Diana Daniels, CEO, and Founder, TinkerLink
Diana Daniels, CEO, and Founder, TinkerLink is originally from Mexico and migrated to the U.S. in the 90s. She completed a number of universities including Stanford where she is now the Chair of the Board in the Stanford Alumni Executive Program Foundation.
Podcast
Overview
How women have excelled in every field is no secret anymore. Our guest for today is a perfect example of the saying. She is a founder, CEO, Chair of the Board. Our host Frits Bussemaker, calls her a true global entrepreneur.
In this episode, we chat with Diana Daniels, CEO, and Founder, TinkerLink.This episode is about startups, entrepreneurship, role models, time management, motivation, and a lot more.
About Diana Daniels, CEO and Founder, TinkerLink
Diana Daniels, CEO, and Founder, TinkerLink is originally from Mexico and migrated to the U.S. in the 90s. She completed a number of universities including Stanford where she is now the Chair of the Board in the Stanford Alumni Executive Program Foundation.
She started to work in the telecommunications industry. She founded and is now CEO and the Chair of the Board of Cronos Group, a multinational telecom company. She is the Founder of Tinkerlink, which is a social marketplace helping communities to get jobs and get paid.
How do you manage so many things together?
It could be either I am a woman and we are so used to multi-tasking. Hence, for me, it has been easy to do several things at the same. But you can not do everything alone so you need a great team. My team is the support system that allows me to do many things. I enjoy the pieces of creating so I am always looking for projects that create impact. This gives me a lot of energy and allows me to grow.
What triggered the idea of starting your own company?
I have been in the telecom industry for many years now. I worked for different companies diligently and then in 2012, I decided that it was time to take my shot. It was not easy but I created Cronos.
The biggest challenge while starting your company or creating a startup is to get the right people in the team. “I am tired of the rigid system and want to start something of my own was the motivation. You need the freedom to grow but freedom does not mean less work.
What were the services you started to offer?
In our industry, the way of doing business and managing risks is more important. There were a lot of different risks that we were managing. This gave us an opportunity to start pivoting and doing innovation into other aspects. We started doing angel investing in several companies and creating small startups like TinkerLink.
What is TinkerLink?
Tinkerlink is a social marketplace helping communities to get jobs and get paid. Our referral-based app is aimed to help the unbanked, underserved community to be included in the mobile money revolution.
We have built a beautiful web and mobile app aimed to help its users to build a trustworthy network to contact experts or potential clients recommended by people you already know.
Thus, unlike other portals, TinkerLink is based on the trust generated from real recommendations by people you already know. TinkerLink is the perfect way to find a trustworthy person to help with your important tasks and, if you’re an expert, to build a good reputation through the referrals from people you’ve worked for in the past.
Role of Global Startup Program:
The goal is to select entrepreneurs that will impact the lives of billions of people. They select projects and startups that have potential and I am super proud that they saw that in our startup. Our aim is to include the informal economy in the labor market and it is 2 billion people.
How do you balance Cronos and TinkerLink?
I have a fantastic team. My Co-Founder at Cronos has been taking care of most of the day-to-day business. I am a part of the organization but in a less active role. This gives me the opportunity to bring innovation to the group.
Do you compartmentalize Entrepreneurship and Social Entrepreneurship?
We are a very cross-functional team and everybody likes working for the companies that have a bigger impact. We have a very healthy relationship between the two organizations.
What are your biggest learnings?
- Do not put all eggs in one basket. Diversification is important in everything. Your investments, your life, people, providers, vendors, work everything needs to be spread.
- It is very important to not burn any bridges. It is very crucial because in the future you do not know who is going to be on the other side of the table.
- The last one is there is nothing better than a smile. Learn to smile no matter how difficult the times are.
Are you a role model and for who?
More than a role model, I want to be an inspiration. I am always mesmerized by the female warriors in history that break the status quo and redefine it. I want to inspire middle-aged women to start their businesses or go after their dreams. I need them to realize that age is just a number.
How do you want people to remember you?
I want to be remembered as someone who can give back, share knowledge, and be an agent of inclusion.
