BrightCaller is a budding startup
The recent BrightCaller launch captured our attention, as the service makes daily accountability phone calls to help you stay productive and focused. It’s currently in what they call a closed beta. The launch inspired several questions about the service, so we’ve opted to catch you up on what we’ve learned.
As BrightCaller expands the number of callers on their staff, they will make the service more available. According to the founders, students out of Stanford, it should be ready for open access to everyone in a month, around mid-May.
The four Stanford students that founded BrightCaller are Tracy Howard, Amy Wu, Shannon Wu and Jesse Leimgruber. They have been open around three months, but only opened the site in the first of April. The cost of BrightCaller is $49/month, although that is subject to change. They are currently offering the service free for individuals who make referrals.
More on how BrightCaller works
Your BrightCaller works with you on your top three daily goals. You work together with your caller to find out what the next action step is. They track the performance on the previous day’s goals, and you earn a reward when you hit your goals. You can also receive daily and weekly performance reports, and get reminders of your meetings.
BrightCaller is working with HR directors and managers in the office to help employees with their goals and accountability. It is purported to take the pressure off of managers, but to keep the company productive. This is what BrightCaller calls an enterprise service. I can see where it would be an effective tool to help employees learn to set goals and stay accountable, but after a period of time, they should be expected to be on their own.
Still not convinced
I’m not convinced they have a good business model. One of their selling points is to businesses to take pressure off the managers, but if I had employees who couldn’t stay motivated and set goals by the time they finished college, I’m not sure they would remain on my team.
I’m sure BrightCaller seems like a good idea to Millenials (and it probably is), but to my generation, it feels like handholding. Of course, I’m not out in the corporate world, but I do have friends and daughters who are college age.
That said, these four students will go far. They’re thinking about ways to help their generation succeed, so I anticipate that their impact will be felt, whether through BrightCaller or their future endeavors.
