Daniel Tonkopi of Delfast: Five Things You Need To Be A Highly Effective Leader During Uncertain &…

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Daniel Tonkopi of Delfast: Five Things You Need To Be A Highly Effective Leader During Uncertain & Turbulent Times

Be number one. If you want to beat competitors in the market, you should simply be better than them. We created e-bikes and established the Guinness World Record for the longest distance traveled on a single charge. Tier-1 media wrote about our e-bikes and said: “Ebike from Ukraine goes farther than Tesla 3.” This is how we fight with competitors — we’re creating better products.

As part of our series about the “Five Things You Need To Be A Highly Effective Leader During Turbulent Times”, we had the pleasure of interviewing Daniel Tonkopi.

Daniel Tonkopi is the founder & CEO of Delfast Inc. He is a serial entrepreneur with more than 20 years of successful business experience. He founded Delfast in 2014 in Ukraine to transform the future of transportation and combat climate change with smart e-bikes, and has since grown the company into a disruptive global e-bike leader receiving numerous awards.

Thank you so much for your time! I know that you are a very busy person. Our readers would love to “get to know you” a bit better. Can you tell us a bit about your ‘backstory’ and how you got started?

It has been said that our mistakes can be our greatest teachers. Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?

I created a sort of “OpenTable for Ukraine” dining reservation system. We had two developers, two sales managers, a designer, and myself as the project’s general manager. We spent sleepless nights building the system, which was as complicated as OpenTable. After six months of development, we realized that Ukrainian restaurants didn’t want to buy this service. People simply don’t book tables in Ukraine like they do in the US — they just come and sit, rarely booking a table. My lesson was, “Always start with sales, not building the product.” Now, I first find out if someone actually needs the product, and then I start the development.

None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story?

I grew up in Almaty, Kazakhstan. Almaty is a beautiful city with high rocky mountains around it. Because of the mountains, there is almost no wind in the city, and all the smog stays over the people’s heads for decades. Also, my father was a professor of Ecology. He wrote over 400 books about ecological problems in Kazakhstan. So I became a second-generation environmentalist and founded an e-bike company committed to only producing EVs with no air emissions and no negative impact on the environment.

Extensive research suggests that “purpose-driven businesses” are more successful in many areas. When your organization started, what was its vision, what was its purpose?

Delfast was originally created as a one-hour delivery service on electric bicycles. All of our couriers are bike riders by definition. Our company supports cycling, sports, a healthy lifestyle, green energy, and zero-emission vehicles — it’s all in our DNA. Only people who share the same values will join our company. We realized our e-bikes had the potential to transform the future of transportation with their exceptional range, power and speed and could be used for both city and off-road use.

Thank you for all that. Let’s now turn to the main focus of our discussion. Can you share with our readers a story from your own experience about how you lead your team during uncertain or difficult times?

The COVID lockdown started in March 2020. People began to save money. An e-bike is not a basic necessity, and our sales volume crashed three times less than in February. We met with the team via Zoom, and I told them that we only had enough money left for one month’s salary and we needed to think about what to do. The team suggested we could launch financing plans for our bikes, make a spring sale, and launch new models on the market. They said, “Either we launch new models now, or we may never launch anything.” And it worked — our sales in April became ten times higher than in March, or three times better than the previous good month, February.

Did you ever consider giving up? Where did you get the motivation to continue through your challenges? What sustains your drive?

One day I rode an e-bike to the office in Kyiv, and it began to snow. I fell off the bike three times during that trip and broke my knee. I had surgery a few days after and they removed a meniscus. I asked myself, “Why didn’t you quit? Why did you continue to do this even after breaking a knee?” And I answered to myself, “Because I love it. Because this is my passion and something that I want to do.” When you do what you love, you’re less likely to quit.

I’m an author and I believe that books have the power to change lives. Do you have a book in your life that impacted you and inspired you to be an effective leader? Can you share a story?

