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Interviews

Name: Finn Murphy
TCD Qualification: B.A.I., Mechanical & Manufacturing Engineering (2016)
Title: Founder of iDly Systems

About: Finn created the Trinity Digital Student ID, a mobile application that places student card information onto smart phones. Launched in 2015 as a pilot program within Trinity, the service has seen over 6,500 downloads. In order to license the technology Finn founded iDly systems in March 2016. This summer the company participated in LaunchBox (Trinity's Accelerator Program).

What inspired you to create the first digital student card in Ireland?
It was just something that annoyed me. Being a student I can be pretty forgetful and often found myself in college without my student card. This meant I couldn't get into the gym or library without paying for a replacement card. I thought, "if all of the information that goes onto a student card exists in a digital format when it gets printed onto a card, then why can't we just send it to a students phone rather than placing it on a piece of plastic?".

How did you develop the service?
During my year in the Students Union there were monthly meetings with the Provost to discuss student affairs. At the end of one of these meetings the Provost asked us if we had any ideas to make the Trinity Campus more digital friendly. I had a lightbulb moment, I pitched the idea of the digital student card to the Provost and he asked me to explore it in further depth. I did some research and made a successful proposal for the project. Consequently, last summer a team of undergraduate developers, Peter Meehan and Conor Brennan, were brought in to build the service in partnership with IT services and academic staff. All this, along with many stakeholder meetings to gain acceptance of the ID led to the launch of the application in September 2015.

Tell us how LaunchBox has contributed to the advancement of iDly Systems.
LaunchBox has helped us enormously. Bringing it from a successful college project to a viable business in the space of eight weeks. I'm the first to admit as a fresh engineering graduate I don't know a huge amount about business. This is what LaunchBox has helped with the most. Exposing the project to business and entrepreneurial leaders has allowed me to learn almost as much in this eight weeks as I did in the previous year.

Who has been your biggest advocate throughout the process?
The Provost was hugely supportive of the project from the get go. Without his backing I don't think the project could have got to where it is today. There have been a huge number of people on campus who helped along the way and without the collaborative efforts of undergraduates, the Students Union, IT Services and all of the college service providers iDly Systems would not have been a success.

How did your Trinity education nurture your inner entrepreneur?
As an Engineering student I was exposed to several different projects during my time in Trinity. Whether it was building robots, designing a water filtration system or pitching a smart home locking system I was always learning the key skills required to be a successful entrepreneur, even if I didn't realise it. However it's the extra-curricular aspects of the Trinity education that were the most important factor in getting me to where I am today. Starting in my third year as captain of the snow sports club, I had to organise a trip for 500 people to the French Alps. Dealing with contractors, booking systems and managing a huge turnover gave me a sense of how to be a responsible leader. Then my time in the Students Union taught me a huge amount about running a business day to day with staffing, marketing and sales all running through my office as Entertainments Officer. The competition between clubs, societies and the Students Union in Trinity encourages a friendly but fierce environment where all the groups are vying for students attention. I think it's this competition that has helped Trinity produce so many successful entrepreneurs over the years.

What accomplishment are you most proud of?
I'm so proud of many of the things I have been involved with in Trinity, but at the end of my five years I'm proudest of managing to get an 81% grade in my finals. All of my other accomplishments couldn't have been reached without the help of so many others and just a bit of luck. However for my exams it was solely up to myself to put the work in and hopefully that will stand to me in the future!

What is your long term vision for iDly Systems?
While we started in Trinity, I see iDly Systems growing far beyond student IDs. We're living in an increasingly digital world and people are becoming increasingly conscious of who it is that controls their data and how they can use it. We want to provide a digital solution so that anyone can access their identity at any time from all mobile devices. Right now, all of the information that exists on a plastic card also exists on a server somewhere. We want to empower people by giving them access to that data.

How do you like to spend your free time?
Right now I don't have a lot of it. But when I do get a break I love going out and talking to new people and spending time with old friends. I also have a bit of a habit of reading Wikipedia to add to my random facts collection. Which is now so extensive most people don't believe me when I come out with something. Although it’s very useful in a quiz!

What piece of advice would you give to budding entrepreneurs?
Firstly, just put yourself out there and do it. There are so many opportunities and groups out there to be a leader of or an innovator in that you can get the experience you need in no time. Next, keep notes, I keep a digital notebook with all my ideas from over the years. The digital ID is my second company, my first was a total failure, but if I hadn't gone through that experience I wouldn't have been able to succeed in this one. When you keep your notes day to day you can track where you went wrong. Lastly, remember it's pretty unlikely you're going to create the next Facebook. But the decision to become an entrepreneur shouldn't be predicated on wealth or success. It comes down to this, do you have a vision to build something and are you willing to tough it out to make that vision a reality.