Alumni Spotlight – Ryan Chan (Claremont ’08)

Each year Forbes selects ambitious visionaries in 20 different industries to make their list of the “30 under 30”. This year two alumni of our Economics for Leaders program were selected, Elvis Zhang (Providence 2015) and Ryan Chan (Claremont 2008).

We recently got in touch with Ryan Chan to hear about his innovate company, UpKeep Maintenance Management where he is both Founder and CEO.

Ryan came up with the idea for UpKeep out of frustration by the lack of mobility in today’s maintenance management software. He developed the mobile-first group collaboration and productivity tool in his mom’s garage after work. Today, UpKeep helps blue-collar workers do their jobs and has been deployed to over 1,000 businesses and holds 11,000 accounts including Unilever and Stericycle. 

Ryan attended Economics for Leaders at the University of Claremont-McKenna in Claremont, California in summer 2008. He returned one year later in 2009, for the EFL reunion program, also held in California.

When asked if he still uses what he had learned at economics camp, Ryan replies, “Absolutely!” Although he isn’t working with economics directly, he believes that the foundation of economics applies to his business nearly every single day.

Another important skill Ryan still utilizes from camp is teamwork. He says the program taught him, “how to effectively learn and collaborate with a group of people. EFL was a great way to get exposed to this important skill early by providing an opportunity to think critically with a group of very bright individuals.”

Almost ten years after his Economics for Leaders program Ryan still remembers his group and the life-long friendships that were formed.

“It wasn’t only about the learning experience, but also about the amazing group of people that all came together in one place at the same time. Those are the memories and relationships that made EFL so impactful on my life. I am so grateful to have been part of that experience. Thank you FTE!!!”

Wishing best of luck to Ryan and all our other alumni who are out there making a difference! Click here if you would like to find about more about UpKeep.