Kike Oniwinde is the founder of BYP Network, an all-inclusive community for black young professionals to connect. Born and raised in London to Nigerian parents, Kike has a B.Sc (Hons) Economics degree from the University of Nottingham and a M.Sc in Management from the University of Florida.
A Great Britain javelin thrower, Kike received a full track and field scholarship to study in Florida. Whilst there, she met some amazing people who were all achieving great things, but when she returned to her base in the UK, she realized that there was lack of diversity in the workplace as well as the low opportunity to meet like-minded people in her city.
She wanted to help make a difference so that more people like her could connect. From there, BYP Network was born. BYP Network brings future leaders together by giving them an online platform to meet and this leads to job opportunities, collaborations and friendships within the black community.
Described by many as ‘LinkedIn for black professionals,’ it helps to connect ambitious future leaders with each other for networking purposes. BYP Network tackles the whole journey from grassroot to senior managers by providing a growth pipeline that focuses on mentorship, peer collaborations and career development. They also host events such as networking, recruitment, professional developments and social outreach.
BYP Network has thousands of downloads, leading to Kike winning multiple awards. She was named a Sky Woman in Technology Scholar gaining a $33,000 grant and full backing from Sky Corp. She also won the Founders Forum ‘F-Factor’ Competition and the New Entrepreneurs Foundation pitch contest. She gained over $50k in funding and was featured in the Sunday Times (A national UK paper).
Kike’s plan for BYP Network is to be the go-to platform for black professionals who want to connect locally and globally to create new businesses, friendships and careers. She believes that the network will empower the black community and help them grow together.
BYP Network App is a platform available on ios, android and web for users to connect from all over the world.
Have a glance of how the black community network.
