Today we’d like to introduce you to Mike Kinder.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
Veryable was formed in May 2016 when my co-founder, Noah Labhart, and I decided to team up and take the Veryable model to market. From our prior roles in industry and consulting, Noah and I had both directly dealt with the inefficiencies of the manufacturing labor market and the inherent productivity challenges that manufacturers face due to constraints on labor capacity. We wanted to take our vision of the future to market — a vision where a marketplace connects businesses to pools of workers to enable highly flexible and agile labor practices. In our view, this creates a win-win for both businesses and workers. Businesses have access to “infinite flexible capacity” while workers have the option to choose where, how much, and when to work. After officially launching the Veryable model in our Dallas-Fort Worth pilot market in early 2017, we have over 2,000 workers in the marketplace that serve over a hundred local businesses. Not only are our workers getting access to hundreds of different opportunities to make money each day, our businesses users are reaping great productivity benefits while being in position, having access to capacity at the click of a button, to take more orders and grow their top line.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
I think you’re always going to encounter challenges any time you’re driving to drive meaningful change in the market. This is especially profound when you’re dealing with mature industries like manufacturing and logistics. All players in our marketplace are used to a status quo that has been unchanged for the last 70 years — full-time jobs, set hours, shift schedules, finite capacity. Our on-demand labor model throws out the old paradigm so adopting an on-demand model requires a change in mentality and process. The main challenge then is more of an educational process: teaching and coaching our users, helping them progress through the platform, advising on process changes, etc. That said, we do expect this challenge to subside over time as we build scale and enter additional geographic markets. After all, did you learn how to use Uber from a tutorial video or in-person consultation or were there some heavy tailwinds behind the Uber model and you had an idea for how it worked before you even signed up? We expect a similar pattern to emerge behind the Veryable model.
We’d love to hear more about your business.
Our mission is to revitalize the manufacturing and logistics sectors with a new labor model: an on-demand marketplace built on a sharing economy model for skilled blue collar labor. The “pooled labor” approach provides businesses with access to infinite, flexible capacity in real time, allowing them to grow revenue and eliminate the cost to scale. At the same time, it gives any skilled worker continuous access to income. We are committed to transforming an antiquated and inefficient labor market into one that puts more people to work and eliminates constraints and unnecessary burdens on businesses. What we’re most proud of is that this new paradigm is a win-win for everyone. We are sick of seeing people displaced and out of work due to plant closures when there are other work opportunities right there at their fingertips. We want U.S. manufacturers to transcend the competitive pressures of globalization and have a new way to grow their businesses in a cost-efficient manner.
What were you like growing up?
I think my mother would agree that I was generally a good kid growing up. Like most boys, I got into my fair share of trouble but I was always a good student with a great group of close friends. My interests always revolved mostly around sports and work and that continued throughout my teenage years. Throughout high school I worked at a restaurant nearly 40 hours of week while playing varsity sports and being active in student groups. Most of my friends would probably say I’m the work hard, play hard type. I appreciate having a sense of humor and celebrating success. At the same time, I know when it’s time to put on a pot of coffee and get to work.
Contact Info:
- Address: 2019 N Lamar St.,
Suite 250,
Dallas, TX 75202 - Website: www.veryableops.com
- Phone: (214) 530-2336
- Email: howdy@veryableops.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/veryablework/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/veryableops
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/veryableops
- Other: https://www.facebook.com/veryablework/
Portrait of young woman in protective glasses in the factory
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