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by Alexandria Jacobson
March 16, 2023
While at Tuck, Teo Gonzalez T’21 and Christine Rohakz T’22 began to wonder about the future of work, specifically how to solve the age-old problem of managers who are not good at managing other people.
It was their solution to solve that problem Build software that creates a workplace where people feel engaged, energized, cared about by their managers, and satisfied with the way they’ve been able to grow.
Gonzalez says. Gonzalez and Rohacz began building ConnectUs, a SaaS platform focused on transforming relationships at work by allowing managers to schedule one-on-one meetings, set goals, and track personal details. Since launching beta in January 2022, ConnectUs has reached its initial goal of over $100,000 in ARR and has over 1,000 customers.
The group had the opportunity to participate in the Tuck-Magnussen Startup Incubator, now the Venture Learning Lab, where students received expert guidance on everything from weekly sessions to build their ideas into actual startups and pitch-to-market strategies. to intellectual property.
Being able to get credit for an incubator and then being with people who have experience starting a similar company – there’s really nothing that compares to that.
– Christine Rohacz T’22
Being able to get credit for an incubator, and then being with other people on the same journey of starting a company—there’s really nothing that compares to that experience.
Rohacz says.
After graduation, Rohakz and Gonzalez spent six weeks in Boulder, CO as part of an accelerator with Antler VC, where they were able to complete their pre-seed funding round. Rohacz and Gonzalez are currently maintaining a strong team, relying on the two and part-time employees to keep the business running, but they have an ambitious goal of growing their users fivefold by early 2023.
It is a constant journey of refinement. Although we have been working together for over a year, we are still figuring out how to work together.
Gonzalez says. I’m excited about how far we’ve started to get into a rhythm because it’s hard to do something that doesn’t seem like it has a clear roadmap. I think over the last year, we’ve developed a lot more comfort with that general ambiguity.
The relationships Gonzalez and Rohacz developed at the Tuck Entrepreneurship Center with center director Eileen O’Toole and Daniela Reichstetter T 07, clinical professor of business administration and the center’s faculty advisor, were instrumental in their entrepreneurial journey. For Rohakz, Tuck’s high percentage of women in business schools marked a turning point in her experience.
I have never been surrounded by so many amazing women.
Rohacz says. ‘Wow, this is the first time in my life that I have women that I can identify with and look up to—and I still do.’ So I think that was really special.
The two graduates recommend that other entrepreneurs at Tuck embrace the many curricular and extracurricular opportunities available at the school. González emphasizes that Tuck is “a very proprietary place,” and students only get what they put into their experience.
Rohacz and Gonzalez continue to rely on the Tuck community as they work to grow their startup. Some of ConnectUs’ first customers were Tuck students who were generous with their feedback to help the team improve their product.
What we built is big. We believe that what we build can be sold, and can be much better.
Rohacz says. So, we’re really looking for something that’s going to change people’s lives, and so I think as we gather more and more feedback — our users are incredible at that — we’re able to get closer and closer to that, so I’m really excited about that.
This story was originally published in the Winter 2023 issue Tak today Magazine.
Read more in this story
Startups and Builders: How Entrepreneurship Works
Learn about the evolution of entrepreneurship at Tuck, how Tuck teaches the entrepreneurship life cycle, and how Tuck collaborates with all entrepreneurs at Dartmouth.
Tech MBA Course: Entrepreneurial Thinking
Taught by professors and entrepreneurs Daniella Reichstetter T’07 and Tripp Davis D’90, Entrepreneurial Thinking explores what it takes to start your own company now or in the future, join a venture, or start a career related to entrepreneurship. field. Read more
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