Young Philadelphia CEO Creates Digital Interviewing Software Company
Christopher Young is the 27-year-old CEO of Async Interview, a digital interviewing software company located in Fort Washington, Pa. that serves businesses across the nation. He began the company while he was at Drexel University, where the school's incubator program helped him get it off the ground and running. Now it's a fully fledged software company with national clientele.
What sort of education is needed to successfully do your job?
"For me, my formal education was the catalyst that really kick-started my career. I came up with the idea for my company Async Interview -- a digital interviewing software company – while I was at Drexel University. Drexel's co-op program requires students to go on all of the interviews that they receive. To put that into perspective, I received 23 interviews for my first co-op. While this experience is great for networking, it's often difficult for students to juggle interviews while also handling a significant course load. This experience sparked the idea for Async Interview, as digital interviewing significantly cuts down on interviewing time, and highlights the unforeseen value of a college education."
"While Drexel sparked my interest for finance, which has allowed me to analyze our business models, forecasts, and budgets. My informal education also played a role in my career success. Nearly five years ago when the business began, I developed the product designs and prototypes, which required several technological skills I had not learned formally. I quickly taught myself things like HTML, CSS, and user experience design. These are just some of the knowledge, skills, and abilities needed to be successful in my job."
What is the most relevant aspect of your education that applies to your day-to-day job?
"My finance knowledge was certainly beneficial and continues to be, but I think the most relevant aspect of my education was understanding the importance of networking. From day one, Drexel University's LeBow College of Business instilled the importance of networking with our peers, professors, coworkers, and managers. With early exposure during the co-op program, I valued networking and was able to enter my field with contacts that could help me with graphic design to programming. That networking has now evolved into new clients, mutually beneficial partnerships, and other complementary technology integrations."
What is the most fun aspect of your job?
"The most fun aspect of my job is seeing the impact of what I started, particularly the positive results of our technology. The most rewarding aspect is when I hear anecdotal stories from our clients about how they were able to hire a candidate that would have otherwise been excluded from the traditional process, or stories about how an organization that was able to save two weeks in the hiring process thanks to digital interviewing. The ultimate goal of Async Interview's platform is to make the hiring process easier for companies in all industries, so when I hear this feedback, I know that my efforts have shown value."
What advice would you give someone just starting out in the field of technology?
"As an entrepreneur in the technology industry, one of the most useful things for me was knowing a little about a lot. I wasn't trained in the technology field, but I picked it up along the way, and now serve as a business and technology voice within my organization. The ability to learn quickly is key for people in the tech field."
Christina Thompson is a freelance writer living in Philadelphia. Her work can be found at Examiner.com.