Interview with Dave Sherwood, CEO & Founder at EdTech Company: BibliU

BibliU is a leading EdTech providing a digital education solution to facilitate more effective learning. We provide eTextbooks that work equally for publishers, institutions and students alike. Our learning content management system was designed to remedy issues relating to the experience and distribution of academic materials in the Higher Education market.

The platform was built with functionality in mind, and was created to allow universities to automate their content workflows, resulting in vastly improved student outcomes through improved affordability and accessibility. Currently being used by more than 140 separate institutions worldwide, including 50 within the UK, BibliU is on a mission to create a more efficient learning experience, benefiting all parties involved.
 
 
BibliU Raises $10 Million to Empower Remote Learning for Students in the  U.S.
 

How did you come up with the idea for the company?

 
From being a struggling student myself! Like many, I’d grappled with the all-too-common problem of inconsistent educational provision. I come from a rural Western Australian background, and after having witnessed the issues resulting from inequality of opportunity firsthand, I co-founded an educational volunteering startup called ‘Teach, Learn, Grow,’ which was established to provide all children in Western Australia with equal opportunities in education regardless of location, background or circumstance.

Later, while studying at Oxford, I saw the same issues present themselves again, albeit in a different form. The price of university textbooks has risen by four times the rate of inflation since 1977, leaving students to pay a hefty bill, or forgo important materials.

While I saw much innovation being made with phone software, there was nothing similar with regards to textbooks. Realising a technical solution was needed, I started BibliU to ensure there was a way to allow for content to be provided at a price point that works for publishers, institutions, and students.
 

 

What advice would you give to other aspiring entrepreneurs?

 
Think of a mission that gives you a greater purpose in the world – something that your employees, customers and partners can throw themselves into. For example, our own mission is to make sure that all students have access to the educational materials they need to succeed. I’d also advise all prospective entrepreneurs to network, and learn from the mistakes that are part of every entrepreneurial journey.
 

What can we hope to see from BibliU in the future?

 
We’re creating something entirely new in Higher Education technology, crafting a solution that allows faculties to provide educational content to students more efficiently, accessibly and equitably than ever before.

We’re doing this by innovating not only how content is procured and managed, but also the business models, user experience, and scope of content covered. We’ve firmly established ourselves in the UK market. In five years, I expect BibliU to be the solution of choice for higher education institutions worldwide.