Tope Awotona · CEO & Founder · Calendly · The WLS 100 · 2026 Edition
Business
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Inaugural edition 2026 · N. America

Tope Awotona

CEO & Founder

Immigrant nigérian devenu milliardaire self-made.

Education
University of Georgia
Organization
Profile

Born in Lagos and raised partly in the United States, Tope Awotona began his career in software sales before turning to entrepreneurship. After several ventures that failed to take off, he poured his savings into Calendly, founded in Atlanta in 2013. The scheduling tool became a daily fixture for millions of professionals and grew into a company valued at several billion dollars while turning profitable early on. His path from immigrant salesman to founder of a global software company has made him one of the most cited examples of self-made success in American technology.

Why this selection

His journey exemplifies entrepreneurial leadership and international success built without networks or seed capital, an inspiration to a generation of founders.

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