Meet Maya Dwanah, a multi-hyphenated business mogul taking on the world

Involved in both tech automation and real estate investment, Maya Dwanah shares insight as to how she balances her high-pressure roles. 

By: Leila Biola Olukoga

01/21/2026

While many feel overwhelmed by wearing too many hats at once, there’s one particular woman that runs towards the challenge. Maya Dwanah isn’t your typical IT Audit Manager. Born and raised in New Jersey, Dwanah honed in on her interests at a very young age and developed them into a multilayered career. 

After graduating from the University of Delaware in 2016, Dwanah fully immersed herself into a career of IT management, real estate investment and property management, and establishing a social media presence with over 11 thousand followers. Dwanah says that she’s always been adventurous about pursuing her multiple passions. 

“I always was like a kid that was just exploring and ending up somewhere new and I feel like I'm very adventurous in that way,” Dwanah said. “I just feel like entrepreneurship is a journey and an adventure, and you kind of don't know what you're going to expect next, but you have to believe in yourself and what you have going on.” 

Dwanah’s introduction to entrepreneurship came in 2018 when she began her clothing business, Eloquent Designs, while working as an IT Audit Manager directly after graduating. In the same year, she won the National Association of Black Accounts Award and two years later, she closed her first property in 2020 and purchased her second property in 2021. 

Dwanah said that her preliminary experiences in the workforce prepared her to run multiple businesses now. 

“Right after work, I would go work on [Eloquent Designs] and I was doing everything on my own with that, but that burnt me out,” Dwanah said. “Because I was fresh starting and I was doing everything by myself. Now, with the property management, I have a good contractor that's reliable so I've learned how to make it easy to have multiple businesses while having a full time job.”

Dwanah said that her motivation to pursue her multiple fields came from her faith, her parents, and representing her cultural background. 

“God placed this vision inside of me, and if I have the vision, I know that I can do it,” Dwanah said. “I know that it's possible for me to do it, even though I'm just a woman, even though I'm Liberian, I [believe] that I can do it. I also work full time in an environment where I'm the only black woman on my team so I just feel as though I've never let any of that stop me.”

Currently, Dwanah is working on developing an app to promote her future salon suites in Atlanta, Georgia. She is also working on a new construction project to build a duplex and sell units from the property while managing her multifamily properties in Delaware. Dwanah’s long term goals consist of giving back to her home country, Liberia. 

“I would love to start a program where we teach customer service, website building, AI, and customer support,” Dwanah said. “I think if it grows in Liberia, I would love it to spread in other places as well.” 

Dwanah said that she hopes her work can inspire young black women and women of color in STEM-related fields. 

“I just feel like there's so much opportunity for other women like us to really grow and thrive,” Dwanah said. “I think that we can grow as a collaborative, as black women and as underrepresented people.”