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When Devon Godde and Malcolm Hall graduated from Walker in 2021, they didn’t know they
would one day start their own consulting firm together.
Devon, a varsity soccer player, went on to play soccer at Washington & Jefferson in Pennsylvania and Malcolm managed Walker’s basketball and soccer teams and competed with the school’s Model UN team before attending Georgia Tech.
Fast forward five years and they are reunited as entrepreneurs with their own thriving consulting business – a success they attribute at least some of to what they learned as Walker students.
“My AP Statistics class with Mrs. Treu – the things I learned there have been very foundational to the data analytics we do for the companies we work with,” said Hall, who graduated from Georgia Tech in 2024 with a degree in business administration and finance. He is now two months away from earning his master’s degree in quantitative and computational finance.
For Godde, who majored in finance and German at Washington & Jefferson with a minor in computer science, his Personal Finance, AP Microeconomics/AP Macroeconomics, AP Physics and AP Calculus classes at Walker were especially impactful – so were all of the times he was required to speak in front of groups.
“Public speaking was something we did consistently throughout all of our classes at Walker,”
said Godde. “I spoke in front of the school and parents many times, which helped me with
general confidence speaking in front of people – a crucial soft skill in business.”
Their Atlanta-based company, Cause & Effect Consulting, provides SEO services, data analytics, digital infrastructure, AI automation, marketing management, business modeling and strategic support to small businesses all around the country.
Their very first client was Atlanta Keepers Academy, a business owned by another Walker
family.
“Malcolm and I always wanted to start a business. In college, I worked with a business incubator and reached out to Malcolm for general support and expertise and to bounce ideas off of him,” said Godde. “From there, we really defined our processes for our clients and the digital infrastructure and consulting pieces of the business.”
The goal, said Hall, is to help small businesses develop to their full potential.
“We want to build an ecosystem for new businesses, but also for those trying to grow their
business,” said Godde. “Ultimately, we want to be a one-stop-shop for businesses and also be able to invest in them from a funding standpoint as well.”
As for Walker, both Godde and Hall credit their teachers there for teaching them grit.
“Starting a business is kind-of like being in school. You may fail a test here or there, but you
have to be able to adjust and improve and look forward to the next test, the next project, the next semester,” said Hall. “Walker helps you look at things through a growth mindset, which is very applicable to entrepreneurship.”
“Walker taught me through the years that it’s hard to fail at something you do every day,” said
Godde. “As long as you keep swimming, you will beat out 99% of everyone else.”
To learn more about Cause & Effect Consulting, visit Causeeffectconsulting.com or reach out to Devon and Malcolm directly at info@causeeffectconsulting.com.
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