What led you to start your own business?

TaskUs was created in 2008 as a virtual personal assistant company to address a problem I had experienced firsthand while working on Wall Street. Ultimately, we realized we could reach a lot more scale, affect the lives of a lot more people, provide more jobs, and help more companies by focusing on businesses rather than just the consumer.

BRYCE MADDOCK, 29

TaskUs, international outsourcing company headquartered in Santa Monica

Employees: 5,200 full-time employees

Financials: $53.7 million revenue in 2015

Where did you get the startup money?

My business partner Jaspar Weir and I took no outside funding. We had money saved up from a weekly pop-up nightclub series we’d run for three summers during our college years. It took the very last of our $25,000 in savings to start TaskUs. It was bootstrapped until mid-2015.

What’s been the biggest challenge so far?  

We face considerable challenges on a daily basis: managing a large overseas workforce, navigating international law and regulation, and being responsible for an increasing number of employees and scaling operations quickly.

What’s the most important lesson you’ve learned?

I learn something new every day. A failed business does not necessarily mean you have failed.

How many hours a day do you put in?  

I put my whole into everything. I love what I do and I love the people I work with, so the many hours I put in doesn’t feel like work to me.

Has your youth led to any awkward situations, such as when you supervise employees who are older than you?  

No. We take a lot of care in hiring the right people for the job, and I always ensure we’ve built a mutual amount of respect by the time they start working with us. We’re all learning from each other in the ever-changing landscape.  

Would you start another company?

While I’ve never lost my entrepreneurial spirit and I never think I will, I’m not planning on stopping my work with TaskUs.

Could you ever work for someone else?

I’ve been an entrepreneur for so long, I’d say, maybe Jaspar.

What do you do to unwind?

I am an avid triathlon athlete and marathon runner. Training is really the best way for me to unwind.

— Sandro Monetti