USC’s Marshall Fund books Engage

Engage, a US-based talent booking platform developer founded by University of Southern California (USC) students, has obtained an undisclosed amount of pre-seed funding from USC’s Marshall Venture Fund.
Founded this year, Engage runs a web directory and platform that allows event organisers to book performers such as public speakers. It is designed to digitalise the booking process through features including instant messaging, digital contracts and the ability to pay appearance fees by credit card.
Engage’s co-founders are USC senior-year students Jake Olson and Daniel Hennes, the latter of whom also manages Olson’s public speaking engagements based on his experiences as an author and USC football player.
Marshall Venture Fund was set-up by USC’s Marshall School of Business to help bridge the early-stage funding gap for USC-linked companies and cement the university’s role in the venturing ecosystem. The vehicle’s operations are supported by a team of student research analysts.
Michael Rivera, managing director of the fund, said: “Engage combines many of the elements we aim to bring together through the USC Marshall Venture Fund.
“Thoughtful and entrepreneurial trojans in Jake and Daniel, solving a 21^st century business challenge in a way that feels unique to the Los Angeles tech and entertainment landscape. That is exactly the kind of creative thinking the fund intends to support.”