One Take with Michael Van Erdewyk

👉 A biology major and chemistry major, Michael went into insurance right after college, became a stockbroker at EF Hutton and Merrill Lynch and then made his first pivot into entrepreneurship launching a self-insurance program for workers compensation. Today, Michael is the founder of Fusebox, an app that allows employers to engage better with their employees.

👉 Decisive moment – Becoming an entrepreneur.

👉 Some highlights: holds patents to his name for cleaning water and built a bio-tech company around that. Bought a company from Sallie Mae and took it from zero to $4 billion in insured loans. Created another company –Bright Bucks—to help people delinquent on their student loans.

👉 A radical change – people live on their phones. Michael himself has 300 apps on his phone. We are a mobile-first society.

👉 Coping with change – his latest venture, Fuxebox, doesn’t even have a desktop version. It’s fully and only mobile. Next, by leveraging AI, his app will become predictive, helping employers understand when they might lose an employee.

👉 About older employees – one advice he got from billionaires he’s met: surround yourself with great people. His take: it’s easier to discern greatness when you are over 55.