Tobenna Egwu ’20 MBA doesn’t just walk into a room — she energizes it. It’s a presence that Kellogg alumni and professors know well, from her electric energy to her genuine humility to her tireless volunteering within the Kellogg alumni community. Tobenna, the head of talent development and culture at Apex Fintech Solutions, has been named the first-ever recipient of the Kellogg Young Alumni Award, in recognition of her exceptional ability to connect alumni with one another.
“I think of her as somebody who really does believe that this is a journey and that, with all the things she’s accomplished already, she’s going to accomplish a lot more,” says Harry Kraemer ’79 MBA, clinical professor of management and organizations.
Showing up for what she wants and establishing a community have been cornerstones of Tobenna’s success. Whether that meant taking two buses and a train to attend Chicago’s highly competitive Lane Tech High School, enrolling in Kellogg’s Executive MBA Program in Miami while still living in Chicago or finishing said program in the middle of a global pandemic, Tobenna has always known that she is worth the distance.
Tobenna’s impact on the Kellogg community is most visible in her role as event chair for the Kellogg Alumni Club of Chicago, where she aims to energize alumni engagement. After graduating, she recalls, “I immediately said, I don’t want this experience to end.” She has helped to organize flagship events like the annual summer cruise, which has now grown to draw hundreds of attendees. “That’s what the network is about — creating lifelong experiences, and more opportunities for you to connect,” she says. “You never know what can come out of it.”
Shift, launch, and amplify
Tobenna came to Kellogg with a bachelor’s in computer science and a master’s that was centered around adult learning theories. When she started the EMBA Program, a professor asked the class if they wanted to shift, launch or amplify while at Kellogg. Tobenna realized she wanted to do all three.
After completing her MBA, she then moved into the tech space, where she could merge the passion from her previous studies with the skills she learned at Kellogg. Now, in her role as the head of talent development and culture at Apex Fintech Solutions, Tobenna emphasizes to Apex’s employees that showing up with the right energy is the key to collective success.
And even though her time at Kellogg was disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, it was transformational. She considers her Kellogg network to be family, and she went out of her way to cultivate friendships with students in other cohorts. On the weekends when she wasn’t flying to Miami for monthly class sessions, she stopped by the Evanston campus to chat and have dinner with students there. “It wasn’t just about my cohort,” she says. “The whole Kellogg community was what was so important to me.”
Continuing the Kellogg journey
When she and her classmates got to walk the stage during a delayed graduation ceremony in December 2021, she invited friends from across both campuses to her home for a traditional Nigerian meal, sharing a piece of her family’s heritage. “To invite them to my house to taste my cultural food was one of the most memorable moments for me in my Kellogg experience.”
Today, she remains actively involved in both the Chicago alumni club and as a member of the Kellogg Executive Women’s Network. “Your time at Kellogg is not over when you graduate,” Tobenna says. “This alumni network keeps the experience going and the journey continues.”
In 2025, Kellogg presented Tobenna with the Young Alumni Award, which celebrates Kellogg leaders who have made a significant impact in their careers within 10 years of graduation. This prestigious award honors those whose contributions promise to make a lasting difference. “Her enthusiasm, her openness, her desire to make a difference, the collaboration and energy level are just dynamic,” Kraemer says. “She is an example of exactly what we need.”
Creating a lasting impact
Hear more about this year’s Young Alumni Award winner from her friends, family and professors.