Linda Ansong is the Executive Director and Co-Founder of STEMbees Organization in Accra, Ghana. STEMbees is a non-governmental organization that encourages, mentors and trains young African women to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
Linda Ansong was recognized as a Change Leader and Innovator by Reach for Change, in partnership with UNICEF and the EU in 2015. Linda is committed to effecting change, empowering your women with STEM skills to improve their standard of living and enable the pursuit of their dreams.
EDUCATION
I have a Bachelor of Science degree in Statistics and Actuarial Science from Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology in Kumasi, Ghana. After graduating I was offered a full scholarship to study Software Entrepreneurship by Meltwater Entrepreneurial School of Technology from 2012 to 2014 in Accra.
MY FIRST JOB
My first job was as an entrepreneur. I co-founded a tech startup, Vestracker, and I was also the Vice President of Sales. I was in charge of developing strategies to achieve the company’s sales goals and creating a positive culture of success and goal achievement.
MY FIRST BIG CAREER BREAK
I got my first big break when I received seed funding from two different investors to run my tech startup. After studying software entrepreneurship for two years, my team and I pitched our idea to a group of investors and got two of them to fund us.
MY TYPICAL WORK DAY
After completing an hour long workout, I get to the office at 8am every morning. I work closely with my team to come up with new and exciting methods to teach STEM subjects and work on raising funds through grants and sponsorships.
I also work with soccer team in Ghana as their director of registration and treasurer so I am in charge of international player transfers, maintaining the Ghana Football Association registration process and acquiring sponsorships for the soccer club.
CURRENT PROJECTS
Right now I’m busy working on an exchange program between girls from STEMbees and girls from Creative Tech Works, an organization in Philadelphia. We are working on a project together using 3D technology to create customized first aid kits. The goal is to donate kits to hospitals in the rural areas in Ghana as well as sell some to generate revenue for the organization.
INSPIRATION
The girls I teach always inspire me. Most of them are from very humble backgrounds but their current situation does not deter them from wanting to achieve more. This motivates me to work harder so I can reach out to more girls to empower and equip them with skills to improve their standard of living.
FAVORITE THINGS
I can’t live without my computer and the Internet. I research different STEM projects for the the STEMbees girls, apply for grants and sponsorships as well as watch movies when I need to relax.
SECRET TALENT
My secret talent is dancing. I am an amazing kizomba dancer, a very popular dance originating in Angola. I’m pretty good at salsa as well.
MY BIGGEST ACHIEVEMENT
Last year I was honored by Reach for Change in partnership with UNICEF and the EU as an Imagine Ghana Change leader.
BEST ADVICE
The best career advice I ever received is your success is your responsibility, from Jorn Lyseggen the CEO of Meltwater Group. Also, “if you want something done right, do it yourself” which was told to me by my mother. Knowing that succeeding or failing depends solely on me has helped me focus and work hard.
LOOKING AHEAD
Looking ahead I’ll be running an institution in the African continent, starting from Ghana, focused on training and empowering high school students in STEM and entrepreneurship. I would work closely with local government to formulate and implement policies to protect the educational body from political influence. I would help build an infrastructure to incorporate technology into education, so that knowledge can be acquired and shared across nations and continents.
I LOVE WHAT I DO BECAUSE…
I equip people with skills to improve their lives.
Interview by Octavia Goredema @OctaviaGoredema
