The Fuqua Times Online

128 years ago, a young man from China named Jiashu Charlies Song came to Duke University (named Trinity College then) and became its first international student. 128 years later, Duke crossed the Pacific Ocean and broke ground its campus in China.

A top-tier university in the US, Duke University is not as well-known in China as its counterparts. Charlies Song, basketball or Shane Battier (because he is on the same NBA team with Yao Ming) might come to mind when the Duke name is mentioned, but not much beyond those.

Fuqua Alumni in China are also less connected to the school since they are thousands of miles away from Durham. Though endeavors have been made to keep the community tight, distance hold people back. Only 124 alumni are active from China in Fuqua’s alumni directory.

Howard Lerman founded Yext in 2006 with the vision of improving the way local businesses and consumers connect. Yext is Howard's fourth internet company, the past three of which have had successful exits. Howard is a graduate of Duke University.

"The Next Yellow Pages" is the tagline for your company. Can you tell me why your company is the next Yellow Pages?

With the advent of the internet, local search has become highly fragmented.  Before, people used to use one thing--a Yellow Pages book, or a yellow book--to find a local service they're looking for.  Since the internet has arrived people have begun using all different sorts of sites, applications, and devices to find a local business.