Meet the student with his own startup

RMIT works hard to make sure graduates are equipped with the skills and knowledge they need to solve emerging business challenges, but current Finance student Finnlay Morcombe isn’t even waiting to graduate.

While still tackling his final year studies, Finn has just launched his own startup, Fluency, with co-founder Oliver Farnill.

Thanks to $300,000 in pre-seed funding and a $3 million valuation in late 2023, Fluency is already having a great impact on how businesses solve for a common issue – process documentation.

Finn said the idea came to him while completing an internship with a superannuation fund as part of his Business and Finance degree at the College of Business and Law.

“I remember thinking there has got to be a simpler way to do this,” he said of being assigned a task to move a process from one team to another.

“From the initial idea to automate the creation of documentation, we now have a product available for download, an office in Melbourne’s CBD, we’re working with customers in Australia, Singapore and Japan, and we have a clear vision to make process excellence accessible for all businesses.”

Man holding microphone presenting in front of projector

Finnlay Morcombe speaks at the launch of Fluency.

Senior Lecturer of Economics, Dr. Meg Elkins, who runs the GradFolio course for final year students, said Finn’s story is a great example of using a beginner’s mindset to solve for a common business problem.

“Finn has taken a necessary but tedious process for many employers, and employees, and allowed technology to improve efficiency,” said Dr Elkins.

“It’s inspiring, not just to other students, but to the staff at RMIT as well, to see Finn’s motivation and determination create such great impact. It’s also wonderful to see the support he is receiving from industry, showing there is a real need for this solution.”

Fluency officially launched on Wednesday 15 May 2024. As for juggling the remainder of his studies with the venture, Finn says he looks forward to completing his degree and growing his business.

“I’ve really enjoyed my studies at RMIT and while my initial goals of a career in finance have changed over that time, I’m really looking forward to building upon the skills I’ve learned and changing the process landscape in businesses around the world with Fluency.”

Learn more about Fluency

21 May 2024

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Meet the student with his own startup