TAMID brings its innovative business program to Brown

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The TAMID Group, a unique organization that offers experiential learning through businesses in Israel, officially arrived at Brown University at the start of this academic year.

TAMID got its start in 2007, thanks to the efforts of two University of Michigan students, Sasha Gribov and Eitan Ingall. Originally coined “TAMID Israel Investment Group,” it was offered as a club on the Ann Arbor campus for students who were interested in the Israeli business sector, minus the politics and controversy often tied to the Jewish state.

A year later, after Garrett Levenbrook joined with Gribov and Ingall, TAMID began to quickly spread – it is now active on 46 campuses nationwide, including all eight Ivy league schools.

The TAMID chapter at Brown, and at all affiliated campuses, is divided into two teams, “Consulting” and “Investing.” Kyle Price, a sophomore from Scarsdale, New York, who is majoring in economics and political science, has been a member since the chapter was first beta-tested last year. He has since been appointed director of the Consulting team.

Members of the Consulting team are assigned to Israeli startups and given tasks in areas that include strategic marketing and market research. At Brown, the Consulting students worked on behalf of two Tel Aviv-based companies during the fall semester. The first company, “NoTraffic,” is described as a “smart city, plug & play, infrastructure solution for reducing congestion and accidents using AI and real-time optimization.” The second firm, “Pitaya,” is “a business-to-business company which serves to facilitate the discovery and booking process for organizations seeking employee-enrichment and team-building activities.”

Both companies asked the students to help them solve a particular problem. The teams checked in regularly with their Israeli superiors to report on their work throughout the semester.

The Investing team is tasked with looking at Israeli companies within an assigned sector and deciding whether to invest in them based on factors such as financial statements and sector performance.

Price said being a member of TAMID is a unique and invaluable experience.

 “The hands-on experience is TAMID’s best selling point. Being able to work with Israeli startups and help create value for them is an opportunity that you can’t get many other places,” he said.

Price believes Brown is a perfect fit for TAMID because of its students’ entrepreneurial spirit.

TAMID members gain a rich experience working with a well-respected and internationally-recognized organization that teaches them the ins and outs of the business world from both an American and Israeli perspective. In addition, they have something special to list on their CV.

Yoni Heilman, executive director of TAMID Group, has witnessed the benefits first-hand. He recalled attending a conference where a representative from Citigroup was asked by a student what he could do to be considered more hirable. The Citigroup executive simply said, “Join TAMID.”

TAMID offers many opportunities for its members to get even more involved, from nationwide networking events with students at other universities to its immersive eight-week summer fellowship in Tel Aviv, where select students learn from Israeli business leaders. These fellows have an opportunity to understand the Israeli business sector on a nuanced and intimate level through a rigorous summer internship that challenges them in areas from business to computer science to the liberal arts.

TAMID also offers a program known as “TAMID Pro,” which allows former on-campus members to continue their work with the organization after graduating.

“TAMID is not just something students did in college,” said Heilman. “There continue to be advantages and opportunities for them by working with the organization after graduating as well.”

Price said,  “TAMID offers unparalleled professional training through opportunities to help innovative Israeli startups solve problems. There is no organization on campuses that can say the same.”

Also integral to the success of the TAMID chapter at Brown are sophomores, Max Sopher, director of the investing team and President of TAMID at Brown, Kobi Weinberg

He said the Brown chapter currently has about 30 members, and welcomes new members.

SAM SERBY is a freelance writer who lives in East Greenwich. He previously worked at the Peres Center for Peace in Tel Aviv.

TAMID, Brown