High school students awarded pre-seed investment for start-up company

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Krishna Thiru, Emma Hamilton and Isaiah "Izzy" Branam, founders of Fia, pose for a photo.
Krishna Thiru, Emma Hamilton and Isaiah "Izzy" Branam, founders of Fia, pose for a photo.

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — Indianapolis-based high school students, Isaiah Branam, Emma Hamilton and Krishna Thiru, became some of the youngest venture-backed company founders in America with Fia, their secure employment company.

At the Elevate Ventures’ Central Region Pre-Seed Awards Competition, the students were awarded a $20,000 pre-seed investment at a $1.5 million valuation for their start-up company.

Elevate Ventures Nexus Pitch Competition awards up-and-coming startup companies the chance to secure foundational capital that is vital in launching their businesses. To qualify for the competition, the startups must be based in Indiana, have a total addressable market of at least $500 million and have a unique value proposition.

According to a release, "The team developed an employment recruitment platform that revolutionizes the way sales job-seekers secure employment and employers fill sales positions. The employment recruitment web application, Find Ideal Applicants (Fia), matches active job-seekers to their optimal open positions through the use of algorithms."

Fia flips the script on matching candidates who are searching for potential positions.

"Fia hosts a pool of job-seekers," the release states. "The software utilizes tailored algorithms which match candidates and employers based on the candidates’ skill sets, experiences, and 'dream job profile.' Businesses are then provided a dashboard of their applicants, automating the talent sourcing and leaving only the interviews to the hiring managers."

Benefits of automating this process are listed as follows:

  • Reduces the amount of time human resource professionals need to source candidates

  • Heavily undercuts the market rate of a recruiter; Fia costs employers approximately 90% less to fill a vacancy.

According to the release, Fia's user feedback has been overwhelmingly positive, as one client reported generating 58 candidates and four new hires within 30 days of becoming a Fia user.

For more information on Fia, visit the Fia Recruit website at www.fiarecruit.com.

This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: High school students awarded pre-seed investment for start-up company