Bill Powers Podcast Transcript
Bill Powers joins host Brian Thomas on The Digital Executive Podcast.
Welcome to Coruzant Technologies, Home of The Digital Executive Podcast.
Brian Thomas: Welcome to The Digital Executive. Today’s guest is Bill Powers. Bill Powers is the Founder and CEO of Cambridge Mobile Telematics, or CMT. Bill’s leadership has transformed CMT from a small MIT tech startup into the world’s largest telematics service provider, achieving unicorn status.
To date, CMT has measured and protected 40 million drivers and powers over 110 telematics programs globally. In December 2018, CMT announced a 500 million investment from the SoftBank Vision Fund, one of the largest tech investments in Massachusetts history. Bill has played a vital role in building and managing many successful organizations such as Swoop and Traffic.com.
As Executive Vice President of Sales at Traffic. com, Bill’s work led to the company’s IPO, its acquisition by Navtech, and sale to Nokia. Bill founded the Luke Vincent Powers Foundation in memory of his son, Luke. He serves as the Foundation’s President, which supports disadvantaged children. Bill also serves on the Best Buddies International Board of Directors, led by Anthony Shriver. Shriver also serves on the CMT Road Safety Advisory Board.
Well, good afternoon, Bill. Welcome to the show!
Bill Powers: Thanks, Brian. Thanks for having me really excited to chat with you!
Brian Thomas: Absolutely. I appreciate you making the time hailing out of that great city of Boston area, and I’m in Kansas city. So, we’re just an hour apart, easy podcast today.
So, Bill, let me just jump right into your first question here. You’ve led multiple successful organizations, including Swoop and Traffic. com. How did your experiences with these companies prepare you for building and scaling Cambridge mobile telematics or CMT to its current success?
Bill Powers: I’m a big believer in all experiences help form; I was much younger. We’ve been at – started 15 years ago. So, I just think the experience of dealing with different people, different customers, different circumstances as well as just experience in life allows you to because this is my first time being a CEO and all of those. Wonderful experiences, good and bad, help shape how you want to grow and how you’d like to see a company that you’re one of the stewards of evolving.
And so, I try to look at every experience as a Part of a learning curve, whether it was a good experience or a bad
Brian Thomas: experience. Thank you. And experiences certainly shape who we are, what we do and how successful or non-successful we are as we take on projects or, or lead companies in your case. So, I do appreciate that.
You’ve got some great experience behind you. Bill Cambridge mobile telematics has grown from a small MIT tech startup into the world’s largest telematics service provider under your leadership. What were some of the early challenges you faced and how did you guide CMT through them to achieve unicorn status?
Bill Powers: Well, that’s a great question, Brian. You know, I get this a lot through various interviews and platforms, and I think when you’re in the fog of war, you can either look at everything as a or some things as a challenge or opportunities. I have great partners. My partner, Hari Balakrishnan, and my partner, Sam Madden, we started the company together.
We never really looked at it as Oh my goodness, this is a challenge. How do we make payroll or what are we going to do for funding or how are we going to get customers? It was just us against the world and you just figure out ways to do it. And so, I look back at those times fondly. I’d love to be able to help younger entrepreneurs just starting out with some key decisions to make along the way that allow you maximum flexibility to avoid those potential challenges.
Brian Thomas: Thank you. You know, you talked about in your first question about experience, and of course, it goes a long way to have some great team behind you as well with your co-founders. But I really do love stories like this from, you know, your early beginnings onto being a CEO of a very successful and achieving unicorn status.
So, thank you again, Bill. CMT powers over 110 telematics programs globally serving more than 40 million drivers. Cheers. How does CMT adapt its technology to address different regulatory environments and road safety cultures worldwide?
Bill Powers: You’re hitting on a really key point there, Brian. So, every state in the United States has different regulatory rules and expectations, but when you go to different parts of the world, you’re actually solving for different scenarios, whether it be global infrastructure, roads in Eastern Europe are very different than roads perhaps in the Western part of the U.
S. Many countries around the world don’t require auto insurance, so you’re dealing with things that might be helpful to people other than auto insurance. So, family safety, roadside assistance, crash reconstruction. So, you have to be aware and humble yourself that the technology you have or your vision of the world Is not unilaterally acceptable in other parts of the world.
So, we like to say we are a global company that happens to be based in the U S but the key to understanding that different cultures are different experiences around the world as it relates to mobility is actually learn what those cultures are about, learn what’s happening, learn what’s driving, what are the rules, what are the regulations, what’s important to people
Brian Thomas: find the common themes.
Thank you. I appreciate that. And I know there’s a lot that goes into it. There are so many different types of experiences, cultures, needs in those country. And you’d mentioned some countries don’t even require automobile insurance. It’s very different everywhere. But again, adapting to those needs makes you successful in those markets.
So, I appreciate you sharing that. And Bill, last question of the day, looking back at your career trajectory, what key lessons have you learned about leadership and resilience that have been most valuable in growing and managing a large-scale technology company like CMT?
Bill Powers: How much time do you have? Um, so, oh my goodness, there’s so much to unpack there.
I would say that, you know, I’m definitely a type A. overachiever. I’ve got a high motor and a high cadence, but the older I’ve gotten and the more that I’ve watched the workforce change, watch technology change. I think the better I’ve gotten, quite frankly, I listen more, I understand more, I have other perspectives, more different views are helpful.
There are times when. You have to make a decision as a CEO, which are unpopular, but it’s still the right decision to make. And I often say. To our leadership team, sometimes doing the right thing is really hard, but it’s still the right thing. And that philosophy kind of encompasses really the way that I, I believe we should be working in today’s world.
You know, we have a very different world with. Many employees in a remote environment, which I think is incredibly healthy for the individual and the family. But I believe in a hybrid environment because I believe human connection and interaction is critical. But so is a healthy balance with your family, your friends, your loved ones.
Where being at a desk from eight to six every day, five days a week feels very inefficient to me. And then there’s downstream ripple effects because you’re, you’re minimizing the talent pool you could attract from whether it’s geographical or primary caregiver in the home. So, these are things that you just learn with experience over the years.
And these are things that you learn to grow and really listen to your employees as well as doing what’s best for the business just as a personal thing. I don’t think going into an office. There’s a lot in the news literally this week about some of the big tech companies bringing people back and I support their ability to do that or their desire to do that because I don’t know their business.
I just know for us. I believe you get the most out of employees with a hybrid work environment, and that’s just one area that we could talk about. But I also believe it’s far more efficient and healthier for the organization. I hope I answered that question, Brian, but that’s the 1 thing that kind of jumped out at me the beginning of your question.
Brian Thomas: Absolutely. You know, you did talk about your early part of your answer, how you’re resilient, you are a go getter, hard worker, right? And a lot of that is attributes to your success as an entrepreneur. But what really got me was the fact that you’re going to make that right decision, regardless, you’re doing the right thing.
Sometimes it’s, it’s a hard decision. It’s a hard choice, but you do listen, which is great. And employees, I know appreciate that. I’m sure your team’s very excited to be under your leadership. So, I appreciate that bill really do bill. It was such a pleasure having you on today and I look forward to speaking with you real soon.
Bill Powers: Thank you, Brian. All the best.
Brian Thomas: Bye for now.
Bill Powers Podcast Transcript. Listen to the audio on the guest’s podcast page.
