Brandon Lee
CEO
Terra Dotta LLC
Is the study abroad office being replaced by the study abroad web site?
No. We're turbo-assisting study abroad offices. We help them track their students and improve customer service while sending more students abroad. Staff in those offices need a break from the paper and other administrative details so they can help students succeed.
What schools are using your software app?
We're nearing 100 schools of all sizes. Among them are University of Illinois, University of Virginia, University of Florida, Harvard, Yale and Cornell. Columbia Law, Temple Law and Stetson Law are also among our clients. As is the University of Michgan School of Engineering. We're fortunate to be able to promise and deliver an installation that can be quickly integrated with their ERP and student information software.
What problems does it solve?
We help enable a paperless office that can be open 24 hours a day. The study-abroad lifecycle is tracked and managed from application through return - and even a second or third tour. Students can watch their application folders fill without needing to make a phone call or an office visit. And of great importance are the risk mitigation features.
Can you cite a particular success that our readers will appreciate?
The University of Connecticut set out to double their study abroad participants in 2003. They installed our software and achieved their goal in 2005. Growth continues there.
How did the swine flu affect your business?
As the outbreaks made headlines, campus risk management offices received numerous inquiries from reporters wanting to know how many students were abroad and in what countries, Mexico for example. Our system's ability to track whereabouts and incidents proved to be extremely helpful.
How has Andrew Cuomo affected your business?
During one campus visit a potential client turned down my offer of a Terra Dotta ball-point pen. That has been the extent of it.
Do you see a killer app on the horizon?
Tripit.com is an amazing service that organizes travel plans, reservations and itineraries. It's a free service, presently in beta. It's intuitive and user-friendly, and it works well for business and personal travel.