TECHNOLOGY, FINALIST
Tasso Roumeliotis was doing just fine helping his parents run their retail shop in Montreal when fate intervened. His father had become blind and now it was up to this 15-year-old boy to support his mother and siblings by taking over the operation of the store.
Fortunately for his family, Roumeliotis took this opportunity and ran with it. He soon became the first in his family to go to college. While there, he became a math tutor and then organized a network of 50 math tutors helping even more students but also earning him a 25 percent margin and a foundation that would propel him to a career in business.
Roumeliotis found he had an interest in technology, and after attending Harvard Business School, he went to work developing his business model. His vision led to the creation of Location Labs, a company that provides safety and security services for mobile and cellular devices. Roumeliotis wanted to build a company that set ambitious goals and met them through an ambitious team that would thrive on being given the next challenge.
The company’s founder and CEO meets every person before he or she is hired at Location Labs and has developed orientation programs that instill the company’s values and quality standards in every employee.
Roumeliotis has also made smart choices when it comes choosing investors. He believes it’s far better to connect with people whom he likes and enjoys working with rather than someone who is a big name in the capital partner field. This philosophy has enabled Location Labs to grow quickly and has put the company in a position to be a strong presence in its field.
HOW TO REACH: Location Labs, www.locationlabs.com
