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Key people at YSYS.
YSYS (Your Startup Your Story) is a community-driven organization that fosters an inclusive startup ecosystem. It accelerates diverse founders and talent through structured programs, advocating for inclusion via campaigns and workshops. YSYS offers talent programs for skill development, career advancement, and founder programs supporting startup launch, investment readiness, and mentorship. It also provides D&I workshops.
Founded in 2017 by Deborah Okenla, YSYS emerged from the critical need to address diversity gaps within the technology and startup sectors. Okenla envisioned a vital hub connecting underrepresented individuals with resources and networks. Her insight was to dismantle barriers, enabling diverse talent and entrepreneurs to thrive in the startup landscape.
YSYS serves diverse founders, emerging tech talent, and organizations committed to improving diversity and inclusion. Its mission is to foster a more equitable and representative tech ecosystem, ensuring all individuals, particularly people of color, have opportunities to innovate and succeed. The company’s vision centers on driving systemic change, making the startup world reflective of global diversity.
Key people at YSYS.
YSYS is a startup community and accelerator focused on accelerating diverse founders and talent into tech careers and entrepreneurship through community-driven programs, workshops, and campaigns advocating for an inclusive startup ecosystem.[3][4] It runs talent programs for skill development and job placement, founder programs offering investor access and mentorship, and community initiatives like D&I workshops and impactful campaigns to foster diversity.[4] YSYS partners with organizations such as Create Jobs, the Mayor of London, Innovate UK, and corporates like LinkedIn, Google, and the Financial Times to deliver training, events, and networking, aiming to connect 100,000 diverse individuals to tech opportunities within three years.[3][4]
Distinct from YS Investments Group—a separate holding company building ventures in technology, data, and assets—YSYS emphasizes social impact over financial investment, prioritizing underrepresented groups in tech via scalable virtual programs enhanced by COVID-era shifts.[1][3]
YSYS emerged as a UK-based startup community dedicated to tech inclusion, with key figure Kwaku Dapaah driving its mission to get diverse people into tech careers and support their startups.[3][4] It formed with the explicit purpose of countering VC biases like reliance on "warm introductions" from non-diverse networks, recreating those connections for underrepresented founders.[3] Early traction included partnerships with Create Jobs and the Mayor of London for a six-week youth training program, launching the FoundersDoor Investor Lounge with Innovate UK (connecting diverse founders to investors like Atomico and Salesforce Ventures), community pop-up shops, and a published book by a member.[3] The organization scaled virtually during COVID, expanding reach from 50 to 500 participants per program, with plans for a FoundersDoor Library of resources.[3][4]
(Note: A separate YSys initiative in Yemen, tied to Yemen Kuwait Bank and National Cash Transfer Co. for FinTech and humanitarian solutions, appears unrelated based on distinct focus and geography.[2])
YSYS rides the wave of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) trends in tech, addressing systemic barriers like biased VC networks amid growing calls for representative innovation.[3] Timing aligns with post-COVID virtual scaling, enabling global reach for underrepresented talent when remote work democratized access but highlighted inclusion gaps.[3] Market forces favoring YSYS include corporate DEI mandates (e.g., partnerships with Google, Salesforce), government-backed programs (Mayor of London, Innovate UK), and investor appetite for diverse portfolios to mitigate groupthink risks.[3][4] It influences the ecosystem by proliferating networks, training pipelines, and campaigns that pressure incumbents for change, fostering a more equitable startup landscape.[3]
YSYS is poised to hit its 100K connections goal through virtual expansion and tools like the FoundersDoor Library, potentially amplifying impact via AI-driven matching or global chapters.[3][4] Trends like remote-first ecosystems, regulatory DEI pushes, and founder-friendly funding will propel it, evolving its role from accelerator to ecosystem shaper—perhaps launching its own diverse-led fund. As a bridge for overlooked talent, YSYS exemplifies how intentional inclusion builds lasting tech value, much like its mantra of turning diverse stories into startup success.
