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| Credit: David Botos, CEO Helix |
David, Welcome to Authors by Sasha! You're the Founder and CEO of Helix Professional Services. At what point within your academic journey did you recognize the opportunity to create an entrepreneurial medium that would connect talented academics with businesses needing a creative, yet objective, perspective in solving their organizational challenges?
When I was just a freshman, I was getting involved with case competitions and hackathons. I had seen my sister win an internship with Accenture after her sophomore year from a case competition and I knew it was the way forward. I participated in many of them for the cash prizes and clout but found the process lacking for many students. It was poorly marketed and there was no guidance for students. We thought this was the perfect opportunity for students who understood the competition process first-hand to make an impact on the industry.
Do you recall the very first business case you worked on during your academic and professional journey? What did you learn from the initial experience?
My first business case was for KPMG. It was a competition paired with an event called the Michigan Undergraduate Consulting Conference. This competition and event was run locally by a professional club on campus meaning that competition operations were less professional than even those we experienced later run by our current competition. We found from this that transparency in marketing, speedy payments of prize pools, and better guidance for participants was a necessary improvement. This continued to ring true for our competitors as we went on to their competitions.
What variables other than the opportunity to be paid for engaging with leading organizations contribute to delivering a unique experience for students within the Helix Network?
Students receive a myriad of benefits from HelixCases.com. From the most direct benefits of meaningful jobs, relevant experience, and prize pools, to the networking benefits we offer with judges, mentors, and speakers, students receive more from HelixCases than any other professional recruiting website. We see the student side of the market as an often-disregarded element of the recruiting process and actively are improving our offering by the day for students.
Talents are trusted to craft solutions to real challenges existing within organizations. What are a few challenges that are common among start-up companies and established organizations?
For any sized client, HelixCases collects student participants interested in working for them as a first career. We use our student ambassadors at campuses across the US to blast messaging through flyers, professional clubs, tabling, and more. Then, we test the aptitude of participants with a real problem the firm faces. For these organizations, often the hours of time that Gen-Z participants are spending ideating solutions can yield interesting insights for a firm.
Are there any unique organizational challenges that you've discovered during the course of the pandemic? Have the type of business cases evolved in the past year given how workers, consumers and employers are operating in the global white space of uncertainty?
The pandemic has changed the HR dynamic. The Great Resignation was a symptom of a larger shift in workers’ psyches towards working on problems found personally meaningful and fulfilling. In the past, work was a necessary evil, not something that is meant to be enjoyed. In this changing environment, AI screening tools, chatbots, and even interviewers continue to depersonalize and dehumanize the process. That is why we are confident HelixCases will succeed in changing recruiting. We believe that we are adding a low-cost, competitive or complementary option to AI solutions on the market.
David, you've also acquired some business acumen from investing your time at MATTER which is a healthcare incubator in Chicago. What was your experience working there given the healthcare industry is evolving and booming at an exponential pace?
MATTER was deeply influential in helping me realize that startups are deeply human at their core. Meeting and watching entrepreneurs work on their ideas in the space every day helped me to realize the job of an entrepreneur in any industry is to rally excitement and define the future of the industry. Healthcare is the perfect example of an industry prime for entrepreneurship. Outdated, full of errors, formerly non-digital, and representing a massive chunk of our GDP there is plenty of room for exciting ideas in that space.
What guidance would you offer to prospective candidates interested in contributing their skills in these entities?
If a young person is interested in entrepreneurship and has a chance on the job, they will find how to get involved with startups. If someone is unable to learn on their own and make all the necessary introductions to enter the industry, they are not cut out for the job. It isn’t easy and what must be done is often specific to each situation – giving generalized advice to people looking to enter entrepreneurship is doomed to mislead. You know your situation best.
Recruiting appears to be a significant pillar that allows the Helix Network to expand its headcount among academic and professional communities. What is the Helix Ambassador Program? How many universities are participating in the national program? What steps should interested members take to be considered for this program?
Our ambassador program is a major differentiator, and the application can be found on HelixServ.com. Students looking to get paid and earn some early experience serve as our eyes, ears, and hands on campuses across the US.
Helix Professional Services was born in February 2020. What effective branding strategies has your team applied to raise awareness on behalf of the business?
Marketing messaging is directed at two audiences: businesses and students. For both audiences, our continued challenges serve as the best indicator of our brand and product for both audiences. Beyond that, we are excited to pursue channel partnerships and some exciting endorsements for the student side.
Are there any branding lessons you've learned in the past eighteen months while marketing the Helix brand?
I believe that brand is never cookie cutter. It is the main space where you need to operate to define your story and benefits to a consumer. Making sure that your brand is aligned with your sales strategy is key.
David, in your opinion, what is one branding mistake that entrepreneurs need to avoid and why?
I think that entrepreneurs need to be careful to make sure to identify all the stakeholders of their product or service. More often than not now, stakeholders that were previously disregarded are exercising their power.
Strategy entails time and direction among a few ingredients to execute business planning. Strategy also requires a healthy degree of mental and emotional investment to entertain solutions. How do you define strategy?
I think that strategy is the process of connecting the day-to-day of the current business with the opportunities of what you need to be in a week, month, quarter, or year.
How do you nurture your mind to cultivate fresh ideas among the many commitments you honor as an academic, an entrepreneur and an Executive?
I think that staying physically active is the most important thing I do to stay level set.
Competent academics and organizations come together to work on real business cases. What are the top two characteristics of academics that help them succeed when competing in these business case competitions? What are the top two prerequisites for businesses to qualify for their 'challenge' to be entertained as a business case scenario?
We believe that our better marketing makes sure top talent is even aware the competition opportunity is available. That is often the biggest thing stopping students from participating. Further, our unmatched workshops, speaker events, resources, and guidance make sure that resulting presentations are competent.
When participating students function in a team setting for these business case competitions, is there a headcount ceiling for how many members are allowed to work on one case? Are there any unique circumstances when team members are traded among other groups, or eliminated, to better align with an organization's needs?
Teams are generally made of two to four participants. For participants unable to find a full team of their own, they are able to join a free agent list and be paired with one of similar skills.
What type of competition do you believe the present and future generation of business professionals face here on forward? How can they better prepare themselves for navigating the innovative tech driven world over the next five years?
I believe that we are going to face increasing problems with outsourced work as China continues to indicate that they will try to determine how much profit is made in the East.
When you're not working, David, how do you unwind and relax?
I love to cycle, play video games, Dungeons & Dragons, and read. It always helps break down ideas.
What is one area within your professional development that you aspire to focus on more over the course of the coming year?
Over the course of this coming year, I am working on learning as much as I can about startup finances. It is probably the most gatekept part of entrepreneurship, unsurprisingly.
David, who has made a significant difference in your entrepreneurial journey since the launch of Helix?
I would say that I would like to thank my Dad for continued guidance and early help in learning the ropes. It was deeply influential to my business mind!
Please share with audiences how they can support your work.
For businesses looking into whether Helix might be good for their firm, please send an email or LinkedIn connection to me to get in touch. The best email to reach me is David(at)HelixServ.com and if you are interested in reading more you can check out HelixServ.com.
Students -- go make some money on HelixCases.com and tell your friends!
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