Dianna Ward, MA (Class of ’86), Executive Director of Charlotte B-cycle and Owner of Charlotte NC Tours and Greenville Glides
An ambitious and successful entrepreneur, Dianna Ward owns the parent company Charlotte NC Tours, LLC, which extends through three states and comprises six businesses.
While working as a statistician at Corning, the photonic technology business began to dip; Ward seamlessly moved into the banking world, working as a Senior Vice President at both Bank of America and Wachovia. Ward, whose father always encouraged her entrepreneurial spirit and exposed her to small business owners within the community, started Charlotte NC Tours as a backup plan. The company provides guests with Segway, bicycle, walking, ghost, tasting, beer and bus tours of Charlotte. In addition, they have team-building options for companies and other groups. Two years after opening the tour business, she was asked to run Charlotte B-cycle, one of the first bike-share programs in the country. While pursuing her passion “to help create a much more bike-friendly Charlotte”, she has received many awards, including the 2015 she was named one of the 50 Most Influential Women in Charlotte by The Mecklenburg Times.
Ward serves on the Board of the Community Building Initiative, and is the President of the North American Bikeshare Association.
Ward holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Math from Grinnell College and a joint Master’s in Statistics and Operation Research from North Carolina State University.