---

---

---

The MSDUK Accelerator programme is designed to provide comprehensive support, specialist workshops, and offer corporate mentoring and personalised guidance from experts to B2B early-stage ventures. Take a page from Tobi Ogundipe‘s story, Founder and CEO of DIVERSE. Tobi joined the MSDUK Accelerator programme with a mission to fill the voids in his business acumen and elevate his brand. The transformation he experienced is a testament to the power of the Accelerator programme in nurturing and accelerating business growth. 

---

Enroll in the MSDUK Accelerator program and become part of an extended network of minority founders:  https://accelerator.msduk.org.uk/?utm_source=blog&utm_medium=website&utm_campaign=OrganicAC23 

---

---

About DIVERSE.   

Tobi Ogundipe, Founder and CEO of DIVERSE. came into the MSDUK Accelerator with the goal of filling in the gaps in his entrepreneurial knowledge after running his business on his own. Since being on the programme he has taken and implemented his learnings, filling in those gaps to take his business to the next level.  

---

DIVERSE. is an inclusive careers platform which helps employers attract, engage, and hire more underrepresented talent. So far, we have supported brands such as UNiDAYS, BT, and Warner Bros to increase the diversity in their applicant pool and ensure they are hiring from the top underrepresented talent in the UK. 

---

When I started this business, I had little prior knowledge of what it is like to run a business and be an entrepreneur. Whilst I managed to get to a certain traction on my own, I knew I wanted to start filling in the gaps in my entrepreneurial knowledge. The MSDUK Accelerator programme provided that knowledge and network. 

---

---

Learning Experience 

Taking part in the MSDUK Accelerator was an amazing experience. I enjoyed all the online masterclasses and workshops led by experts who otherwise would have been difficult to get access to. 

---

I particularly enjoyed the ‘Sales and Communication’ module. As a result of the facilitator’s unique way of teaching, this module gave me a lot more confidence going into sales. As a self-taught entrepreneur, much of my knowledge has been learnt along the way. However, this module provided me with the structure I needed to approach sales calls and understand the questions I should be asking potential clients. 

---

---

Module Tasks 

The module tasks made sure we were active learners as opposed to taking a passive learning model. I appreciated that we were not learning for the sake of learning. By completing the tasks, I was able to see changes to the way I run my business almost immediately. 

---

As an example, the third module, ‘Growth Marketing’ helped me transform and pay more attention to my website. Initially, my website was not drawing in conversion as I was not clearly displaying the value to potential clients. What’s best about the module task is that it didn’t take me long to implement the changes to my website and I could see the difference almost immediately. 

---

---

Demo Day 

It was great to have that spotlight at the MSDUK Accelerator Demo Day to showcase my business and it was also interesting to see how the programme first into the wider MSDUK initiative of driving supplier diversity within large corporations.  

---

From a sales perspective, it was insightful to be able to pitch to the procurement teams within corporations as I often target the Talent Acquisition teams. I didn’t have much of an understanding of how procurement works so being able to take part in the Demo Day has allowed me to understand that side of corporations better. Following my pitch, I had a great follow-up from other founders who understood our mission on a deeper scale; it was good to talk about potential partnerships within the community. Additionally, it’s always heartwarming to meet the rest of the cohort in-person whenever we have the chance. 

---

---

Tobi’s Biggest Takeaway 

The biggest takeaway from the programme for me is learning how to sell and communicate my offering with confidence. I have managed to build this business over a few years with little sales training so being able to learn from an expert facilitator about how to structure this element of running a business was invaluable. Learning how to articulate your offering and having a sales process from start to finish allows a customer to go on a journey with you. It was good to be encouraged to start shouting about our work and the impact of DIVERSE. has had on young black and ethnic minority graduates and juniors.