Meet Ketaki Desai, a founder with the right attitude
Co-Founder & CEO, Tracer
What lesson have you learned along the way?
One of the biggest learnings in the early stage of building any new product is understanding the customer - what is their biggest pain and what are they using right now. We have spent the past two months interviewing and surveying parents and educators to understand just that. What we have learned is that not only do parents have NO tools at all to help with the process but everyone seems to be selling to the schools because that is where the money is. Except schools aren't doing what they need to be doing. Our customer discovery has validated our product idea and our approach to going to market.
You have now spoken at our Health Innovation Summit and are about to present a hack at our Hack & Huddle. What has your experience been like working with the Ideation Clinic?
The Ideation Clinic is a great way for early-stage founders, especially those who are building for the first time, to get support and truly understand the process. We are looking forward to working with your team at the Hack & Huddle!
What is one piece of practical advice you would give to future Ideators?
To me, ideas are a dime a dozen. Even if someone else has your idea, what matters is how you are going to execute it and how dedicated you are to solving the problem. A good idea doesn't make a founder, but a founder with the right attitude can definitely scale an idea.
Speaker Spotlight
Ketaki Desai, PhD.
Dr. Ketaki Desai has over a decade of experience in innovation, as an entrepreneur, investor and economic development leader. She was recently the Vice President of Business Development at OCI and previously served as the Director of Strategy for a $1 billion life sciences fund as part of a $21 billion integrated global nonprofit health enterprise in Pennsylvania.
Dr. Desai has substantial experience working with the innovation ecosystems in Pennsylvania and Ontario, including being a mentor and angel investor. She is passionate about educational equity.
Dr. Desai has a Ph.D. in Biomedical Sciences from Texas A&M University and Masters in Public Management from Carnegie Mellon University.
What drew you to start your own company?
Jennifer's son was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder [ASD] in 2019, her journey as a parent gave her the idea of building something that would empower parents while making the educational system accountable for special needs children. She presented this idea in her Executive MBA class and shared it with me as I was making a career change. I have been a serial entrepreneur in my previous life but had to find a 9-5 role after realizing, time and again, that the United States did not support entrepreneurs who need work authorization. After being at OCI for two years and being surrounded by ideas, I knew that the time was now or never.
After quitting my job, I researched several different ideas until Jen and I spoke about Tracer. Tracer is solving a big, hairy problem that a lot of people are trying to solve but aren't approaching in the right way. This is the stuff that makes you want to wake up even when things aren't looking so good because you are truly building something that will make a difference. This is why I have decided to pursue this full-time.
Meet Dr. Desai at our October 11 Hack & Huddle, where she will present a problem for learners to hack.
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