HBCU Founders Accelerator Spring 2023 Cohort Spotlight: Meet Travis Manigan from GRADIFY

In April, we launched the first cohort of the HBCU Founders Accelerator Program. Over the next several weeks, we’re thrilled to spotlight each of the teams, their founders, and their remarkable journeys. Up next, meet Travis Manigan from GRADIFY!

Can you tell us a little about your background and what inspired your entrepreneurial journey?

My name is Travis Manigan, Founder of GRADIFY, a college and career engagement platform where students sit at the center and their support network of college and career counselors support them through matriculation to post-high school success. I hail from Jacksonville, North Carolina where I attended and played on a Football Scholarship at Fayetteville State University. I then graduated from Howard University with an Executive MBA. As a former teacher, I was inspired to build GRADIFY to create a career-focused and college-connected generation using technology to accomplish that goal.

What inspired you to start your company? What problem are you trying to solve?

It was my first year as a history teacher. I’d dress in a suit, every day! But I remember it was the first day of class and I was ecstatic to step into this new phase of my life as a teacher and give back to my community. One goal was to connect with students beyond the subject of history. I sought to tap into their purpose because students want to know if you’re interested in who they are and what motivates them. On the first day, I started off the year by asking each student what they aspired to become, and unfortunately, many of them had no exposure to careers beyond their zip code, entertainers, or athletes. This devastated me. I thought of the implications not only for them but for society as well. So as their teacher, I set out to create a solution to this problem which led me to launch GRADIFY. Our ultimate goal is to attack student apathy by weaponizing a vision of themselves having options and a solid pathway into the future.

Most platforms focus on the student’s needs and drop off from there. Our two-sided platform prioritizes both the student’s needs and the staff members connected to them in helping them matriculate through life. Counselors need to manage their students at scale and with a data driven approach and that is what we provide.

Can you discuss any significant pivots or strategic decisions that have had a major impact on the company's trajectory?

A significant pivot for us was to prioritize the students and staff users rather than marketing the platform as a way to manage college recruiters that are trying to reach high school students. The conversation would unfortunately confuse my potential clients because it made implementation questionable because they would ask how colleges are using it and we had yet to even sign a school! By pivoting to focus on just the youth-serving organization whether that was a school, city, or non-profit, they began to envision how they could leverage it as a tool for internal usage. So essentially, we repositioned the external partners like colleges, training programs, and corporations into a growth market opportunity versus including it in our current value proposition.

We imagine that building GRADIFY was not easy, what were some roadblocks that you faced, and how did you overcome them?

Building GRADIFY required me to drop any expectations or comparisons that I may have been making to other tech startups. Many roadblocks that founders encounter is that we draw inspiration from other founders that scaled their vision to product-market fit to exciting valuations and satisfied customers. In an impatient society, I had to apply the quote that “Comparison is the thief of joy”. By refusing to compare my journey to anyone else, I could find joy in simply waking up every morning and seeking to achieve my purpose that started in that classroom.

Can you discuss any ethical or social responsibility initiatives that GRADIFY is actively engaged in?

After I transitioned from the classroom to working as a Congressional Aide, I opened up our office to local high school students to intern because that is how I became interested in working in Congress. So moving forward, at GRADIFY we host at least 20 interns yearly to focus on product management as a career pathway. The internship is mutually beneficial as they gain a new career pathway option and we gain valuable insights from the current generation. After all, they are the end user and our north star.

What led you to become interested in Nex Cubed? What resources do you believe will be most helpful?

With less than 2% of Black founders receiving some form of Venture Capital, I chose to bootstrap GRADIFY rather than the traditional route of raising capital and relying on that to build my company. However, when I read up on the Nex Cubed HBCU Founders Accelerator, I was intrigued at the prospect of joining the Accelerator as we are at a critical juncture in our growth, scaling a 100 City partnership and launching into a total of 17 States this year.

Nex Cubed has provided a bevy of resources that I plan to leverage to support our rapid growth. We have 2 premiere advisors, capital, and discounts on tools critical to our operational success. However, the collective momentum of the other cohort members is something that cannot be quantified and has proven to be invaluable to this experience.

What advice do you have for diverse entrepreneurs?

My advice, particularly to diverse founders, is to be resourceful, courageous, and bold. Embrace the responsibility we have to our current communities and the younger generations that need to envision an era that did not allow any roadblocks to prevent them from accomplishing their goals and persevering as we always have.

What advice would you give to other HBCU students/grads who are considering entrepreneurship?

My advice to HBCU students or graduates who are considering entrepreneurship and to eventually attract early-stage investments is to assemble your team by either splitting equity or if you can afford to hire a team with your own capital, focus on a season of building your product and go directly to the market with your product. Ultimately, their acceptance will determine your ability to attract capital down the line.

Where can readers/listeners/viewers learn more about your business?

You can find me on all platforms @Travis Manigan / @GRADIFY / @GRADIFY.io and on our website gradify.io.