Microsoft Employees Celebrated at Black Tech Achievement Awards
On March 21, Microsoft employees were recognized for their accomplishments at the Black Tech Achievement Awards held at the JW Marriott Grosvenor House Hotel. The prestigious event, now in its fifth year, highlighted the diverse talent within the tech industry.
According to Dr. Raphael Sofoluke, Founder & CEO, “We highlight and amplify the voices and successes of those paving the way for future generations.”
Despite ongoing efforts, black professionals, particularly black women, remain underrepresented in the UK technology sector. The awards ceremony aimed to address this issue.
Keyonda Gallardo, Microsoft UK’s HR Director, emphasized the importance of celebrating the achievements of all groups: “Events like this… make me proud. It’s so important to elevate their work.”
Here are the inspirational stories of the five Microsoft nominees:
Kwadwo Benko, Senior Communications Manager
Kwadwo Benko won the ‘Employee of the Year’ award for his work stimulating the adoption of Copilot within Microsoft UK and leading the organization’s Black History Month celebrations. Kwadwo movingly shared the challenges he faced moving to the UK from South Africa and Ghana, crediting his mother’s work ethic for his success. He recalled helping his mother with her work as a cleaner and her advice – “just keep working hard, man.”
Anjola Adebowale, Data & AI Consultant
Anjola Adebowale was named 2025’s ‘Rising Star’. She was recognized for her engineering work across multiple generative AI tools and for co-leading the ‘Black Employees at Microsoft’ (BEAM) community. She also ran university outreach events, teaching AI skills to more than 60 university students from underrepresented communities. Anjola highlighted the value of support systems: “All of the support of the Employee Resource Groups, and the different mentors I’ve had, has helped me grow closer to becoming the woman I want to be.”
Idil Wais, Strategic Design Researcher
Idil Wais was nominated for the ‘Innovation Champion’ award for her work driving AI transformation for Microsoft’s UK customers, using a ‘design thinking methodology.’ Idil praised Microsoft’s culture: “Culture is the main reason I gravitated towards Microsoft and chose to stay.” She added, “I’ve been supported through career changes, had my higher education sponsored, and I’ve been encouraged to learn new disciplines, which has been a great opportunity for me.”
Isaac Amosu, Cloud Solution Architect
Nominated for 2025’s ‘Social Good’ award, Isaac Amosu started a university outreach program supporting underrepresented students through panels, hackathons, and technical training. Reflecting on the supportive culture, Isaac said that the most important thing is to “learn.” When the whole company has a learning mindset, you can’t help but fall into the same rhythm.”
Taonga Banda, Data & AI Cloud Solution Architect
Taonga Banda, also a nominee for the ‘Social Good’ award, intertwines her passion for technology with her dedication to helping her community. She emphasizes that recognition empowers not only the individual but also those who support them: “As much as my name is nominated, I feel I’m a reflection of people who have shared their stories with me, or people who have been vulnerable enough to share their experiences to help me learn.”
Making a Difference
The nominees expressed a desire for greater diversity and inclusion in the tech sector, including visible representation at all organizational levels, especially in leadership; encouragement for the next generation; and the celebration of achievements.
Lindsay-Rae McIntyre, Microsoft’s Corporate Vice President Talent Development and Chief Diversity Officer, stated, “The work of diversity and inclusion is complex and ever-evolving. At Microsoft, we aren’t daunted by the complexity. Instead, we leverage our platform and allocate our resources to take on these issues with vision and commitment.”
Keyonda Gallardo believes that the nominees’ stories highlight the strength of diversity. “Back to our mission – if we’re really focused on every person on the globe, we need to make sure that everyone’s voice, and all their needs and desires, are a part of what we do.”
