Shawn Schwegman, the son of Bev and Terry Schwegman of Franklin County, has launched a technology company that will develop applications for smart phones, tablets and desktop computers.
Gusto, LLC, is a startup business-to-consumer technology company in Indianapolis that plans to add up to 150 jobs in the next few years.
Schwegman began working in startup companies over twenty years ago and has held leadership positions at companies such as ChaCha and Overstock.com.
“Startup companies you know, you work 60, 70, 80, 90 hours a week, but you have fun doing it and I am passionate about it,” Schwegman said.
He is spending a lot of time at the office, as Gusto will launch the debut product, which is an iPhone app that combines mobile e-mail with secure cloud storage.
“Over half of email is opened on a smart phone, and to not see or have access to all of your files is a real pain,” Schwegman said. “That is a challenge that we really want to fix.”
“The way I typically describe [the app], is that you use Google to search the world’s content, you will use Gusto to search yours and communicate about it.”
The app will be released in March.
The Indiana Economic Development Corporation offered Gusto over $2.6 million in conditional tax credits and up to $100,000 in training grants based on the company’s inititiave to add jobs. The incentives would be available if the company proceeds to hire more workers.
Gusto was formally known under a different name when Schwegman interviewed for the chief marketing officer position. He told the founders they wouldn’t want to hire him because he would alter the company’s direction.
Schwegman reflected on the interview as he explained to the founders, “I would go after a new product, different vision, I am really trying to solve this email problem on mobile, so it would be a different company so respectively I decline.”
He was called the next day and offered the position for chief executive officer. The company went in an entirely different direction including a new name, new product and new bank accounts.
Franklin County isn’t exactly a hot bed of young tech talent. Schwegman did share advice for those interested in the career field, saying, “Jump in with both feet and don’t look!”
“Find your passion, that is rule number one. It may be a high paying career or low paying career, and none of that matters. What matters is following your passion.”
