Ep 62 INTERVIEW: Tiago Araújo, CEO & Co-Founder HiJiffy
Tiago fits the right profile of the entrepreneur: Clear goals when he finished the University, setting up his own company, to then steer and pivot to launch HiJiffy.
HiJiffy works now with over 1,400 hotels in over 30 countries, having closed a seed round of 1,000,000€ in Nov 2020.
During our conversation, Tiago talked about:
-His progression from the time he finished his studies
-The first project with the other co-founders ( Jose & Pedro), and the evolution from a chatbot within Facebook, to the current leading HiJiffy tool
-The growth achieved during the pandemic (+150%), as many hoteliers have understood the importance of inventing in technology.
-HIs passion on the Sales & Marketing field, creating a mindmap of the sales process, spending time with potential clients, understanding them: presenting ever growing solutions to the industry’s growing challenges
-His role as CEO, which includes getting involved in HR, fundraising, and reporting to investors, sharing the pulse of the industry
-The importance of distinguishing between the role of technology and the human touch. Talent needs to be put at the service of the client, not to work on repetitive tasks that tech can do.
-His view on how tech should get closer to Universities, so that students get to know what the market is offering, and can be better prepared to face the work environment, adding more value faster to their employers. Internships and junior roles are key here.
-The industry needs to get together, hotels and tech must work closer to develop better tools. And as always, advice for the young ones:
-Be flexible, adapt, pivot. Stay passionate and get involved with technology
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