TOLU OSINUBI LLB Law 2012, PG Dip Legal Practice 2013 Senior Manager at Deloitte and Intersectionality Lead for Globe UK, OUTstanding future leaders list 2020 & 2021, DIVA Magazine Diversity Champion of the Year 2021. Shortlist for Top 10 Diversity Hero category for British LGBT Awards 2022 and Inspirational Role Model of the Year, DIVA Awards 2022. Alongside her responsibilities as a Senior Manager for Deloitte in Quality and Test Engineering practice, Tolu Osinubi is passionate about sharing her experiences as a Black, LGBTQ+ woman and advocating for intersectionality in the technology industry. Black women make up just 1% of the UK and US technology industry workforce, and Tolu is determined to continue to promote inclusion within the workplace.
I started off studying Biomedical Sciences but I wasn’t enjoying it much, so I decided to switch to Law. I made some great friends on both courses and during my time with the women’s rugby team, but Law aligned better with where I thought I wanted to go in my career. After finishing my undergraduate and Legal Practice course, I started to have some doubts about a career in law longer term. At the time, back in 2012, the technology industry looked like it was going to grow significantly, which I found quite exciting. I started my first graduate job in 2013 for a software testing consultancy based in Leeds. I decided to stay in the North because I had such a good time living in Sheffield. It was a great opportunity for me to learn something completely new – not just the technology and software testing but the consultancy aspect. Skills I learnt from my degree like analysis, critical thinking and presenting
helped to make public speaking a lot less nerve-wracking. I was looking to relocate to London and I’d heard a lot about how Deloitte centres its people and focuses on diversity and inclusion. I was drawn to that and thought it sounded like the sort of company I’d like to work for. Over the past five years, I’ve worked my way up to be a Senior Manager where I am focused on clients in the consumer space. I spend a lot of time on large-scale and complex deliveries where we help clients, particularly in the retail industry. When you start with a new client it’s a bit like starting a new job. I’ve done two-year projects, two-week projects and everything in between. It means meeting new people, getting up to speed with new technologies and trying to understand the best way to support clients. I find that exciting as well as challenging because you never know where you’re going to land. I know just from looking around the room that I am very under-represented
within my industry. As part of our diversity network, we have practical initiatives to support people. For example, after the murder of George Floyd, we held listening sessions for Black colleagues to talk about their experiences inside and outside of the firm. We also have a Black Action Plan and part of this is our reverse mentoring programme where Black colleagues mentor senior partners and build a relationship with senior leadership in our business. My key saying is ‘Your perceived weaknesses are actually your greatest strengths’. Stories have so much power and one of the biggest realisations for me is that the aspects of my identity which have caused struggle are now my strengths.
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