Breaking the Code with Ebere Oyekwe

Hafsah: Breaking the Code with Gabriella tells the story of a young girl who overcomes gender stereotypes in robotics, cementing herself as a role model for young women. The book includes science and engineering information, such as the design process and Java tutorials. As part of our initiative to empower young girls to pursue their interests in STEM, we are running the Breaking the Code with Gabriella: Trailblazers in STEM Speaker Series, which explores the careers of women in science, technology, engineering, and math. The series aims to dispel gender stereotypes and aid young students in getting advice on how to pursue their own passions.

 

Hafsah: Today I'm here with Ebere Oyekwe. Now, I'll let Ms. Oyekwe introduce herself. So, can you tell us anything about your journey in STEM, your future goals, and your current interests that you think are notable?

 

Ebere: Thank you for the opportunity. My name is Ebere Oyekwe. I have a degree in computer science, so my primary interest in the STEM field is in technology. I have also been lucky enough to work in the data and AI space primarily, so my background is heavily in data analytics. I have worked as a data scientist, and now I am fully focusing on AI. Technology has always been something that I, or should I say, STEM, has always been something that I happen to be good at, especially math. My family is very analytical, so I think it's something that is hereditary. I don't know if that's something people believe, but I do. I come from a family with a lot of analytical thinkers. A lot of my siblings are really great at math as well, and my dad's great at math, so it just made sense that my career aligns with the STEM field. 

 

Ebere: My interests, as I said, when I do a lot of advocacy for students in technology, primarily focus on data and AI because I think these are great fields that are futuristic and will be here for a long time. I advocate for STEM for women and underrepresented groups that don't really have access to some of the resources. I'm focused on creating a funnel to help them get the resources they need to excel in this field. That's primarily what I do.

 

Hafsah: Thank you so much for the introduction. So, you founded Tekdlin, a data and AI consultancy service. What inspired you to start this company and what's been your journey with leading it?

 

Ebere: It's been a very interesting journey. I think that founding the company was very accidental. It wasn't something I planned. When I started advocating for data and AI online, it was because it was what I did for work, and I realized there were a lot of people like me who didn't even know they could do something like that. It just happened that a lot more people were interested.

 

Ebere: When I started, it was primarily about helping people who looked like me understand that they could do what I do. But I quickly realized that even other people who don't necessarily look like me were saying, "Hey, we need this information as well." What I was doing didn't solely fit for people who looked like me; everyone could access this information. I started to see the gap in knowledge when it comes to technology, data, and AI. With that advocacy came the need for knowledge, and I knew I couldn't help people gain the knowledge without structure, without a proper company. Just telling people about it wasn't enough, so we had to start working towards putting things in place that would not only tell people about the resources available to them but also hold their hand through the process as they gained the skills they needed. 

 

Ebere: We also help small businesses, which is what the consultancy aspect of what we do is about. We help small to midsize businesses that don't have the resources to access expert data scientists leverage analytics in a way that is affordable and give them access to that technology. That's primarily how we came about. To answer your question on how the journey has been, it's not easy to be a female founding a company. I think that has been my biggest challenge—navigating and trying to work with other people in a very male-dominated industry. But so far, so good. I'm really thankful and happy for the progress and strides we've made so far, and I'm very optimistic about the future.

 

Hafsah: Thank you so much. Delving a little bit more into your current career, could you speak a little bit on your role and what your day-to-day work looks like? 

 

Ebere: Before this, I was Consulting for a company where I did data engineering for them. I was just helping with data migration or building tables in their data warehouse. But right now, I am fully focused on my company—TechIn—I want to give that 110% and see where that goes. My day-to-day work typically would look like, collaborating with other founders, working on our product which we're building with like devs, and translating the vision to the people that I work with in team meetings. We also do an event quarterly, so that's a lot of planning goes into that. My day-to-day now looks like managing people, talking to other founders, networking, and just trying to have the most updated information so I can help out my community as well. 

 

Hafsah: All right, so you mentioned your event, which is The Connect Networking event, I believe. Can you speak a little bit more about that?

 

Ebere: Yes. That event sprang up during the heavy layoffs. I noticed during the layoffs that there wasn’t a lot of morale in the tech industry. A lot of people were losing faith in tech because of the number of layoffs. As someone who loves advocacy, I didn't want people to give up on technology because really I know it's the future. One way we wanted to encourage the community to understand that this is just a phase that will pass was through the event. 

 

Ebere: Typically, networking events cheer people up, which is different from how technology usually is—often solitary and focused on being on your laptop. That’s not very encouraging. I also realized that in my personal career, one of the things that has helped me is the network of people I have access to. When talking to others, I noticed that many don’t have access to this information because they lack a network. They don’t know how to brand themselves or how to navigate their careers. 

 

Ebere: The event wasn't just about boosting morale; it was also about introducing people to the concept of networking and stepping out of their comfort zones to gain information from others. We wanted to teach people how to leverage their soft skills. I noticed that many people who are technical, like myself, are typically introverted and don’t network much. So, we wanted to create a space where introverts could come and practice interacting with others. This is crucial because, to get ahead in life and in your career, you need other people. Without the right soft skills, you’ll struggle.

 

Ebere: There was a lot of value in putting that event together, and we felt it was the right thing to do at that time. Initially, we thought it would be a one-time event, but we received such great feedback that we held a second one. Now, we're about to do the third event in July. That’s the high-level backstory of the event.

 

Hafsah: I love that. It’s such a great idea because networking is so important in fields like tech.

