My Startup World spoke to Steve Currie, the General Manager of Taskgate, a new marketplace for business services in the UAE
What is Taskgate and when was it established?
The concept behind Taskgate was developed in 2015 with the company being registered in Q2 2016. Taskgate is a new marketplace that easily and cost-efficiently connects companies of all shapes and sizes to a pool of talented pre-qualified experts. The company was launched to provide short-term solutions to business needs.
Founded out of a desire to lead the way in changing attitudes toward work, and to balance productivity and flexibility in the workplace, Taskgate supports local and international businesses by offering recruitment and temporary staffing solutions in an efficient and professional way. The adoption of flexible workforces also enables the hugely untapped and underutilized pool of talent to offer their skills to employers, whilst managing their own work-life balance.
Who runs the company? What is the strength of the workforce?
I (Steve Currie) am the General Manager of the business. I am responsible for the day to day operations. We’re currently a boutique team, looking to grow over the coming months.
How was the company started? The initial days?
After several meetings with Al Tamimi Investments to discuss, at that point, a very rough idea, I joined the company as a Project Manager. I was tasked with carrying out feasibility studies and to develop the concept into something workable. We looked at what was available globally and regionally to see how we can offer something different or improved. We invested a lot of time into understanding who our customers will be, what their needs are and tailoring our services to meet that.
We are in the region where many companies are having to make cut backs and remaining competitive is tough. Luckily, we also have an abundance of under-utilised talent, and Taskgate is a way of bringing these two sides together in an easy and mutually beneficial way.
The idea of Taskgate came about when we identified a global shift towards flexible work and realised that it was time to look at a different approach to traditional recruitment. For example, today almost everything can be done online from anywhere around the world, which gives both businesses and professionals the option of working in a much smarter and more efficient way
What sort of funding went into creating Taskgate? Was it through external funding or was it bootstrapped?
Taskgate is an Al Tamimi Investments company and is one of the subsidiaries that sits within the ATI portfolio. Taskgate’s background in recruitment enables it to source experts for specialty projects in Marketing, Finance, Technology, Legal services, and Learning and Development.
What products and services does the company offer?
Taskgate was created out of a desire to lead the way in changing attitudes towards work and to balance productivity and flexibility. We’re a platform providing companies easy access to flexible resources for their businesses. We enable companies to obtain the skills and services they need, as and when they need them. It’s this flexibility that puts them back in control of their headcount management and their budget.
Who takes care of customer/tech support?
Currently, this is being done in-house but as we grow we will engage some of our own experts to provide the additional support needed.
Did you face any challenges when starting up? If yes, how did you overcome it?We faced a number of challenges but mostly things you would expect when setting up a business in Dubai. I think the key thing to take away from this experience is to have alternatives to any plan. We’ve been able to take a slightly different approach to things once we realised a certain idea or route was not going to work. Planning is key!
What are your plans for Taskgate for the next 2 years?
Our vision is to be a leading authority on flexible working. We want Taskgate to become the Number One choice for clients from all sectors looking for professional, flexible skills and services. As consumers we go online when we want to buy something. There is no reason why companies can’t also go online when they need additional support for their businesses. We plan to be the platform for this to happen and we’ll continuously develop our capabilities to facilitate this.
Which markets do you currently cater to?
We support companies who need help within the Marketing, Finance, Technology, Learning & Development and Legal services sectors. Any support service a company may need, where they don’t want to hire directly, we can provide. However, we focus on the more specialist tasks where our professional experts can add real value.
What advice do you have for budding entrepreneurs in the region?
Understand how your product or service is going to make a difference. Listen to people, don’t take criticism personally and remember you can’t do everything yourself. Stick to what you’re good at and call in help for areas where you’re not so strong.
If you learnt one thing from starting up a company, what would that be?
Resilience.
