#sgeurope 2019 Speaker Feature Q+A with Jean-Christophe Taunay-Bucalo
The Europe Conference kicks off in London this Thursday. Don’t have your tickets yet? You can still grab them for a fraction of the at-the-door price and meet us on 6 June for a full day of speakers, startups, investors and more.
Check out this Q+A with Jean-Christophe Taunay-Bucalo, chief commercial officer of Travelperk, and don’t miss him on the Mainstage at #sgeurope!
What will you be discussing at the Europe Conference?
I’m going to be sharing some insights from my time helping to scale three SaaS or SaaSish (yes, I’m pushing hard for that to be a word) companies internationally. I’ve gone with the incredibly original talk title: “How to build a high-growth SaaS company.” As you can see I’m anti-clickbait.
Where are you from originally and where do you live now?
I’m originally from France, but at an early age I decided to leave the country but keep the accent. I’ve been all over from New Zealand to Canada, and now back to Europe in the shape of Barcelona. I get bored easily and so I like to chase the sea and snow, which doesn’t explain my years in England…
In a sentence, what does Travelperk do?
TravelPerk is the travel management platform of the future, combining the best of consumer travel and corporate travel technology to give travelers a smooth, reliable experience. Meanwhile their companies get better compliance and control.
What is your mission?
TravelPerk’s mission is to make business travellers happy while giving companies visibility and control.
What’s one thing you’re excited about right now?
I’m excited at how people are waking up to the fact that technology is a tool, not a strategy. Strategy is providing a tool people enjoy using, something that takes the hassle out of their lives, helps them do their job better. Being awake to technology, being ready to embrace it is of course important, but it’s not a strategy in itself.
What moment are you most proud of in your career?
About 10 years ago, I decided to leave my cushy Parisien job, the cafes, the foie gras and take my accent on tour to New Zealand. And at the time it was really strong because I barely knew any English. I wanted to make myself uncomfortable, and I’m glad I did because that’s the circumstance in which you really grow.
What’s one thing you wish you’d done differently?
I wish I’d understand the value of personal well-being earlier. I used to think that there were only two categories of people in the world: Hard-working, successful people with no time for themselves and sleep deprivation, and lazy, unsuccessful people who worked 9–5. I discovered that the highest functioning leaders take care of themselves. They sleep, eat healthy, and they have a strong support network of friends and family who they share time with regularly.
How do you encourage diversity within your company?
We hire for the best fit, both in terms of skill and cultural values. We do this indiscriminate of where you’re from. We then make sure we cast a wide net by giving our recruitment team a great relocation package to entice people from around the world. This has naturally created a diverse team — I think we’re over 30 nationalities at this point.
What do you see as the biggest challenge facing startup founders today?
Access to top talent. At the moment the rare resource is not capital and most markets are yet to be disrupted. What’s hard to find are the talents necessary around you to make it successful. Founders often overestimate the importance of the idea and under-estimate the value of operational excellence
What is one question you ask yourself before making a big business decision?
What’s Plan B? I subscribe to the Revolving Door concept. Basically, when assessing any risk you should always consider your exit if it turns out to be a flop. The higher the risk, the more prepared you should be for failure — have an exit strategy and if there isn’t one, consider a different route all together.
What is one piece of advice you’d give to other founders?
Results are more important than motion. A board member told me a while ago: “JC you are so busy that you forgot how to be exceptional.” This has stayed with me ever since. What matters is the impact you deliver not the rushing around being busy. We summarize it in writing on the walls of Travelperk : Impact over Effort.
The 2019 Startup Grind Europe Conference
The Startup Grind Europe Conference (June 6, 2019 in London) is the event for startups everywhere. #sgeurope provides an environment unlike anything else in Europe — where more than 3,000 entrepreneurs, partners, investors, thought leaders, and worldwide directors come together for one full day of dynamic networking events, meetings with investors, access to invaluable resources, and inspiration led by top CEOs and influencers and more. Join us to connect with the largest startup community in the world.
