Stony Brook University alum Hantz Fevry received his Bachelor of Science in Business Management with two specializations: Management and Operations, and Finance. His story — from growing up in a third world country to becoming a Google employee — is inspirational to anyone, but especially for those who feel discouraged because of where they grew up.
“Growing up in Haiti taught me many valuable lessons, some of which include not being afraid of failure, learning to embrace failure as part of the learning process, that persistence is key, and that one should never be afraid of trying,” he said.
Instead of feeling lost after the 2010 earthquake that devastated Haiti, Hantz was inspired to rise above the destruction that surrounded him and pursue his goals. “While people were discouraged and thought everything was over, I saw opportunities to make changes,” he said.
In his Benedict College dorm room at Stony Brook, Hantz founded I. Trade International Ltd. to solve problems related to the delivery of emergency information. I. Trade was the first company to launch an inexpensive early-warning system for earthquakes in the Caribbean. Hantz’s company attracted the attention of Edwards Information Broadcast Pty Ltd, an Australian marketer for emergency disaster warning and rescue devices. Before long, Hantz led the company’s business development and sales in the Caribbean. “I developed a new business model and a financial plan to raise $10 million (AUD) from a venture capital firm in Australia,” Hantz stated. After this initial success, he hopes to attract business from more companies in the future.
Hantz received help from many faculty and staff members in the College of Business at Stony Brook, but he refers to Manuel London, Dean of the College, as his mentor.
“I met Dr. London in my LDS (Leadership and Service) class my freshman year,” said Hantz. “I approached him after class and spoke to him about my endeavor. He liked the idea and gave me invaluable advice that helped me set my priorities and accomplish my goals.”
Hantz’s other mentor is Jon Venverloh, vice president of global sales at Google, who visited Haiti to help its people following the earthquake. Venverloh told him that Google values people who overcome incredible circumstances to make the world a better place.
Hantz now works for Google as part of the Small Business Services team in Poland for the French market. He sees the company as a place where he will be able to make great changes in the world with the help of new technologies.
“My overall experience at Stony Brook helped me secure this position at Google,” Hantz said. “As a student at Stony Brook, I was exposed to many different cultures and beliefs, which helped me to see things from different perspectives and to better understand the complexities of life. The College of Business also taught me how to become a better problem solver because I learned how to approach problems from different angles and to have an open mind to different ideas, and that is one of the most important skills within the business world.”
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