Donald Smith, founder and CEO of Birmingham-based WorkTalo, is aiming to change the way hiring is done using artificial intelligence.
Talent acquisition platform WorkTalo uses behavior-based matching algorithms and generative AI to mitigate bias in the talent acquisition process. By focusing on skills and value alignment, Smith wants to create a more objective and engaging hiring experience.
His entrepreneurial career was born of a University of Alabama at Birmingham hackathon project. The hackathon presented the challenge of college-educated students leaving Alabama.
“We came up with ‘Tinder for careers,’” Smith said. “And it was going to be a mobile app where you’ll be able to swipe, but the goal was to just use the dynamics of a dating app and apply that to a professional relationship. ... We just wanted to bring transparency to the hiring process, make it more personable, make it fun.”
The idea placed second in the hackathon.
“For me it was an experience leading a team looking at a specific problem and coming up with the solution in a creative way, using technology as a way to enhance our capabilities,” Smith said.
After that, he was hooked.
“I started searching for idea accelerators and getting information, because, at the time, all I had was a pitch deck, a PowerPoint and a script, and so essentially it was still a paper napkin idea.”
Smith earned a spot in Innovation Depot’s Voltage Idea Accelerator, designed to support entrepreneurs who have an idea for a tech or tech-enabled business as they translate that idea into a prototype. He soaked up as much information as possible, noting that the process felt like he was still in school.
“Even now, I still feel like I’m a student of entrepreneurship pursuing this idea,” he added.
Smith went on to participate in a Builders + Backers Idea Accelerator, which helped him evolve WorkTalo from “Tinder for careers” to a platform that leverages AI to eliminate bias in hiring. WorkTalo was also part of the Bronze Valley accelerator.
Now, Smith wants to build something that can provide value as well as scale. So far WorkTalo has been mostly bootstrapped by Smith, and received $5,000 in funding from Builders + Backers.
As for the future of WorkTalo, Smith is looking to increase the team to three and add a co-founder. He said both his greatest opportunity and greatest challenge is AI. Many are skeptical of the tech’s implications and potential dangers, but Smith plans to use it for good.
“I think our greatest challenge first is building trust with AI and how it’s used in our process,” he said. “I think that challenge, although not impossible, I think it’ll be difficult. I think it’s worth it.”
He clarified that he does not want AI to replace humans in the hiring process, but rather serve as a tool to improve the process.
A wait list is in the works for WorkTalo’s beta product, and Smith hopes to launch by the beginning of 2024.
“Building a startup and choosing to build it here in Birmingham ... community is important. And being a part of a community, choosing to commit to it, I think is a big deal,” Smith said.
“I feel like Birmingham is in a place where it needs a little push. A little extra commitment in order to grow this tech ecosystem into a world class ecosystem. I feel like all the tools, all the parts are in place for a unicorn to be here.”
Freedom in entrepreneurship
Smith added that being an entrepreneur appeals to him for a unique reason.
"As a single father, being an entrepreneur allows me to really control my time in a way where when (my children) need me, I'm able to be on the phone with the least amount of friction possible," Smith said.
He is the father of a 9-year-old and 11-year-old.
"For me, that's the type of work-life balance I want," Smith said. " ... You should be happy with the things that you're doing to provide for your family and things you're doing in order to be there for your family. It's one life that we have, and it can be fleeting. It can be short. My wife was 41 when she passed away (from cancer) and very young.
"It was eye opening, and even now, reflecting on it, you wish you had time to do things differently or had time to just enjoy or explore more. There's a whole big world out there. ... Entrepreneurship allows me to continue to give my children experiences because I feel like they're living for her, because when I see them, I see her and feel her. My happiness comes from being able to be there for them, and entrepreneurship makes it easy for me, so that's why I'm passionate about it."
