It was a great pleasure to have Gotobus/TakeTours founder, Jimmy Chen, at our Eclub Feb 26th meet up to share his start up experience of building Gotobus/TakeTours.  GotoBus.com and TakeTours.com are dedicated online ticketing websites for inter-city bus services, tours and vacations. GotoBus is a NECINA sponsor.

At the meet up, Jimmy recommended a routine review process that would help a business discover potential issues and opportunities in a timely and organized manner.  The process can also keep employees updated on their performance and create a productive communication channel.

Jimmy also highlighted the needs and benefits of learning new skills, especially the sales and marketing skills, for a technical founder. It will help business owners not only understand and build a tight connection to the market and customers, but also evaluate the real talent in the field, hire wisely and keep up the work even if the talent no longer available.

As some members asked Jimmy how he managed to grow the business, Jimmy pointed out that “growing the size” was not his business goal. Instead, understanding the market and keeping up the competitive advantage were actually the drives behind his business’s growth. So, focusing on the market/competition and doing a better job is the key.

As a sole owner of the business, Jimmy also indicated that the business owner would have to make major business decisions solely, which could mean a lot of pressure. Having a different voice from the team would be very helpful.