Between networking meetings, classes and staying at the office until 3 a.m. on some nights, Brandon Labman and Tommy Moore are not leading a typical college life. However, that's just the way they like it.
The George Mason University seniors have run Responsible Outgoing College Students (ROCS) since 2003, a for-profit, student-centered staffing agency that this year won a Global Student Entrepreneur Award.
"We look at ROCS as a second degree, a degree in the real world," said Labman, who has known Moore since their days at Franklin Middle School in Chantilly. Early in his college career, said Labman, he had helped the nonprofit agency he was working for at the time fill staff positions. One night while taking a study break during final exams, Labman and Moore came up with the idea to take the project full-time.
"There were no other companies staffing for college students," said Moore. The two began doing research, meeting with consultants, and building up a base of local companies to work with. In September 2003, they incorporated the business.
Starting a business posed a few hurdles. "We began by cold-calling companies," said Moore. "We knew what we wanted to do, but we didn't know how to do it." He and Labman had to work out details such as workers compensation, payroll, and whether their student clients should receive insurance.
But one of the most significant challenges for the entrepreneurs was building trust between their company and the students.
"We didn't have 1,000 past customers to show what we could do," said Labman. Since the beginning, he said, the point of ROCS hsa been to develop real relationships with student clients rather than superficial networks.
"We're not trying to 'close the deal,'" said Moore. ROCS works with students beyond just finding them jobs, he said, by helping them develop real-world skills.
"The positions match up with [the student's] major," he said. "Even if you're not doing the actual job, just being in that environment is beneficial."
ROCS is also a part of the Central Fairfax Chamber of Commerce (CFCC), which allows them to connect with companies in the Fairfax area as well.
"They have a new approach with staffing," said Melissa Choates, CFCC president. "For these students to actively relate and communicate with George Mason University students and network with our chamber, they take a more aggressive approach. A friendly aggressive approach."
Labman and Moore are active members of the CFCC, taking part in many of the Chamber's luncheons, committee meetings and mixers, said Choates.
"Fairfax is a very welcoming community for small businesses, but in any area, it's very hard to start a business," said Choates. "A lot of costs and planning go into starting a business. For somebody like them, they definitely took on a challenge and have taken it on very well."
ROCS IS A university-focused business, and so Labman and Moore spend a lot of time working with George Mason's University Career Services. For Ian Mooers, assistant director of employer relations at George Mason, ROCS can provide "real-world" experience to students before they graduate.
"With the job market as competitive as it is now, you can't go into a second-tier or even a top school and expect to get a job," said Moore. "At least you can have a better chance of getting a job based on your level of experience."
The best way to go about finding a post-college job, said Mooers, is learning about the field before going into it, whether through research or work experience, and meeting people through clubs, volunteer work or community involvement.
"Be sure to explore all options available to you," he said.
As for Labman and Moore, they feel lucky to have found a job which they are passionate about so early on in their professional life.
"The best part about this is having students call you back after getting a job full time, or seeing them on campus and hearing that they love their job," said Labman.
"It's the sheer fact that we're making a difference for students," said ROCS marketing director and George Mason student Matthew Smith. "On Friday nights we could be out at the keggers, but we'll stay in the office until 1:30 in the morning."
When the students attended a conference in Orlando with 22 other student entrepreneurs, said Moore, they immediately bonded. "We all had a sigh of relief that we could sit around and talk about our business, and everyone wanted to talk about it," said Labman. Sometimes, he said, it is hard for other students to relate to the devotion they have to their business.
Some of that devotion comes from how well the members of ROCS get along with each other. A "Rat Pack" movie poster hangs on the wall of their office, and although they spend many late hours there, they all manage to have fun. "We all run a business, but we have fun running the business," said Moore.
"A lot of people go into work their whole lives and hate it," said Smith. "We’ve found a way to stay young."