Omowunmi Victoria Samson is a Tech and Business Executive with a proven track record of building scalable products, systems, and teams that move people from learning to earning.
She’s the co-Founder & Chief Technical and Business Officer (CTBO) at Amdari, where she works closely on cross-functional strategy across product development, growth, internship operations, and team performance. The Amdari platform is redefining how aspiring professionals across the UK, US, Canada, and the diaspora gain the experience they need to land global tech jobs.
In this interview with Sodiq Ajala, Omowunmi discusses what building and scaling a tech company looks like in an African landscape.
Excerpts:
Can you briefly introduce yourself and what you are currently building?
My name is Omowunmi Victoria Samson. I’m a tech entrepreneur, product and operations leader, and currently the Co-founder & Chief Technology and Business Officer at Amdari. At Amdari, we are building a work experience system that helps UK/US/Canada immigrants move from learning tech to actually becoming employable and globally competitive.
A lot of people can take courses today, but very few understand how to gain the kind of experience, execution mindset, and career capital that employers truly value. That gap is what we are trying to close at Amdari. Beyond technology, I’m also passionate about storytelling.
What first pushed you into technology or entrepreneurship?
Curiosity and necessity. I originally entered tech through web development, but what kept me in the industry was realizing how technology could solve operational and human problems at scale. I’ve always naturally leaned toward systems thinking. Even before I had titles or authority, I found myself asking questions like: “Why is this process inefficient?” or “How can this work better?”
Entrepreneurship came later as a result of repeatedly seeing problems and feeling restless about simply observing them instead of building solutions around them.
Was there a specific moment or problem that led you to start this journey?
My entrepreneurial journey started before Amdari but let’s talk about the Amdari journey and what led to the problem we are solving. My journey with Amdari started when I was hired by the other co-founders as a contract web developer to build what was originally a project repository platform for people taking tech courses. While working on the product, I became increasingly interested in the company’s broader vision and naturally transitioned beyond web development into product and operations, eventually becoming CTO/COO full-time.
Through interacting closely with our audience and understanding the realities many aspiring tech professionals and immigrants in the UK faced, we realized they needed more than projects, they needed structured work experience and a clearer path to employability. That insight led to the creation of the Amdari Work Experience Program, which eventually became a core part of the company’s direction and impact.
What was the earliest version of your idea, and how has it changed since then?
The earliest version was focused on helping people work on projects in Data Analytics, Data Science and Data Engineering. Over time, we realized people needed more, beyond “practice”; we needed to help them build career capital to enable them thrive in the tech field in the UK.
Today, the vision is much broader. We think deeply about employability systems, internships, collaborative teams, real organization workflows, and how to create scalable environments where people can gain meaningful work experience that translates into real opportunities globally.
What specific problem are you trying to solve, and who is most affected by it?
We are solving the problem of employability. More specifically, the gap between learning a skill and becoming professionally valuable in the job market.
The people most affected are UK/US/Canada immigrants looking to transition into tech from care roles or menial jobs, young professionals, career pivoters, and even mid-level professionals who have technical knowledge but lack practical experience, execution maturity, and workplace readiness.
Why is this problem important in your local or African context?
This problem is especially important in the African context because of the growing “japa” culture, where many Nigerians and Africans relocate to countries like the UK, US, and Canada in search of better opportunities. The reality for many immigrants is that despite having degrees, certifications, or years of experience back home, they often have to start from scratch because they lack local work experience.
Many end up taking survival jobs, especially care roles, while trying to transition into professional careers through tech courses and certifications. The challenge is that employers in these countries still prioritize local experience, but getting that first opportunity without already having experience is extremely difficult. What Amdari does is important because we help bridge that gap by giving people structured UK/US/Canada work experience and workplace exposure that makes them more competitive and employable internationally.
What makes solving this problem difficult in your environment?
One of the biggest challenges is mindset and access to the right partnerships. A lot of people still underestimate the importance of structured work experience and focus only on certifications, without realizing that employers are often hiring for execution ability, workplace readiness, and proven experience.
On the other hand, solving this problem effectively also requires strong partnerships with organizations, mentors, and industry professionals who understand the value of creating real pathways for talent development. Building trust, credibility, and scalable opportunities within our environment takes time, collaboration, and continuous education.
How did you take your first practical steps from idea to execution?
We started small. We tested ideas quickly, observed outcomes, and improved continuously. One thing I strongly believe in is what I call “little bets”, small but intentional experiments that give you insight before scaling.
