Striving for Excellence

April 2025

“I love business,” says Timothy Putra Samad, a business management student from Jakarta, Indonesia. “I have always known I was an entrepreneur at heart.”

After Timothy returned home from his mission, the COVID-19 pandemic hit. Timothy noticed a gap in the optical care market in his area. Many optical care com­panies were either closing or unable to provide all their services. To solve this problem, Timothy began Alisa Mobile Optik, an optical service company that brings eye checkups and eye consulting directly to people in the comfort of their home. The business became successful, and Timothy expanded the services to corporations, organizations, and schools in Indonesia. Despite the growth of the business, finances were still tenuous for Timothy and his family.

“Creating a small business was a huge blessing for me in many ways, but it also made me realize how much I wanted to learn more about business and finance,” says Timothy. “I knew I needed to gain global perspective and an international education to help with my business and future career.”

It was then that Timothy looked to BYU–Hawaii. The mission of the univer­sity inspired him, and IWORK would help him afford a degree program out­side of Indonesia. After receiving his acceptance, Timothy appointed his father to run the business while he’s away at school. Timothy says, “BYU–Hawaii encourages students to return to their homes and make an impact there after graduation. My goal has always been to go back home and use the knowledge and experience that I’m gaining to help build the economy in Indonesia.”

Timothy has hit the ground running since enrolling at the university. During his freshman year, he won second place in BYU–Hawaii’s Empower Your Dreams competition. He has also completed an internship at Ethos Investment Man­agement, a boutique investment firm in Orem, Utah.

“That internship helped me figure out that I would like to pursue a career in investment analysis,” says Timothy. “I worked on a project for an Indonesian company, and it was rewarding to see how valuable my opinion was because of my life and business experience.”

Timothy has also had a great impact on campus through his work with the Office of Customer Experience, a group dedicated to working with BYU–Hawaii’s President’s Council to identify pain points for the university and create solutions to help operations run smoother. Timothy has helped improve new student onboarding and housing issues and has plans to help the campus store.

“The university expects excellence from me, and I’m given everything I need to be successful,” says Timothy. “I know that my teachers, the President’s Council, and staff are serious about me and want to help me excel in my career.”

Timothy also recognizes those who have helped him through IWORK so that he could attend a university that focuses on students’ development and disciple­ship. “The decision a donor made to help students at BYU–Hawaii will impact gen­erations to come,” says Timothy. “My kids will benefit from my getting this degree. I would not have accomplished this many things already had it not been for the help of donors.”