By Sarah Boole T'15
Sarah is a second-year student at Tuck. She attended Hamilton College for her undergraduate degree. Before Tuck, Sarah worked in consumer insights for Communispace Corporation, serving clients in the consumer packaged goods, retail, health care, and pharmaceutical industries. After graduation, she will be moving to Minneapolis to join General Mills as an associate marketing manager.
This past December, I had the opportunity to travel to Oslo, Norway with five other Tuck classmates. We were there to work with Kuddle, a Norwegian photo-sharing aimed at creating a safer, more engaging social media experience for children. A Tuck alum and member of Tuck’s European Advisory Board is chairman of the board and connected our team with this amazing opportunity.
Before Kuddle, children begging their parents to go on social media had two options: Wait until age 13 and download Instagram/get a Facebook account, or lie about their age and engage on social media—with no guidance on how to use either of these sites or protection from the dangers associated with them, notably online bullying.
A year ago at this time, Kuddle was still an idea. Over the course of weeks and months, the idea was refined and investors started to come around. By August 2014 the app was up and running and accepting users! Kuddle welcomed us, a diverse group of Tuck business school students to help them provide guidance on their global, go-to market strategy.
So here we were, a team of six classmates who originally hailed from the U.S., India, Mexico, and China. We all came speaking different languages, and representing different cultures—none of which were Norwegian (or even Scandinavian or European). But that’s part of what made the project so exciting—we had the chance to learn about a new country and culture together, all while bringing our personal perspectives about our home countries to the table—essential learning for a young brand with large, global aspirations.
We spent October and November educating ourselves on the differences between working in Norway vs. the U.S. and our other home countries, the social media landscape and interests, behaviors and characteristics of children (and their parents) in the target age group. Right after Thanksgiving we boarded planes for Norway and we were off!
Once in Oslo, we spent the three weeks immersing ourselves in the Kuddle business and interacting with Kuddle’s founders and employees. One of the great aspects of working for a start-up is access to people and ideas, footsteps away from your seat. Within days we had at least scheduled, if not conducted, interviews with everyone at the company—understanding everything from their motivations to joining Kuddle to their dreams for the brand in five years. We got to listen to the founder’s passionate reasons for starting Kuddle through formal interviews, and less formal drive-bys and discussions around the office coffee maker and KNEKKEBRØD bread—a Norwegian treat that everyone in the office took turns baking each morning.
Outside the office, we really experienced the power of the Tuck name and network, in action. We set up interviews with governmental entities including the U.S. embassy and American Chamber of Commerce, toured and met with museum representatives, start-up incubators, child psychologists, non-governmental organizations and school groups. We tapped into our network of teachers around the world. I was amazed at how many people were willing to sit down with us, listen to the Kuddle story and what brought our team to Norway, and then not only share their perspectives but also ask us thought-provoking questions in return. Here we were crossing our fingers, hoping for a simple response and instead we were met with constant enthusiasm and excitement about the fact that Ivy League business school students from the U.S. were exploring Norway, and looking to learn more about the missions of these companies and how we could help a Kuddle expand their dream to kids and parents beyond Norway.
But this experience wasn’t all work and no play. Unlike other student OnSite Groups, the Kuddle team wasn’t stuck in a hotel for three weeks. Instead, we stayed closer to the office in vacation home of one of the board members who graciously opened up her home to us. While we were there during the darkest days of the year, we found time to spot some stellar sunrise, sunset, and minimal daylight moments from in and around the home. It was a great opportunity to really get to know six classmates, have late night brainstorm sessions, and for me, to learn how to “officially” make guacamole from my expert Mexican classmate and friend.
Our first weekend we spent exploring Oslo. Walking (or rather skating/sliding) on top of the Opera House, visiting the Viking Museum, and a couple Christmas markets. We wandered into a pub serving famous pig knuckle (that we couldn’t leave Norway without trying!), and then dined the next night on reindeer.
The second weekend we decided to put our cold weather, snow-filled Tuck training to the test and fly two hours north to Tromso, the largest city in the Arctic Circle, to see the Northern Lights. And while there, why not see them by dogsled? There’s never a guarantee of seeing the Northern Lights, even when you travel away from the light pollution of the city but we were in for a treat. I think we all agreed dogsledding, in the freezing cold of the Arctic Circle, with new friends and Tuck classmates, was an amazing, unforgettable experience rounding out what as an exceptional way to bring my Tuck classroom education to the real world.
I signed up for this project to test out what it would be like to work and live in another country. I left with new friends, a greater appreciation for my Tuck degree and what it means in the global community, as well as what it might be like to work and live abroad. Thanks Kuddle, and Thanks Tuck!