By: Kirstyn Dubar
Photos by: Deniece Griffin
This week’s meeting of the Collegiate Entrepreneurs Organization (CEO) featured guest speaker Luka Antolic-Soban, co-founder of Sanus Solutions. Soban shed some inspirational words with the members of CEO. Soban attended Georgia State University and most recently a graduate of Georgia Tech. Soban spent majority of his time assuring the audience that anyone can be an entrepreneur or CEO. He shared that, “Back in high school”, I was just an average A/B student. When people look at CEOs, they put them on this pedestal and think, “Oh they must be a genius or so great” and that’s simply not the case. That’s a stigma society has placed on people. While it is challenging, it’s definitely not impossible and I believe you all can do it.
Not only did Soban inspire CEO members with his encouraging words, but he also shared insight into the real-life responsibilities of a startup CEO. He summarized his tasks into four groups:
- Strategy – It is the CEO’s responsibility to decide what path the company is going to take in order to succeed.
- Company Culture – The CEO must set the standard for the office and hold everyone to the standards set. Soban stated, “I must present myself to my peers the way I want them to work, so we can all be equal.”
- Investors – CEO’s must network with others and conduct outreach in order to help the company stay afloat. This is especially important as the CEO of a start-up company.
- Hiring the Team – You can’t run a company alone, and having the right people involve can help make or break the company.
For Soban, company success truly falls back on the team you build. He further claimed, “Without my team we have no product; there would be nothing.” Soban suggests that a good team consists of people who want the same goals and success for the company as you do. You want people that share your vision. If you could see yourself marrying the person, then bring them onto the team.
While the guest speaker’s time was filled with insight and great knowledge, Soban truly inspired people to know and believe that anyone can be a CEO, but also remembering that a CEO is nothing on their own.
Want to Join CEO? Here’s how to get involved:
- Sign-up to join CEO on Panther Involvement Network
- Connect with CEO members on GroupMe
- Follow CEO @ceosatGSU: Instagram, Facebook, Twitter
- Register for CEO meetings and events on the GSU Calendar
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The Collegiate Entrepreneurs’ Organization
CEO’s mission is to inform, support and inspire college students to be entrepreneurial and seek opportunity through enterprise creation.
