Ilos video has grown to 11 employees, many of them Tommies. PIctured here are founders Nick Stokman '13 (seated, left) and Sean Higgins '12, '14 M.B.A. (seated, center), as well as Jared Skinner '11 (seated, right). Back row: Andrew Boucher '12, Molly Ruoho, Peter Fares, Jon Bondhus '16 and Tom Broich '11. (Photo by Mike Ekern '02)
As a student, Nick Stokman ’13 interned with a major financial company and spent hours figuring out how to do his work, leaving less time for actually doing the work. Stokman searched for answers to questions all interns and new hires have: How do I log my hours? Where are the files I need?
Perplexing instructions and lack of YouTube access led Stokman to realize there had to be a more efficient process.
In August 2012, Stokman started working on a solution with fellow accounting major Sean Higgins ’12, ’14 M.B.A.
They developed ilos videos, a platform that includes a quick-capture screen recorder that makes it easy for employees to create a video of how-to information at their desk and automatically upload it to a company database that can be viewed on any device and a mobile app. Stokman said the system is “as easy as posting a photo on Instagram.”
St. Thomas’ William C. Norris Institute supplied early-stage seed funding in January 2014 and continues to provide mentorship. ilos serves more than 40 businesses, including local Fortune 500s and the University of St. Thomas.
“A lot of our success stems from St. Thomas: our team, our first big user base, funding and continued guidance,” Stokman said. “What we learned in class, combined with the knowledge we gained having the university as an early-adopter, is helping us make real impacts with the companies we serve.”
Additional content: Lowertown St. Paul startup Ilos Videos makes video-casting easy (St. Paul Pioneer Press, July 25, 2015)
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