Inspiring Minds: Cambridge Judge MBA Wins 2024 Edie Hunt Award

Only 1% of global venture funding goes to Africa. Toyosi Oni sees that as a tremendous opportunity.

Oni is an MBA student at Cambridge Judge Business School and a Fellow of the nonprofit Forté Foundation. Today (May 22) she was named the foundation’s 21st recipient of the Edie Hunt Inspiration Award, given annually to an MBA student attending one of Forté’s member business schools in the U.S., Europe, and Canada who actively contributes to the advancement of women into business leadership positions at their school or within their community.

A senior associate at a Nigerian venture capital firm before coming to Cambridge, and a native of Nigeria, Oni plans is to take her skills and network back to Africa after she graduates from the Judge School in September — to make her dream of becoming part of the story of the transformation of the world’s fastest-growing continent come true.

‘A LIFELONG AMBASSADOR’ OF CAMBRIDGE & FORTÉ

“I am filled with immense gratitude to the Forté Foundation, as it has been with me throughout my MBA journey,” says Oni, a 2023 Forté Fellow who earned a BSc in Finance & Management from the UK’s University of East Anglia in 2016. She worked at venture capital, private equity, and professional services firms in Lagos, Nigeria after undergrad, before returning to the UK in 2023. “From being an MBA launcher to a Forté Fellow and now winning the Edie Hunt Inspiration Award, it truly feels like a full-circle moment.”

At Cambridge Judge, Oni was elected co-chair of the Gender Equality Group, where she facilitated networking sessions on effective strategies to promote gender equality in business. She was also co-chair of the Cambridge Africa Business Network and actively supported women pursuing business careers in Africa through mentorship.

Oni collaborates with The Investment Society of the University of Lagos, where she mentors two young undergraduate women, guiding them toward careers in business and investment fields. She notes that Africa has the world’s youngest population — making it “a significant source of global human capital.”

“I look forward to being a lifelong ambassador of both the Cambridge MBA and Forté Foundation, and I cannot wait to pay it forward,” she says.

EDIE HUNT AWARD: 21 WINNERS IN 17 YEARS

Oni is the 21st winner of the Edie Hunt Inspiration Award, which has been bestowed every year since 2009 to one or two MBA students at any of Forté’s 62 member schools. It is named in honor of Forté’s Board Chair Emeritus Edie Hunt, who earned her MBA from Chicago Booth School of Business and was with Goldman Sachs for over 30 years, a partner from 2004 to 2011, and most recently served as chief diversity officer and advisory director until the end of 2013 when she retired.

Edie Hunt Inspiration Award nominees must be enrolled in a full-time program as a second-year MBA student at a Forté partner school or enrolled full-time in a one-year program. The winner receives a $2,500 cash award, free Forté MBA Women’s Leadership Conference registration, valued at over $300, and other additional benefits.

Finalists receive free conference registration and a $100 gift card. The conference this year will be held in Chicago on June 28-29.

‘A TRUE COMMITMENT TO LEADING WOMEN’

Forté received nearly 200 nominations this year and recognizes five finalists that impacted the broader community of women in business:

• Oluwatosin Fasoranti, Olin Business School at Washington University in St. Louis, served as a student ambassador, peer coach, and vice president of the Olin Women in Business & Olin Finance Club.
• Cinthya Garibay-Collard, Yale School of Management, served as the lead for Fempire, the flagship conference hosted by Women in Management, the affinity group created to support women personally and professionally and empower allies to be agents of change. She also served as a mentor to women pursuing an MBA and is working with a local high school business club to inspire young women at a critical stage in their educational journey, demonstrating the value of early engagement.
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  Edie Hunt Award finalist Cinthya Garibay-Collard

  Priyanka Kingrani, McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas at Austin, served as president of Graduate Women in Business. During her leadership, she launched professional development and speed networking events with leading firms hiring women MBAs and spearheaded an allyship training program with male classmates that achieved 20% participation.

• Madeline Mulkey Ledford, Goizueta Business School at Emory University, served as president of Goizueta Women in Business and pioneered a woman’s “peer-to-peer” mentorship program for new students while leading her team in hosting 15 events.
• Juhie Rathor, Anderson School of Management at University of California-Los Angeles, served as student body president and executive vice president of Women’s Business Connection, a professional club that cultivates influential and inclusive business leaders. She also collaborated in a fireside chat focused on women’s leadership, including discussing the cultural impact of the Barbie movie.

“We are thrilled to honor Toyosi with this award as she has demonstrated a true commitment to leading women at Judge Business School and beyond,” says Elissa Sangster, CEO of the Forté Foundation. “We also want to recognize the stellar contributions of our finalists, Oluwatosin, Cinthya, Priyanka, Madeline, and Juhie. This year, we received nominations from many who are continuously working to advance equity for future professional women. I am so impressed by them and grateful for their investment and passion.”

‘DEDICATED TO SEEING MORE WOMEN LEAD’

Toyosi Oni’s mission is to help lead, “as a young African woman,” the continent’s development and transformation. She’s on her way to making it happen: In her time as an MBA at Cambridge Judge, she has gained the experience — and network — that will help her make an impact when she returns, including working with the Cambridge Venture Project and the Venture Capital and Private Equity Society.

She says she’s inspired by the example of Edie Hunt, the Forté board chair emeritus who despite being retired remains active in mentoring and educational efforts in her home state of Florida.

“I am particularly inspired by Edie Hunt’s tenacity and determination,” Oni says in a statement to Forté upon receiving the award. “Her vision has created opportunities for countless women in the world, ensuring that there are more women in leadership positions.

“Winning this prize has empowered me to be the best I can be. It has shown me that there is a reward for hard work and I am now more driven than ever to ensure that in any capacity I find myself, I will be dedicated to seeing more women lead.”

Read more about the Forté Foundation’s 2024 Edie Hunt Inspiration Award here.

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