The Transcend Podcast

What happens when a group of students decide to turn a simple problem—students who want local jobs on campus—into a fast-scaling startup?

In this episode, we sit down with Nick Lawton, CEO and founder of SideShift, to talk about how he and his co-founder went from pitching on UW-Madison campus to now running a 13-person office in New York and generating a seven-figure ARR.

Nick shares his journey from sales and private equity to entrepreneurship, the mindset that kept him going when no one believed in the idea, and the pivotal decisions that led to SideShift’s crazy growth.

We also dive into:

• The value of conviction in your team and your product
• The deal that changed the trajectory of SideShift
• Why every founder should talk to their customers
• How SideShift has scaled and pivoted within only 2-3 years

In this episode, Trinity Krohn, a junior at UW–Madison and co-founder of the CampusConnect app, shares what she’s learned from starting three ventures: an Etsy slime shop, a dropshipping business, and now a growing app that’s live on the App Store. Trinity also opens up about creating Women in Entrepreneurship to inspire more women to feel welcome in startup spaces.

We dive into:

• How to run effective customer discovery interviews & get your first beta testers
• Building community and confidence in male-dominated fields like tech & entrepreneurship
• Why your network is your net worth (and how to grow it)
• Time management tips for balancing school, startups, and student leadership

Trinity’s Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/trinity-krohn/

Tik Tok: @trin.talks.tech

Transcend UW Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/company/transcenduw

Transcend IG: @transcenduw

Transcend website: www.transcenduw.com

Ever wondered what startups are really looking for in their hires or how to land your first role at one? In this episode, Ben Lukszys shares his journey in UW-Madison’s entrepreneurial ecosystem including running a startup accelerator, organizing the university’s 1st startup job fair, and matching students with local startups. We dive into the 4 key skill sets startups value most, the practical steps you can take to stand out, and what it actually takes to get hired by a startup.

Ben’s Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/ben-lukszys/

Transcend UW Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/company/transcenduw

Transcend IG: @transcenduw

Transcend website: www.transcenduw.com/

We talked with Jake about his UW experience, freelancing work, and running successful social media platforms.