It’s one of the most rewarding things to be able to work on something, but know that you are not alone working on it.

BY ALINA DIZIK

Shefali Shah T’09 has long wanted to be a part of the solution for one of the country’s most pressing problems: increasing high-quality affordable childcare for all.

In 2020, Shah cofounded Upfront, a startup that helps to address the difficulties that parents face when it comes to finding childcare that’s both reliable and affordable. The company sells and licenses their platform to governments at the state and county level, allowing the organizations to offer updated and reliable childcare resources to those in need. There was a need for being able to take our data to create a platform for parents to find that information quickly and easily, says Shah who lives in Baltimore, MD and has experienced childcare challenges with her own two children.

A year later, the startup was part of the inaugural cohort of the Baltimore-based Techstars Equitech Accelerator, which prioritizes supporting companies that address systemic societal challenges. The program is part of Techstars, a national accelerator that runs programs in different cities. That was an incredible moment for us, says Shah who adds that her previous digital marketing stint at Google and consulting for state and city government agencies helped her get Upfront off the ground.

She also leaned on her business education, especially courses on valuation, marketing, and finance to inform her decision-making when getting Upfront off the ground. You play so many different roles within marketing and sales—my general business education really helped, she says.

On a personal level, her network of Tuck alumni was critical to thriving as a cofounder and combating the loneliness that creeps up when building a company, she says. One former classmate, who worked in private equity, jumped in to help when she needed an opinion on a confidential contract. I called him up and he spoke with me on a Saturday for an hour and talked me through it, says Shah who has since stepped back from the company’s day-to-day operations, but continues to champion parental childcare opportunities. He wasn’t the only one—I could literally reach out to anybody and they would respond.

That comradery is something she still values. It’s one of the most rewarding things to be able to work on something, but know that you are not alone working on it.

This story originally appeared in print in the winter 2023 issue of Tuck Today magazine. Read the full article “Meet the Next Generation of Tuck Founders.”