I finally got the chance to do the interview with jesse gossett, who has being a busy man of late or should i say the entrepreneur of the moment, Not only was his company the Winner of BusinessWeek's Top 25 Under 25 Competition, they were also Invited to the White House .
Hello Jesse, How are you doing today? We appreciate you sharing some of your time with us on YHP
Glad to!
Can you quickly give the Readers some background information about yourself?
I’m from Washington State origionally, grew up in the woods, went to Tufts University and graduated with a double major in Environmental Science and History in 2008.
So what do you do?
I work for Emergent Energy Group, a company I co-founded with some friends from Tufts University.
What inspired you to start a company? How did the idea start?
We travelled the world through a club we were a part of at Tufts. On these trips we would study different energy issues, such as green transmission lines in CA, the carbon cap and trade system in the EU, and the first annual World Future Energy Summit in Abu Dhabi.
How were you able to manage your time between studies and starting up a business?
I was a liberal arts student. I didn’t do homework...
Is this your first business?
Yes
How did you finance your business?
We sold 2 contracts before we graduated, giving us some cash in the bank so we could hit the ground running. Since then it’s been boot-strapped. We’re currently poking around for some seed funds to help launch our solar development branch here in MA, though.
Who are your target market, how do you market to them and what marketing technique has been the most effective?
Network, network network. This business is all about relationships. And if people like you, they’ll work with you. Our customers are all over the place, from developers to municipalities to businesses.
What outsiders have been most important to your business success?
Mentors. We have a very strong group of mentors that we’ve met around Boston, everyone from fellow entrepreneurs to business partners who’ve been doing this for a long time.
Do you believe business has any obligation to make the world a better place?
Absolutely. We’re very big proponents of the triple bottom line.
How many hours do you work a day on average?
Too many... We love what we do, so we don’t notice. Girlfriends do, though...
What have been some of your failures, and what have you learned from them?
You’re never going to get it completely right the first time. Be prepared to continually evolve both professionally as a company as well as personally as an employee, manager, and entrepreneur.
On those impossible days, what motivates you to keep going?
I’m an energy nerd, so I truely do enjoy the sector we’re in. Oh, and I have flashbacks to life in a cubicle...
Do you have a favourite business tool or resource?
Google earth. For what we do, it does everything.
Where do you see in yourself and your business in the next 5 years?
I’ll have some grey hairs (figuratively and literally...). Emergent will have transformed the way renewable energy is developed in the North East and will have set its sights nationally and internationally.
Thanks for your time Jesse
Connect with Jesse on Twitter and don't forget to check out their website, they're doing some great things, you will be amazed.
