It’s no secret that women of color are starting businesses at an alarming rate, and Tanya Sam knows first hand how to lead the charge and help other entrepreneurs accelerate into STEM fields.
Born and raised in Toronto, Canada with Ghanaian roots, Tanya is no stranger to educational ‘hustle”. She started off pursuing a Bachelor’s in Genetics and Cell biology at McGill University then later returning to pursue a second Bachelor’s degree in Nursing and clinical practice. After over 10 years in health care, Tanya decided to take a leap of career change and enter into the Tech space. She is now the Director of Operations and Partnerships at TechSquare Labs Atlanta which was founded in 2014.
“Having people around me who had built businesses that I could run ideas off of, or learn how they did it was probably the best thing.”
Although it has been said that Women of Color in technology are few far and in-between, Tanya is determined to help female entrepreneurs build their businesses. “When you look at black women as entrepreneurs we have always been leading the charge for leading businesses, supporting our families, and doing what we can to get the job done.”
“One of my big passions is helping black women make the jump in technology build their business, whether its starting off as a small business owner that is tech enabled, to building high gross scalable technology companies.”
A recent initiative implemented by Tanya at Tech Square Labs is Built by Women , an accelerator program for women of color who are building tech companies. The women meet every month to work on their businesses and to gain educational information on building their companies
182 Likes, 17 Comments - Tanya Sam (@itstanyatime) on Instagram: "This kid is so demanding ..... 🙃😜 #techsquarelabs #noteveryonewillgetit 😝#imkillingit #itskillingme..."
Tanya reminds us that if the path to leadership and entrepreneurship were easy, then everyone would do it. Tanya taught me that taking a leap of faith can be rewarding and the road to your true passion takes much work. As African American innovators, we must relentlessly champion each other to constantly do our part helping the next woman coming into various STEM fields.
So What’s next for Tanya? Well, we are quite confident that she will continue to kick down doors and take names! She is definitely solidifying her path and exploring many avenues like making cameos on the Real Housewives of Atlanta Season 11.
To keep up with Tanya, be sure to follow her on Instagram. Check out our full interview with Tanya below!