Cheryl Contee

{{Infobox person

| name = Cheryl Contee

| birth_date =

| birth_place = United States

| image = Cheryl Contee - Headshot.jpg

| image_size =

| caption =

| occupation = Blogger, 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.{{Cite web|title=Home|url=https://dobigthings.today/|access-date=2020-07-22|website=Do Big Things|language=en}} Before founding Do Big Things, Contee co-founded Fission Strategy{{Cite web|title = Cheryl Contee – Fission Strategy|url = https://fissionstrategy.com/team/member/cheryl-contee/|website = Fission Strategy|access-date = 2016-02-18|language = en-US}} and Attentive.ly.{{Cite web|title = Our Founders {{!}} Attentive.ly|url = http://attentive.ly/our-founders/|website = attentive.ly|access-date = 2016-02-18|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150910111026/http://attentive.ly/our-founders/|archive-date = September 10, 2015|url-status = dead}} In 2019, Contee released her book, “Mechanical Bull", which details her history as a non-traditional startup founder.{{Cite journal|url=https://hbr.org/2019/10/advice-on-launching-a-tech-startup-when-youre-not-a-white-man|title=Advice on Launching a Tech Startup When You're Not a White Man|first=Cheryl|last=Contee|journal=Harvard Business Review|date=October 8, 2019|via=hbr.org}} She received her B.A. from Yale University and has an International Executive M.B.A. from Georgetown University.{{Cite web|last=|first=|date=|title=Cheryl Contee Linkedin|url=https://www.linkedin.com/in/cherylcontee/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080511025529/http://www.linkedin.com:80/in/cherylcontee |archive-date=May 11, 2008 |access-date=|website=}}

Entrepreneurship

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.{{Cite web|date=2018-09-06|title=Launched! 270 + Fission Team Up to Create Do Big Things|url=https://dobigthings.today/launched-270-fission-team-create-big-things/|access-date=2020-08-03|website=Do Big Things|language=en}} 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”.{{Cite web|date=2008-07-01|title=Electronic Village: Top Ten Black Blogs (Jul 2008)|url=http://electronicvillage.blogspot.com/2008/07/top-ten-black-blogs-jul-2008.html|access-date=2020-08-03|website=Electronic Village}}

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, 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. 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,{{Cite web|title=Team|url=http://www.yeswecode.org/team|access-date=2016-02-18|website=#YesWeCode}} now DreamCorps Tech,{{cite web |title=Cheryl Contee – Inside Venture Capital |url=https://ozonex.quvent.com/speakers/cheryl-contee/ |publisher=ozonex.quvent.com}} which represents the movement to help over 100,000 low opportunity youth to become high quality coders.{{cite web |title=Cheryl Contee |url=https://www.theguardian.com/profile/cheryl-contee |website=the Guardian |language=en}}

Recognition

Contee was included in the first "The Root 100" list of established and emerging African-American leaders.{{Cite web|last=Authors|title=The Root 100 Profiles|url=http://www.theroot.com/articles/lists/2009/10/the_root_100_profiles.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160222033242/http://www.theroot.com/articles/lists/2009/10/the_root_100_profiles.html|archive-date=February 22, 2016|access-date=2016-02-18|website=The Root}} Huffington Post listed her as one of the "Top 27 Female Founders in Tech to Follow on Twitter" in 2011,{{Cite web|title=27 Female Founders in Tech To Follow|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/08/29/female-founders-in-tech-to-follow-on-twitter_n_940527.html|access-date=2016-02-18|website=The Huffington Post|date=August 29, 2011}} as did Black Enterprise. Fast Company named her one of their "2010 Most Influential Women in Tech".{{Cite web|title=THE MOST INFLUENTIAL WOMEN IN TECHNOLOGY 2010 – Cheryl Contee|url=http://www.fastcompany.com/3017165/women-in-tech-2010/the-most-influential-women-in-technology-2010-cheryl-contee|access-date=2016-02-18|website=Fast Company|language=en-US}} Contee was also named in "The Influencers 50" in Campaigns and Elections magazine.{{Cite web|title=The Influencers 50|url=http://campaignsandelections.com/campaign-insider/2348/the-influencers-50|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160301203439/http://campaignsandelections.com/campaign-insider/2348/the-influencers-50|archivedate=March 1, 2016|access-date=2016-02-18|website=campaignsandelections.com|df=mdy-all}} In 2019, Kate Spade NY and Conscious Company named Contee one of 2019’s “World Changing Women”.{{cite web |title=Cheryl Contee on Perseverance and Building Equitable Organizations: World-Changing Women Podcast |url=https://socapglobal.com/2020/06/cheryl-contee-on-perseverance-and-building-equitable-organizations-world-changing-women-podcast/ |website=SOCAP Global |date=5 June 2020}}

