Optimize Your Improvement Work

Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in business development but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Greg Jacobson, CEO of KaiNexus, located in Austin, TX, USA.

What's your business, and who are your customers?

KaiNexus is a software platform that assists in managing and excelling in improvement and innovation programs. Often companies that are practicing Lean and Six Sigma are buried under spreadsheets, make-shift solutions, or homegrown systems that can't keep up. Our mission is to help organizations around the world spread and scale improvement. We have an expanding international customer base, including Fortune 100 companies known for being innovative leaders in healthcare, mining, and manufacturing, to name a few.

Tell us about yourself

I graduated from Washington University in St Louis in 1997 with a BS in Biology and attended Baylor College of Medicine from 1997 to 2001. From 2001 to 2004, I completed a residency in Emergency Medicine at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, where I stayed on as faculty.

During my residency, I frequently encountered processes that could be made better and was constantly frustrated by the unavailability of any kind of software program that I could use to track these ideas and see them through to improvement. The observations of operational inefficiencies and unrealized continuous improvement opportunities eventually led to the founding of KaiNexus.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

My biggest accomplishment as a business owner is seeing the impact KaiNexus has made on many people. Sure, we measure financial metrics and KPIs, but I'm most proud to see how KaiNexus is radically changing and improving people's lives at work in all different types of industries all over the world.

What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?

One thing that I struggle with is being fanatical with prioritizing my attention and ensuring I am always working on the most critical thing to meet our long-term goals.

What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?

The first tip is to be truly passionate about solving the problem your business is trying to solve. Make sure you really believe in and care about the work that you do. The second tip is to understand your customers' problems and needs. The best way to achieve this is to talk to them and always empathize with their frustrations. The third tip is to build a strong and clearly defined organizational culture. Culture provides a sense of belonging for employees, describes your company's internal and external identity, and impacts your employees' wellbeing and productivity.

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://www.kainexus.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/GregHJacobson
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregory-jacobson-9a4a6411/

If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.

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