The first steps involved creating project repository in 3 tech fields then pivoting into structured internship experiences, documenting workflows, assigning collaborative projects, and gradually building operational systems around them.
What has been your most significant milestone so far?
The most significant milestone so far has been the measurable success of our internship outcomes, specifically the number of interns who have transitioned from the program into employment.
This includes interns securing roles in the US/UK/Canada, as well as those who have successfully landed visa-sponsored opportunities in the UK. Beyond placements, the stronger signal has been the consistency of these outcomes across cohorts, showing that the model we’ve built is not accidental but repeatable.
What has been your hardest technical or operational challenge?
Scalability.
Many systems initially work because of human effort and direct oversight. The real challenge is building operational systems that continue functioning effectively as the number of users, interns, or workflows grows.
How are you currently funding or sustaining the work?
Primarily through revenue generated from our programs and services. We’ve had to be extremely intentional about building sustainable systems rather than relying purely on external funding.
That reality has shaped how we think about execution, prioritization, and operational discipline.
What is one decision you made that changed the direction of your journey?
On a personal level it would be fully buying into Amdari’s vision and shifting from a contract role to acting like an owner, proactively improving systems, contributing ideas, and supporting the founding team as though the platform was my own. That mindset shift from just a staff to a builder significantly shaped my trajectory on the team.
On a professional level it would be choosing to pivot from our initial business idea to a more in demand business idea. That decision changed everything. It taught me that entrepreneurship is less about defending your first idea and more about responding intelligently to reality.
What failure or setback taught you the most?
One of the most important lessons came from realizing that success is never permanent, it’s something you continuously earn, it’s like a rent that is due daily. And setbacks made it clear that progress requires consistency, and failure is not a stopping point but a necessary part of growth and refinement.
If you could restart, what would you do differently from day one?
I would spend less time trying to perfect ideas before testing them publicly. Execution teaches faster than overthinking.
Describe a typical working day for you right now.
Most days involve switching between growth strategy, operations, product thinking, and problem-solving. One moment I’m reviewing marketing workflows, and the next I’m thinking about long-term growth or product improvements. WIth a lot of other in-betweens. There’s usually controlled chaos involved.
Where do you usually work from, and what does that space look like?
Mostly from my workspace with multiple tabs, notebooks, sticky notes, dashboards, and messages open at once. It’s a mix of structure and creative disorder. I like environments where ideas can move quickly.
What sounds, routines, or distractions are part of your daily building process?
Slack notifications, meetings, random ideas in the middle of unrelated tasks, voice notes, and constant context switching. Sometimes my best ideas come while solving completely different problems.
Who are the people around you during a normal working week?
A combination of engineers, interns, growth team members, operations staff, and collaborators. One thing I value deeply is being around people who are willing to learn, execute, and improve continuously.
What does a stressful day look like for you?
Multiple operational fires happening simultaneously while still needing to make strategic decisions calmly. Stressful days are usually less about volume and more about competing priorities requiring immediate attention.
What does a good day feel like when things are working well?
A good day feels like alignment, when people execute proactively, systems flow smoothly, and ideas move from discussion to implementation effectively.
What keeps you going on difficult days?
Purpose and perspective. I genuinely believe the work we are doing matters because it affects real people’s lives and opportunities.
I also remind myself that difficult seasons are often part of building meaningful things.
What personal sacrifice has been necessary to keep this venture alive?
Time, comfort, and sometimes rest. Building requires emotional and mental investment beyond what people usually see publicly.
How has this journey changed how you see yourself?
It has made me more resilient, more self-aware, and more intentional. I’ve learned that leadership is less about titles and more about responsibility, judgment, and consistency under pressure.
What kind of impact do you hope your work will have in the next 3 to 5 years?
I want us to contribute meaningfully to building a stronger pipeline of globally competitive African talent. I also want to help reshape how people think about employability, moving beyond certificates toward execution, ownership, and adaptability.
What is the next big step or ambition for your venture?
A major focus now is building more scalable systems.
If someone is reading your story today, what do you want them to learn from it?
That meaningful things rarely start perfectly. Many impactful journeys begin with uncertainty, small experiments, and the willingness to keep learning publicly.
You do not need to have everything figured out before starting.
Somewhere inside the dashboards, the sticky notes, the Slack notifications, and the controlled chaos of Omowunmi’s days, that remains the deeper work. Not just building systems. Building passage.
And like many meaningful things, it did not begin perfectly. It began with curiosity, necessity, restlessness, and a willingness to step beyond the role she was first given. The rest, as she might put it, has been earned daily.
