LinkedIn frustrations lead to Pundit Connect launch

James Baird found LinkedIn's limitations frustrating and started his own online quoting system for consultants. Photo: Supplied

Frustrations with the limitations of LinkedIn led James Baird, to start Pundit Connect an online quoting system for consultants which last week inked a deal with Deakin University. 

Baird says the idea for the start-up came after moving to Geelong in Victoria.

"Moving into a regional area and wanting to establish myself as a professional consultant I found it really challenging to connect my expertise to those in a relevant market," he says.  

"I got a little bit frustrated with LinkedIn. I am sure there are a number of potential customers within my LinkedIn network but it doesn't provide that commercial link. It doesn't tell me when they have opportunities and that's what I want to find." 

Pundit Connect aims to tap into professional talent within a consultant's local area and local business networks.

"That evolved out into our tool for creating peer to peer market networks, Member Connect," Baird says. 

"That has led us down that path to seek partnerships in our platform with alumni groups so that's the basis for the partnership with Deakin University. We also have partnerships with local chambers of commerce and business networks we are also looking to partner with business associations.

Member Connect works for network of professionals, peer-to-peer business networks and alumni groups with Deakin set to invite the top 100 consultants from its MBA community to register.

Any business in the Pundit Connect marketplace will then be able to create a project and post it to this competitive pool of top Deakin MBA consulting talent in an initiative Baird says is the first of its kind.

Pundit Connect has attracted $140,000 in funding to date but Baird says the startup is still at an "early stage" and wants to raise up to $1 million eventually to invest in the enhancement of Pundit Connect's tools and to grow its partnerships. 

"We are very much a lean startup but being lean is great, it forces you to focus on the fundamentals"  

He says the regional location of the startup has been a bonus.

"We are Geelong based and there is a real emerging startup culture in Geelong. I guess my timing was really good within the local market. I connected in with a couple of local business people and they came in with angel investment which enabled us to build our product and go to market with our initial product."

So far Pundit Connect has 600 users registered across its platform and more than $300,000 of projects have been processed through the platform.

Pundit Connect is free for customers to register and engage a project on and instead works on a commission based model paid by the consultant.

When a consultant wins a project they pay a commission to Pundit Connect with only the winning consultant paying a fee between 5 per cent and 10 per cent depending on the size of the project.

"We only want people to pay it when they are getting the benefit and the benefit is finding new clients and new projects," Baird says. 

"Fundamentally we believe in the power of networks to help connect people to new business opportunities."