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Cheryl Contee

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Cheryl Contee
Born
United States
OccupationsBlogger, Writer, Entrepreneur

Cheryl Contee is an American entrepreneur, CEO, blogger, and writer. She is co-founder and CEO of a digital marketing agency, Do Big Things.[1] Before founding Do Big Things, Contee co-founded Fission Strategy[2] and Attentive.ly.[3] In 2019, Contee released her book, “Mechanical Bull", which details her history as a non-traditional startup founder.[4] She received her B.A. from Yale University and has an International Executive M.B.A. from Georgetown University.[5]

Entrepreneurship

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In May 2008, Contee co-founded Fission Strategy, a women- and minority-owned tech startup. Fission was an Internet strategy and web development firm that specialized in nonprofits and foundations.[6] In 2006, Contee also co-founded Jack and Jill Politics, named one of the top 10 black blogs in 2008, where she wrote under the pseudonym "Jill Tubman”.[7]

In June 2012, Contee went on to co-found Attentive.ly, a tech startup specializing in influencer marketing technology, serving as their Strategic Advisor. In 2016, Attentive.ly was acquired by Blackbaud for $ 4 million,[8] making it the first tech startup with a black female founder on board in history to be acquired by a NASDAQ-traded company.

In 2018, Fission Strategy merged with 270 Strategies, a digital consulting firm, to create Do Big Things, where she currently leads as the CEO.[when?] Do Big Things is a mission-driven digital marketing agency that specializes in working with non-profits and progressive political campaigns. In 2019, Contee released her book, “Mechanical Bull: How You Can Achieve Startup Success", which details her history as a rare Black female startup founder.

In addition to her business ventures, Contee co-founded #YesWeCode,[9] now DreamCorps Tech,[10] which represents the movement to help over 100,000 low opportunity youth to become high quality coders.[11]

Recognition

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Contee was included in the first "The Root 100" list of established and emerging African-American leaders.[12] Huffington Post listed her as one of the "Top 27 Female Founders in Tech to Follow on Twitter" in 2011,[13] as did Black Enterprise. Fast Company named her one of their "2010 Most Influential Women in Tech".[14] Contee was also named in "The Influencers 50" in Campaigns and Elections magazine.[15] In 2019, Kate Spade NY and Conscious Company named Contee one of 2019’s “World Changing Women”.[16]

Media and board appearances

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Contee's work has been published or featured by media including NPR’s How I Built This Resilience Series, The Washington Post, The New York Times,[17] San Francisco Magazine, BBC,[18] MSNBC and CNN, HuffPost Live,[19] Social Venture Circle,[20] Silicon Republic,[21] Stanford Social Innovation Review, Harvard Business Review, and MarketWatch/Dow Jones.

She is also on several boards and advisory committees, including Netroots Nation,[22] CovidMD.org, Hopewell Fund,[23] Center for Cultural Power, and Digital Undivided. She has been an affiliate of the Harvard Berkman Center for Internet and Society.[24]

References

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  1. ↑ "Home". Do Big Things. Retrieved July 22, 2020.
  2. ↑ "Cheryl Contee – Fission Strategy". Fission Strategy. Retrieved February 18, 2016.
  3. ↑ "Our Founders | Attentive.ly". attentive.ly. Archived from the original on September 10, 2015. Retrieved February 18, 2016.
  4. ↑ Contee, Cheryl (October 8, 2019). "Advice on Launching a Tech Startup When You're Not a White Man". Harvard Business Review – via hbr.org.
  5. ↑ "Cheryl Contee Linkedin". Archived from the original on May 11, 2008.
  6. ↑ Things, Do Big (September 6, 2018). "Launched! 270 + Fission Team Up to Create Do Big Things". Do Big Things. Retrieved August 3, 2020.
  7. ↑ "Electronic Village: Top Ten Black Blogs (Jul 2008)". Electronic Village. July 1, 2008. Retrieved August 3, 2020.
  8. ↑ "Blackbaud Acquisition Ups Its Position in Higher Ed". The NonProfit Times. Retrieved April 27, 2026.
  9. ↑ "Team". #YesWeCode. Retrieved February 18, 2016.
  10. ↑ "Cheryl Contee – Inside Venture Capital". ozonex.quvent.com.
  11. ↑ "Cheryl Contee". the Guardian.
  12. ↑ Authors. "The Root 100 Profiles". The Root. Archived from the original on February 22, 2016. Retrieved February 18, 2016.
  13. ↑ "27 Female Founders in Tech To Follow". The Huffington Post. August 29, 2011. Retrieved February 18, 2016.
  14. ↑ "THE MOST INFLUENTIAL WOMEN IN TECHNOLOGY 2010 – Cheryl Contee". Fast Company. March 23, 2010. Retrieved February 18, 2016.
  15. ↑ "The Influencers 50". campaignsandelections.com. Archived from the original on March 1, 2016. Retrieved February 18, 2016.
  16. ↑ "Cheryl Contee on Perseverance and Building Equitable Organizations: World-Changing Women Podcast". SOCAP Global. June 5, 2020.
  17. ↑ Bai, Matt (August 6, 2008). "Is Obama the End of Black Politics?". The New York Times.
  18. ↑ "Live: G20 Summit as it happened". news.bbc.co.uk. April 2, 2009.
  19. ↑ "HuffPost Live". live.huffingtonpost.com. Retrieved February 18, 2016.
  20. ↑ Social Venture Network (July 2, 2014), "Never Stop" – Cheryl Contee, CEO, Fission Strategy, retrieved February 18, 2016
  21. ↑ Ardill, Lisa (July 14, 2020). "Why this black woman founder sees diversity as an 'economic imperative'". Silicon Republic.
  22. ↑ "Cheryl Contee Named Chair of Netroots Nation Board of Directors – Netroots Nation". netrootsnation.org. January 10, 2019.
  23. ↑ "2020 Full Disclosure" (PDF). hopewellfund.org.
  24. ↑ "Cheryl Contee | Berkman Klein Center". cyber.harvard.edu. March 24, 2020.

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