Where Finance, Technology and Art Intersect: Justin Oliver ‘12

There were many things Justin thought he might be interested in pursuing when he graduated from Greenwood, but he wasn’t entirely sure which direction he wanted to take. Nine years later, Justin is doing something he never thought he would do.

After graduating Greenwood, Justin attended Harvard University for Applied Mathematics with a focus in Biology and a Secondary in Computer Science. Harvard’s program appealed to Justin because of its liberal arts approach and flexibility. Harvard allowed him to explore all of his passions and interests before ultimately choosing to study Applied Math, Biology and Computer Science. 

One of Justin’s favourite aspects of his experience at Harvard was the people. “Being surrounded by incredibly driven, intelligent, interesting students from diverse backgrounds made for really rich social and learning environments,” says Justin. “I made some of my best friends in the world in college and my classmates are doing amazing things across the spectrum.”

By the time Justin graduated Harvard, he still wasn’t sure what he wanted to do. He ended up taking a job as a data analyst and consultant at a financial services firm in New York. Since he knew this position wasn’t what he ultimately wanted to do with his life, he continued to explore his passion for math and analytics while getting his feet wet in the working world. 
 
“Something was missing… I wanted a job that I could be passionate about, where I could apply my love of math to something more meaningful and interesting, at least from my perspective,” says Justin. He always loved the world of art and made it his mission to make a move in that direction. He considered jobs at auction houses, boutique art financing firms and a ton of other places. Luckily for him, he was able to find his current role as the Director of Business Development at ARTBnk, a company that operates at the intersection of finance, technology and art.
 
ARTBnk is a very small startup company with only eight full-time staff. This means, everyone is always jumping between roles as needed. As Director of Business Development, Justin’s primary responsibility is to drive growth via developing sales strategies, forging strategic partnerships and working with potential investors. Justin’s day-to-day schedule inevitably involves a ton of other responsibilities including working with his development team on product design and implementation, building infrastructure to track customer engagement and sales, or discussing the platform with classrooms of students or potential clients.
 
Justin believes his time at Greenwood was a kickstart to his desire to try everything and keep an open mind. “Greenwood exposed me to so many subjects and possibilities,” he says. “More importantly, Greenwood taught me the power of following your passions, and of always approaching everyone and everything with positive intentions.”
 
In Justin's free time, gallery hopping is one of his favourite ways to spend a Saturday. “Chelsea, NYC has such an incredible collection of contemporary galleries with amazing work by my favourite artists,” he says. Some of his favourite artists include Donald Judd, James Turrell, and Richard Serra.