Acceptance remarks by Matt Paulson (founder of MarketBeat and DSU alumnus) delivered for the 2021 DSU Philanthropist of the Year Award. He summarizes his time at DSU (attended 2004–2009; BS in Computer Science and MS in Information Systems), credits specific professors for mentoring, describes campus involvement, explains his passion for entrepreneurship and support for a DSU entrepreneurship center/incubator, and notes MarketBeat’s automation-enabled growth (about $20M revenue with nine employees). He expresses surprise and gratitude at receiving the award and frames long-term, consistent giving as impactful.
Questions this video answers
2004–2009.
Bachelor's in Computer Science and a Master of Science in Information Systems.
MarketBeat.
About $20 million in revenue with nine people.
March 22, 2021.
Chapters
My name is Matt Paulson. I am the founder of MarketBeat and I'm also a graduate of Dakota State University. So I was at DSU from 2004 to 2009. Did an undergraduate in computer Science and a Master's of Science in Information Systems, you know, part of Computer Club, part of InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, Drama Club, a few other things. And just really had a great college experience at DSU and would certainly recommend that for anyone interested any kind of technology career today. My computer science professors, Tom Halverson, Josh, Paula, Wayne. Paula is the late Steve Graham. They were always incredibly generous with their time to me as a student and other students as well. You know, their office doors were always open. Sometimes I'd wander into Tom's office and you know, with no scheduled meeting and he'd make an hour for me just to talk about stuff. Those guys really invested in me as a student and I know they've done it with other students too. And they've just set a great example for making time for people younger than yourself and investing your time into them. We really wanted to do something that will be a long term legacy project at this point in our careers. I've been passionate about entrepreneurship forever. And when I was a student DSU had a short lived program called the center of Techno Entrepreneurship that really helped me out and I thought there'd be an opportunity to maybe create some of the similar opportunity for the students today. So we heard DSU was going to do an entrepreneurship center, an incubator, economic development kind of thing. And you know, I knew there was some funding there, but not quite enough. And that kind of created the opportunity to really kind of get behind it and put up some sizable dollars for it. We're just really excited where that's going to go. I think what's kind of cool about MarketBeat is that I've been able to use the programming skills that I picked at Dakota State and use them to build a highly automated business so that we can build a business that's going to do 20 million in revenue this year with nine people. And the only way that's possible is so much happens through software. And I picked up those skills at dsu. You know, I think DSU has a great opportunity just with its graduates in building research programs and businesses, you know, that can really keep students in in the state. I think we have some of the best computer science systems graduates in the country and unfortunately we're shipping a lot of them off right now. And I feel like there's a golden Opportunity to create, you know, maybe a thousand research and jobs or, you know, really high tech programming, security jobs, you know, in Sioux Falls and Madison and just in this part of the state. I was very surprised to be told I'm getting this award. I feel like usually philanthropists of the year awards usually go to people that have been giving for a very long time and have a long track record of giving. So I see this award as, you know, one, it's an honor, but two, it also kind of gives me something to live up to with my current and future giving. So, you know, it's just a really great honor to be chosen for the award. And, you know, I hope to live up to the Pastralo's kind of standard and other people that have won the award over the years. And I really hope a lesson that a lot of people will kind of take away from my work over the last decade is, you know, if there is an issue that you care about and you put your time into it, you put your money into it, you put your talent into it, you do it consistently for a long period of time, you can really move the needle. If you look at just all the programs and dollars we have available for entrepreneurs today, it is way different than it was 10 years ago. And I don't deserve all the credit for that. A lot of people have helped, but it's definitely, you know, something that I've been able to make an impact on. And it really has been that 10 years of putting in time, talent and treasure. Well, thank you, Dr. Griffiths, for this award. It's a great honor to receive it and a great honor to have been chosen for it. I hope to live up to the standard of this award and continue to do good for DSU in the future. Sam.
