Incorporated in 2019, LinkedCar Company is a brainchild endeavor by Founder and CEO Mario Schraepen, an Innovative Entrepreneur & Salesforce fanatic, focused on introducing innovation in the automobile industry
Mario Schraepen, a customer-dedicated and enthusiastic business manager with 15 years CRM experience in multiple European organizations and in different industries, is often described as a successful and versatile leader. He is passionate about providing insights to clients and is an avid follower of the latest tech trends and techniques. During his 27 years professional journey, Mario Schraepen has held multiple positions at various organizations.
Mario Schraepen is a visionary business leader with self-belief, a positive mindset, a how to make things work attitude, an admirable work ethic. For him, the definition of success is having a self-sufficient team that makes his role redundant and financial freedom. Presently, his vision has meant something, for his employees and for the whole world. He wants to leave a legacy, a movement…
The Inception Story
Like most ideas, the one for LinkedCar started with frustration. Once, Mario Schraepen was driving his lease car and couldn’t remember whether he had winter tires in his contract. He wondered “Why isn’t there ‘one’ centralized app that bundles all information from his car, insurance, maintenance, etc.” And from that idea, LinkedCar was born.
Diversifying the Organization’s Offerings
LinkedCar’s main USP comes from who owns the data and the possibilities that are given to use that data. Their vision is to give the data back to the driver and let them decide which data they want to share and with whom. This motivates the consumer and enables ALL ecosystem partners (insurance, car dealers, fuel card companies, leasing, fleet, etc.) to create new business and financial models, innovations and increased customer loyalty, finally making both them and the consumer win.
The Challenges & Accomplishments
You don’t start a company if there’s no challenge. No challenge in business means no reason for existence. And those who think they have the situation under control are not entrepreneurs. Of course, you need to control the uncertainties related to the challenge, not the challenge itself. When you think you have everything under control, there must be something wrong! Try to be flexible, try to give confidence, by setting the playing field and letting everyone think along. You need the challenge to be successful.
Mario’s start-up was in the wrong sector at the wrong time. He learned what resilience really means in times of Corona- the automotive industry took a great hit during the pandemic. For Linked Car, this made the signed contracts disappear right in front of them. But instead of giving up, they have reinvented themselves! They worked on their story and found partners like KdG University who could take their solution to the next level. Looking back on this difficult time it not only made the team stronger,COVID-19 also pointed to many shortcomings in the systems currently used in mobility. This once again emphasized the need for an innovation like LinkedCar.
Unique Leadership Principles
- Complexity is the killer of creativity. Try to simplify as many things as possible.
- Give freedom to your team. People need the freedom to do their job and to grow.
- Quality is of the highest importance. A good idea is what gets you noticed but the quality is what builds your reputation.
- Give room for mistakes. Nobody is perfect and everybody can grow. Allowing mistakes to happen and seeing them as opportunities to learn is what makes a team stronger.
The Biggest Professional Failures & Learnings
When asked about his biggest professional failures, Mario Schraepen shared, “There was a time when I would fix the mistakes my team made instead of letting them learn from them. Over time the quality they delivered went down because they knew I would correct anything anyway. I learned that giving responsibility also means letting people take responsibility for their mistakes. Many people want to learn, you just need to let them.”
“Hire for passion! The start-up world is very different from the corporate world. Not everyone is made to work in a start-up. Some people need defined roles and processes, and that’s okay. But don’t assume everybody is right for a start-up. Experience in a big fancy corporate environment isn’t always the best choice for your first hires”, he further added.
New Ideas in the Pipeline
Mario is in favor of employee shares, unfortunately, they live in a country (Belgium) that makes it fiscally impossible to achieve this today. Yet he continues to believe that this is the ideal way to make employees feel involved. It becomes their business, and if their hard work makes it successful, they should be rewarded for it too.
Mario’s Leadership Style & Skills
Mario Schraepen comes out with the wildest ideas, he is brutally honest, but at the same time makes sure there is a pleasant group spirit. He gives people opportunities and trust, but they have to prove themselves. They also blame him for working way too much and for working on too many projects at once. He calls those challenges.
The Primary Characteristic of a Leader
Listening! Many people can talk, but only a few can truly listen. Listen to your team’s goals, their passions, and their concerns. Often people leave organizations not because they don’t like the job, but because they are not heard. If somebody leaves your company and you didn’t see it coming, you weren’t listening.
ENVISIONING THE FUTURE
Mario and his team aim to connect the entire mobility ecosystem and become the “Robin Hood” for mobility data!
LinkedCar’s smart IoT device, which can read vehicle data in real-time, will hit the market early next year, enabling any vehicle to be connected. Not only cars but also e-bikes, scooters, motors, etc. This makes it possible for every consumer to offer his vehicle data to other parties (e.g., insurance for cheaper policies)
Linked Car will roll out this device worldwide and guarantee the democratization of vehicle data.
The Best Advice Recently Received
“This is never going to work! That sentence drives me crazy, but it does encourage me to keep going. It gives me the energy to make my product better and my story clearer.” – Mario Schraepen