 

Ebere: Yeah, I agree.

 

Hafsah: Okay, so throughout your journey, what challenges have you faced as a woman in a male-dominated field, and how have you overcome them?

 

Ebere: Being very assertive is critical to succeeding as a woman in tech. When I started, I would hide my femininity because I wanted to come across as strong. I recently had a conversation with a friend about how I'm a very assertive person, but I’m also feminine because I’m a woman. It’s hard to find the balance between both, especially in the corporate space, because femininity is often seen as a weakness. I don’t necessarily agree with that; I believe there can be strength in being feminine. 

 

Ebere: The biggest challenge has been knowing when to embrace my feminine side and when to be more stern and assertive. I think women in technology don't want to lose their feminine side, but we need to know when it's time to let our hair down and when it's time to have it in a bun and just go, go, go. 

 

Ebere: I think that’s the biggest challenge; it took me time to figure out when to show one side or the other, but the longer I stay in the industry, the more I realize that femininity is an asset. It can be beneficial, but you have to know how to use it strategically. That’s where I am right now.

 

Hafsah: That’s a really great answer. So, I know you're active on social media, educating your audience on data analytics and AI, and giving insight into your job. Can you tell us more about what you hope to accomplish through social media, and how do you hope to impact prospective data analysts?

 

Ebere: I think social media started out for me—and I owe a lot to social media—just as a medium for sharing information. I didn't really think anything of it, but a lot of people were interested in it. We just kept going because they wanted more; they would ask questions about this, and then you try to provide the answers to that question and then they just keep growing. I think for me the goal would just be to continue to reach more people. Now we're doing a lot more structured work as opposed to when I started, where it was just like sharing our resources. Now we have the events, the consultancy service, and a tech program where we train underrepresented groups on data analytics and AI to help them gain access to resources that can help them lend skills that they need. The vision has shifted a bit from what it was when I started sharing free resources online, and I think for me the goal will continue to be to reach more people. We focus more on under-represented groups but the message is that everybody can have access to work that we do. If you feel like you're interested in technology, and you want to learn, there's room for you with any of our services.  

 

Hafsah: All right. I am, for one, a huge fan of your social media account. So, if there is any piece of career-related advice you could give to your middle school self, what would it be? 

 

Ebere: If there was any piece of advice I would give to my middle school self, it would be to be more assertive and to have more confidence in my work. Being someone who is introverted, I put my head down a lot at the beginning of my career and just did the work. I didn't really advocate for myself, and I think I would have gone a lot farther if I had. So, to my middle school self, I would say to work more on soft skills. I now know how crucial they are. I focused so much on hard skills—the math, the numbers—which are great, but I'm learning now how important it is to have strong communication and people skills. That's what I would advise my younger self: prioritize those things earlier on instead of learning through experience that they’re important as well.

 

Hafsah: Building off the previous question, what advice would you give to young girls who are looking to get involved with AI and data analytics?

 

Ebere: The biggest advice I would give is that you need a lot of resilience and genuine interest. One mistake a lot of people make is thinking it’s something easy. I tell people not to come into this field thinking it’s easy. It requires a lot of work. If you want to succeed, you're going to be competing with men and others who are smart. The reason why these roles pay well is because they are competitive. When more is given to you, more is required from you. So, you need to come with a mindset of continuous learning and resilience. You have to be ready to fail and not let that failure stop you from continuing on your journey.

 

Ebere: You need a hunger for success, and that’s why I also emphasize interest. If you don’t have these qualities, you might fall off eventually. Some people want to learn data or AI just because they hear it pays well. But if you don’t have the tenacity and grit to continue learning and delivering, you won’t last. It’s not just about interest; it requires resilience. You need to learn how to network with people who will encourage you to stay up-to-date because the field changes rapidly. Look at how much things have changed, moving more towards AI now, whereas it used to be all about Excel. 

 

Ebere: There’s a lot more to working in data and AI than how cool it sounds. You need to be doing it for the right reasons. That’s the biggest advice I would give.

 

Hafsah: I love that. As a young woman in STEM, I'm learning about the importance of resilience right now. Can you tell us about a time when you had to use resilience or faced a big struggle?

 

Ebere: Oh, there have been so many times. I think as a founder, resilience has always been something I’ve had; I don’t give up easily, and that’s my biggest strength. But I was really tested when I decided to start my company. It was a new area for me, and there were a lot of failures. There were so many times I said, "I'm done with this." But then I’d think, "Let's try again one more time." 

 

Ebere: Finding the right people to work with and the right strategy was tough. I tell people that job searching requires resilience, but building a company—that’s twice as hard. The level of resilience you need to succeed there is crazy, and that was the biggest test for me. The fact that we're still going is because I am resilient. I know many people would have quit, but I believe in seeing my vision through. That’s been the biggest challenge for me in terms of how I’ve used my resilience.

 

Hafsah: That's very admirable;  can you tell us about how viewers can stay connected with you and continue to follow your journey?

 

Ebere: For sure. To stay connected with me, I think social media will be the best place. I am on LinkedIn, I have Instagram which is my biggest platform, and I also have Tik Tok and Facebook and Twitter. All of it is @nelotechie, and then my LinkedIn is my full name which is Ebere Oyekwe.

 

Hafsah: All right, well, thank you so much for this interview and all of your amazing insight. We really appreciate you taking the time to do this.

 

Ebere: No problem, I had fun doing this. 

 

Hafsah: Thank you so much.