This paper is based on data from interviews with a number of mostly Western Cape based companies and employees with the objective of understanding the barriers to the achievement of employment equity for African people. The research was initiated by businesses that have head offices in the Western Cape, or large regional presences, as they expressed serious concerns about the under-representation of African staff in management positions in their respective organisations. The participating organisations expressed a genuine interest in wanting to be informed by credible research on how to best address this concern, as the research team were provided upon request with easy access to Employment Equity documentation and the contact details of staff to approach for interviews.