullah, a tall, slender young man with dark brown skin and a smooth shaved head, seemed utterly mesmerized by Layla. The Black MILF with the thick American accent had a reputation at the company. Everyone says that Layla is a man eater...
"I see," Abdullah said, and he leaned back in his chair as Layla looked him up and down. A newcomer to Carpathia Enterprises, Abdullah is originally from Ottawa, Ontario, and comes to the company with his Carleton University MBA and zero real world experience. It was up to Layla to take this greenhorn and show him a thing or two. Even in the diverse City of Toronto, things aren't easy for educated Black men trying to get ahead. If Abdullah is to survive, Layla has to teach him the ropes before the great White sharks of the company get to him.
"Abdullah, you're a Black man at a White company, whose owners are from Eastern Europe, not the most diverse of employers, you face a sharp learning curve," Layla said firmly, and Abdullah nodded. For months since he left Ottawa and moved to a tiny apartment in Toronto, Abdullah had been both thrilled and intimidated by his new job at Carpathia Enterprises. Abdullah was twenty seven years old, and although he graduated with honors from the Sprott MBA program at Carleton University, the only work experience he had was clerking at Walmart, and of course managing the Tim Horton's near his folks house. Not the most impressive of resumes, this much Abdullah must admit.
