Greater Contribution

Posted by jbetterson in Motivational Stories

Written by Giselle Espino

It’s quite rare to see someone so young accomplish so much, but through hard work and perseverance, that’s exactly what Chris Young did. The 23 year old spearheaded the company Async Interview and has two degrees under his belt, but this doesn’t mean he’s got everything figured out. As a young entrepreneur, he’s gotten quite a few doors slammed in his face. He’s even had job interviewer tell him that he was not cut out for the business at all. And even now, as the head of his own company, he struggles to make his presence known in the industry. Through all these challenges, how does he manage to push through?

To Chris, “Never Let You Down” means never letting yourself down and having the courage to pursue your dreams, even through adversity. “I continue to set new goals for myself,” says the ambitious entrepreneur.

While enrolled at Drexel University, Chris was part of numerous organizations, and made major contributions to the campus. As a co-op student at Drexel, he learned the interview process earlier than most. He applied for various jobs, and received more than 20 interviews from several well-known companies. Unfortunately, a few of the employers cancelled the interview process due to scheduling conflicts with the human resource department.

It was a frustrating situation, but the experience paved the way for his business. When he watched President Obama deliver the American Jobs Act speech, he was truly inspired. How many Americans waste time and money on multiple interviews and ending up with no job at all? How many organizations delay interviewing a candidate just because they can’t get their team together in time? These, along with the timing of American unemployment, were simply too big to ignore.

Chris wanted to get Americans back to work quicker, and he had a simple solution. The idea was to create a Back to Work campaign offering 100 organizations 50 free video interviews.   The nature of his video interviewing tool speeds up the interview screening process by having recruiters send pre-recorded video questions to candidates and have them record their answers by a given deadline. This allows the employers to conduct multiple interviews simultaneously. The interview is conducted online, making it possible for anyone with access to a webcam a chance to get a job. For many reasons, this idea helps streamline the recruitment process, saving both the potential employee and the employer the frustration.

With a noble cause and a bright idea, he went on to spearhead Async Interview and now this Back to Work campaign. However, he continues to face challenges. Aside from a company’s usual difficulties like marketing and strategy, establishing his company’s credibility remains a top priority. This is perhaps one of the biggest challenges he faces as someone so young. Further, his company sells a technology to other businesses, making it twice as hard as it would be selling to consumers.

The entrepreneur says he is inspired to continue moving forward. His business remains a personal goal for him. “I’m always challenging myself,” according to Chris. With this mantra, he always looks for new inspirations, and is open to grow as a person. The self-driven businessman certainly has a lot on his plate.