Tips for success from: Matt Tengtrakool founder of YC backed Givefront

Matt Tengtrakool is a former Harvard Computer Science student and co-founder of the Y-Combinator backed startup, Givefront, which is an accounting and bookkeeping platform for nonprofits.

Today, we will share some of Matt’s unique insights into being a student entrepreneur and how he was able to take his startup from an idea to a YC-backed company, all while being a student. From building the right team to finding balance alongside school, Matt’s journey offers valuable lessons for any student looking to build their own startup!

Before we get into the article, we would like to put a spotlight on what Givefront is and their mission.

Givefront is a startup that empowers nonprofits by providing them with dedicated experts and easy-to-use financial software to manage bookkeeping and 990s. Their goal is to help nonprofit leaders save time and money, allowing them to focus on growing their mission. With Givefront, nonprofits can access monthly financial statements and expense summaries, enabling them to maintain control of their finances and make informed decisions about donations, spending, and grants.

Matt highlights the importance of surrounding yourself with the right people, especially through organizations on campus. Matt himself was involved with various entrepreneurship communities and clubs at Harvard. Matt met his co-founder while being involved with clubs on campus. Both him and his co-founder had similar interests in the fintech world, and as Matt says, “College is the best place to meet people with similar interests”, especially since you don’t have co-workers and other professional connections other than those that are in school and always around you.

When it comes to finding the right team, Matt focused mainly on joining entrepreneurial organizations on campus and connecting with other students about ideas and sectors that he was really passionate about. Take a listen below to hear it from Matt.

Now, as he said, there is no better time to get started than when you are in college. So with that being said, reach out to other students and start building those connections now. Whether it's through entrepreneurship orgs, hackathons, or simply grabbing coffee with like-minded peers, the relationships you form in college can lay the foundation for your future team.

So if you're a student founder or aspiring entrepreneur, take Matt’s advice:

Surround yourself with ambitious, driven people, and start collaborating today. College is one of the best times to build, experiment, and find the right team, so be sure to take advantage of it!

During his time at Harvard, Matt and his co-founder struggled to balance their startup, Givefront, with a full course load. The demands of classwork often took precedence, stifling the startup’s growth. Reflecting on that period, Matt realized that, “You can’t do both well.” This realization drove them to go all-in: they put their studies on hold, moved to San Francisco, and joined Y Combinator’s Winter 2024 batch.

Matt’s core advice to fellow students is to take as many risks as possible while responsibilities are minimal. If you have an entrepreneurial idea, now is the time to explore it. Universities offer resources like startup grants, mentorship programs, and alumni networks, all of which can help refine your venture and prepare you for life after graduation.

Now, how can you implement this into your own projects and startups? The answer is simple, take it from Matt:

1. Take advantage of your flexibility as a student and explore as many ideas and opportunities as possible.

2. Become involved and immerse yourself in the entrepreneurial communities on your campus, because you never know, the next person you might ask “What’s your major?” to could be your next co-founder.

Another one of Matt’s tips is to not get too focused on the “Grindset.” What he means by this is that he often times sees a lot of founders placing too much importance on working 18 hour days and burning through the midnight oil to get things done, however, Matt says that this is not the most important part of running a startup.

Throughout the growth of a startup, Matt suggests to always be customer-focused. What this means is to stay on your toes and react to the signals and feedback the customers are giving you, rather than focusing solely on development. Matt is an advocate for pivoting, and if you want to learn more about pivoting check out our article about the rise of Reddit below, where we go in depth into how to pivot successfully.

How can you implement Matt’s advice? We’ve outlined it for you below:

Focus on Customer Needs: Gather feedback early and often. Base your development priorities on what customers actually want, rather than simply logging more hours.

Maintain Feedback Loops: Continually review user insights and data with your team. Adjust your product roadmap as soon as it’s clear customers need something new or different.

Iterate Quickly: Launch small features or tests, collect feedback, and refine. Adopting an agile process lets you respond faster to market shifts without burning out.

Measure Progress, Not Hours: Recognize achievements tied to improving user experience. Focus on outcomes that enhance customer satisfaction and retention.

By prioritizing customers’ needs, you’ll build a healthier work environment and a product that truly resonates with your audience.

Matt also discusses the importance of having domain knowledge in the area that you are trying to build your startup in. For Matt, he was involved with a couple of his own nonprofit organizations prior to him building Givefront, which gave him the understanding of the pain points that nonprofit leaders face when managing their finances. This firsthand experience allowed him to identify new problems and build a solution that truly met the needs of his target audience.

Having domain knowledge is a crucial advantage for any founder. It helps you:

• Spot real inefficiencies and pain points in the industry.

• Build credibility when talking to customers, investors, and advisors (especially as a student!)

• Move faster, since you already understand the landscape and have some connections in the field.

As Matt puts it, “The best founders are those who deeply understand the problem they are solving”.

So with that being said, go out there and indulge yourself in a specific area or niche that you are interested in. Be willing to learn, grow, and gain firsthand experience in the space. Whether it’s through internships, side projects, research, or simply speaking with industry experts, immersing yourself in the field will give you a head-start when it comes time to build!

Here are the key takeaways from Matt’s journey as a student YC founder:

• Build Your Network Early: Surround yourself with like-minded peers and potential co-founders through campus organizations, hackathons, and entrepreneurship clubs. College is the perfect time to form meaningful connections.

• Embrace Risk While You Can: Take advantage of the relative freedom you have as a student to explore ideas and grow your venture. Utilize university resources like grants, mentorships, and alumni networks.

• Focus on the Customer, Not Just the Grind: Avoid obsessing over long work hours. Instead, seek out customer feedback frequently and iterate your product based on their needs.

• Be Willing to Go All-In: Balancing full-time school and a startup can be tough. If your idea gains traction, consider whether going all-in could help you move faster and achieve more.

• Leverage Domain Knowledge: Deeply understanding your market or problem space can give you a significant edge. Credibility, speed, and the ability to spot genuine pain points all flow from domain expertise.

We appreciate you taking the time to learn from Matt’s experiences and insights. We hope these takeaways inspire you to dive deeper into your own projects and pursue entrepreneurial opportunities on campus and beyond. Happy building and see you on Friday!