Some are:
Leaving a legacy…
Being their own boss…
Changing the world…
Teaching the next generation of entrepreneurs…
Sharing their knowledge…
Creating something new…
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Profile: AJ O'Hearn & Zak Zielezinski, Clark Alumni, '07
IPS
While many student businesses are in the early stages of development,
Clark seniors A.J. O’Hearn and Zak Zielezinski have already successfully
established their company,
Interactive
Purchasing Solutions (IPS) and are now working to take it to the
next level by acquiring additional clients, establishing strategic
partnerships, creating a sales force, and moving into new markets. IPS,
who’s mission is to unify the educational process by providing reliable
online purchasing and fulfillment services, currently has 13 educational
clients in New England and Florida, but with both O’Hearn and
Zielezinski set to graduate this year and dedicating themselves full
time to the business, it is set to really take off.
O’Hearn & Zielezinski, who are both leaders in the student
entrepreneurial group
Initial Advantage and Management majors at Clark, first worked on a
business together with the
Campus Book Brokerage program. The Campus Book Brokerage offered an
alternative to the campus bookstore for students to buy and sell
textbooks. After the success of that, the two thought about taking their
business ideas to a high school market, did some research, networked,
and realized there was a real business opportunity – from that IPS was
born.
Both are currently involved in the capstone course for the Innovation
& Entrepreneurship program at Clark. They have added fellow Clark Senior
Patrick Shea to their team, as well. O’Hearn said that the group is
focusing on three areas as a result of the capstone course: taking the
initiative to explore new markets where their services can be applied,
such as Clark campus departments; bringing on sales representatives to
sell custom design services, and putting IPS under further scrutiny to
more effectively document business practices. IPS is also in the midst
of expanding and acquiring new clients, crafting a partnership to add to
its retail capability, and working on a second round of fundraising.
The I&E program along with their Clark experiences have been pivotal
in the success of IPS, to date. O’Hearn said he did not come to Clark
with an interest in business and entrepreneurship, and founded Initial
Advantage because he was looking for an extracurricular activity that
would truly make a difference. However, now he says coming to Clark has
“reshaped his life” and can’t imagine working for someone else or a
corporation when he graduates. “I like to take the lead, make a
contribution,” he added. Zielezinski agreed with him, stating that he’s
“pretty secure in the fact that I will never work for anyone again. It’s
very reassuring to know I can make it on my own.”
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