UAlbany Alum Listed on 2018 Forbes 30 Under 30

Stephan Goss is the CEO and founder of Zeeto, an ad network.

ALBANY, N.Y. — Stephan Goss has never had a boss. The UAlbany alum has, however, started a leading marketing data discovery company, and is among the 2018 Forbes 30 Under 30 list of honorees.

Goss, who graduated from UAlbany in 2010 as a business major, came to the United States from Zurich, Switzerland when he was 19. While in school, he started doing affiliate marketing online in his spare time, which he said gave him the opportunity to apply what he was learning in the classroom.

“While I was studying, I was already learning a lot of practical lessons from doing things,” Goss said, like applying accounting theories to a business plan. “Even if things fail, or if you don’t get to where you wanted to be, the lessons you learn along the way are really valuable.”

He said these experiences also helped launch him into his career. Goss started Zeeto, a question-powered ad network, in 2010, as a 22-year-old. The tech company now has more than 80 employees, and could reach a $200 million run rate by the end of 2018, according to Goss.

Goss, who now lives in San Diego where Zeeto is based, said he attributes his success to the solid framework he received at UAlbany and a good work ethic.

“Having a strong foundation was key, but getting practical experience while in school has made a huge difference,” he said. “You can build something in the meantime while also going to school, and that drastically accelerates what you’re doing right after graduating.”

Advice to students who also want to pursue a “big idea?”

His advice to students who want to pursue their own big ideas is simple: “Study engineering,” Goss said. “Some basic computer science would’ve been really helpful, because I had to learn the hard way.”

You can watch the Forbes feature on Goss’ story here.

For more news, subscribe to UAlbany's RSS headline feeds