Success stories behind tech’s top founders: Blockaviation

David Burke, Director, Hays Technology Ireland

 

We recently launched a brand-new technology series, exploring the career stories behind some of the world’s most exciting tech founders. Each month, I will host a live event, speaking to different tech founders and disruptors to find out how they: got to where they are today, arrived at their business concept, and secured investment to build their business.
 
How one tech founder identified a niche for their start-up
To kick off the series, I spoke to John Roberts, CEO and Co-founder of Blockaviation – the organisation behind the world's first Global Registry for aircraft records.
 
John shared some fascinating insights about his personal journey, and the growth of his business during our conversation.  
 
 
Or if you’re interested in a particular element of the discussion, you can skip to find the answers to the following questions by using these timestamps:
  • Can you tell us about your career up until now? 03:00
  • What made you decide to take the route of being a tech founder, rather than working for a technology organisation and working your way up to the top? 07:48
  • Where did you get the idea for your business, and what inspired you to start the company? 10:40
  • What exactly is the problem your business addresses? 13:00
  • Is it important to experience working at a start-up before creating your own business? 14:30
  • Do you need to have a business mindset in order to be a tech founder? 16:20
  • Can you tell us about how you secured investment, and how important this step was to the future of your organisation? 19:30
  • Is it important to have a thick skin, and be able to take criticism in order to build a stronger business? 25:15
  • What are your personal objectives for the next period? What do you want to learn about yourself and develop in order to grow your business? 26:20
  • What are the key technical and soft sills required to be a successful tech founder? 27:25
  • What is your #1 piece of advice for someone looking to start their own tech business? 31:20
  • What are your key values, both as an individual and as a company? 32:23
  • What motivates you in your day-to-day work? 33:55
  • What do you enjoy most about running your own business? 36:25
  • What has been the toughest challenge about running your own business? 38:20
  • What is your proudest moment in this chapter of your career? 41:00

Want to hear more from successful entrepreneurs? Watch more events in our Tech Founders series here.

 

Author

David Burke
Director, Hays Technology Ireland

David Burke leads the Hays Technology & James Harvard businesses in Ireland. He has worked supporting start-ups, scale-up and enterprise organisations in the technology industry in Ireland for almost two decades. He is also a co-founder of Dublin Tech Talks, one of Irelands leading tech meet-up communities.

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