Matthew Salerno, M.S. Computer Science '23 | UNDERWRITEHQ

Matt 23

Describe your company: UnderwriteHQ provides pipeline and workflow management and automation for small to medium-sized real estate private equity firms.

Why did you apply to Race To Revenue? What are you hoping to get out of this experience? I applied because I am very passionate and optimistic about UnderwriteHQ and plan to work on it full-time this summer. I know my limitations as a founder and know I would not go very far working on it solely on my own. I hope to gain valuable insights from people with much more expertise and experience than me, which can help me be successful.

When is a time you failed forward? Before submitting UnderwriteHQ to the IDEA Center, I was working on another idea which I was also very optimistic about. I started building the software long before I had done any customer validation. By the time I tried validating the problem-solution, I realized there was no market for this idea. I failed, but I learned very valuable that it's very crucial to focus on the customer's needs and not just the idea. This led me to brainstorm further and eventually start working on UnderwriteHQ​​​​​​.

Where were you born? What is an interesting fact about your hometown? I was born and raised in Santa Clarita, CA. A not-so-fun fact about my hometown is it is the location of the Paul Walker car crash.

Would you rather go back in time or be transported to the future? I would rather go back and time and relive old childhood memories.

Who is the fictional character you have the most in common with, and why? Probably Spider-Man because he’s a similar age and is always trying to be something better by looking at the other superheroes, which is how I feel about the people in my life I consider heroes

Fun fact about you: I am on the football team at ND.

Lastly, what do you want to learn more about, relating to business development in general or your own company/venture specifically? I want to learn more about sales, marketing, and maintaining business relationships​​​​​​.