636: What It’s Like Being the COO of Tech Startup Fixt With Steve Taylor, Fixt [Main T4C Episode]

Steve Taylor is the Chief Operating Officer (COO) for the tech startup Fixt based in Baltimore, Maryland. Fixt is an on-demand tech repair platform geared more towards businesses and corporations than the private consumer.  It sends technicians to your location to repair, replace or setup devices or systems. Prior to joining Fixt in 2019, Steve was a general manager for the ridesharing giant Lyft, heading up the business operations across New York state and the Mid-Atlantic, one of the company’s largest and most complex regions. From 2010 to 2015, Steve worked as a management consultant for PRTM and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) and in 2012 he co-founded the angel investment group District Ventures to support new tech startups. Steve graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis and served in the US military for nine years as an aviator.  WHAT YOU’LL LEARN ABOUT IN THIS EPISODE: What is Fixt and where it is in the startup process (5:15) How COVID-19 has impacted Fixt (7:07) What Steve’s responsibilities are as the COO (8:56) Why it’s important to find a level of comfort with ambiguity (14:16) What a “typical” day is like as a COO for Fixt, the difference between working on the business versus working in the business, and his philosophy of the “joy of missing out” (17:03) Why you should admit your weaknesses instead of faking it (22:24) How Steve has handled imposter syndrome (23:58) Advice for those in the military looking to transfer to the private sector (35:56) What Steve learned from being fired, including reading The Alchemist, finding mentors and networking (39:03) What Steve would tell his college self now, including keeping in-touch with his peers and taking more risks (45:12)