Media appearances

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,{{cite news |last1=Bai |first1=Matt |title=Is Obama the End of Black Politics? |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/10/magazine/10politics-t.html |work=The New York Times |date=6 August 2008}} San Francisco Magazine, BBC,{{cite web |title=Live: G20 Summit as it happened |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7978171.stm |publisher=news.bbc.co.uk |date=2 April 2009}} MSNBC and CNN, HuffPost Live,{{Cite web|title=HuffPost Live|url=http://live.huffingtonpost.com/r/segment/civic-data-challenge/51dee74d2b8c2a7b040000d2|access-date=2016-02-18|website=live.huffingtonpost.com}} Social Venture Circle,{{Citation|last=Social Venture Network|title="Never Stop" – Cheryl Contee, CEO, Fission Strategy|date=July 2, 2014|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=izShLp5Avyg|accessdate=2016-02-18}} Silicon Republic,{{cite news |last1=Ardill |first1=Lisa |title=Why this black woman founder sees diversity as an 'economic imperative' |url=https://www.siliconrepublic.com/people/cheryl-contee-do-good-things |work=Silicon Republic |date=14 July 2020 |language=en}} Stanford Social Innovation Review, Harvard Business Review, and MarketWatch/Dow Jones.

She is also on several boards and advisory committees, including Netroots Nation,{{cite web |title=Cheryl Contee Named Chair of Netroots Nation Board of Directors – Netroots Nation |date=January 10, 2019 |url=https://www.netrootsnation.org/cheryl-contee-named-chair-of-netroots-nation-board-of-directors/ |publisher=netrootsnation.org}} CovidMD.org, Hopewell Fund,{{cite web |title=2020 Full Disclosure |url=https://www.hopewellfund.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/Hopewell-Fund-2020-Public-Disclosure-Copy.pdf |publisher=hopewellfund.org}} Center for Cultural Power and Digital Undivided. She has been an affiliate of the Harvard Berkman Center for Internet and Society.{{cite web |title=Cheryl Contee {{!}} Berkman Klein Center |url=https://cyber.harvard.edu/people/ccontee |website=cyber.harvard.edu |language=en |date=24 March 2020}}

References

External links

[http://www.jackandjillpolitics.com Jack and Jill Politics]
[https://web.archive.org/web/20110806114207/http://www.fastcompany.com/women-in-tech/2010/category-Activists Most Influential Women in Tech 2010]
[http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/8483272 Cheryl Contee in Conversation with Nancy Pelosi and Netroots Nation 2010]
[http://fissionstrategy.com Fission Strategy]
[https://web.archive.org/web/20170911200717/http://smsadvocacy.com/ Report on Using SMS for Advocacy], created in part by Fission Strategy
[http://www.huffingtonpost.com/cheryl-contee Blog archive] at The Huffington Post
[https://onezero.medium.com/an-exclusive-club-of-black-women-is-disrupting-silicon-valley-6cb0f871b2c8 "An Exclusive Club of Black Women Is Disrupting Silicon Valley"] by OneZero
[https://hbr.org/2019/10/advice-on-launching-a-tech-startup-when-youre-not-a-white-man "Advice on Launching a Tech Startup When You’re Not a White Man"] by Cheryl Contee for Harvard Business Review
[https://ssir.org/articles/entry/winning_the_internet "Winning the Internet"] by SSIR
[https://www.c-span.org/video/?296806-1/african-american-political-blogs-social-media "African American Political Blogs and Social Media"] by Cheryl Contee for C-SPAN