I have learned from so many books, but if I had to choose just one, then it has to be “The Lord of the Rings.” I read it when I was 17 and learned so much. I learned from Gandalf about how to be a great leader. Frodo taught me how to carry on and not give up in the face of a superior enemy. I also learned about being a great team member, working towards a common goal, and much, much more.

What would you say is the most critical role of a leader during challenging times?

A leader is a captain; he will fight until the end and be the last to leave a sinking ship (or go down with it). Until the crisis is gone, a leader should keep going and keep fighting. This is the only way he can lead his team. 2022 has presented its challenges with Russia invading our home country of Ukraine. As the captain of this ship, I have led the company through this crisis and am proud that we have not only navigated through the turbulent waters but have continued to innovate and grow the company by introducing our new California e-bike.

When the future seems so uncertain, what is the best way to boost morale? What can a leader do to inspire, motivate and engage their team?

Create a small miracle. I collected $3.4M in Ukraine when nobody believed it was possible. But then, about 300 Ukrainians invested $10K each in our project. It was a unique story for Ukraine — nobody had done anything similar before us. Until then, it had seemed impossible.

Everything in our life was at one point believed to be impossible. Make a small miracle, prove that the impossible is possible, and people will believe you and follow you.

What is the best way to communicate difficult news to one’s team and customers?

A leader should be straightforward and honest. This is always the best strategy. One of our e-bike parties was delivered to customers, and then we realized there were issues with the motors getting overheated in certain conditions. We could have just been silent about it, but we chose to communicate with clients and make replacements for the motors. It was expensive, but at the end of the day, it paid with the loyalty of our customers. Honesty is always the best policy, it’s a long-term asset. It’s also important to remember that communication is a two-way street and when dealing with difficult situations to ensure that you are also listening to the concerns of your team and/or customers. Listening is an important factor in communicating effectively.

How can a leader make plans when the future is so unpredictable?

If a leader is a captain, then a business is a ship. There is always a goal, and the team leader should bring the boat to the destination port. There are always storms and wind, but you should know how to adapt to these unpredicted changeable conditions. So there are two rules:

Stick to the goals.

Be flexible to changes on the way to your goal.

Is there a “number one principle” that can help guide a company through the ups and downs of turbulent times?

The number one principle is “Follow the wind.”

When we started to sell e-bikes five years ago, we realized that many people (couriers, police officers, rangers, etc.) needed e-bikes with a high range. So we created the e-bike with the highest range in the world and established the Guinness World Record for the longest distance traveled on a single charge. Our e-bike Delfast Top is not only the best in terms of range, but also with its maximum speed of 50 mph.

A year ago, we moved our headquarters from Kyiv to Los Angeles. Here in California, we realized that most riders don’t need a huge range and high speed. They told us to create a lighter bike which would be suitable both for men and women. So we created a new e-bike model and called it Delfast California. It was created based on customers’ needs and wishes. This is the main market rule: “follow the wind, follow your customer.”

Can you share someof the most common mistakes you have seen other businesses make during difficult times? What should one keep in mind to avoid that?

Mistake #1 is not having Plans B, C, and D. A leader should always be prepared for changes.

When Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, our office continued to work despite constant shelling and bombing. 75 percent of our team was in Ukraine, but Delfast continued to work even during wartime. Of course, we took care of our people and made sure they were in a safe place, and then we tripled our sales volume compared to the previous year.

Mistake #2 is not listening to clients.

I thought it would be a good idea to offer a one-hour delivery service of documents (contracts, invoices, etc.) for online stores. I launched it, but then nobody ordered it. This was my mistake — not listening to our customers and instead assuming to know what they wanted. Our clients informed us that one-hour delivery is not always needed, and four-hour delivery would be good enough. So we listened to them and implemented a 4-hour delivery service. It worked, giving us an additional 150 percent increase in sales and became our primary service. Businesses should always listen to their customers.

Here is the primary question of our discussion. Based on your experience and success, what are the five most important things a business leader should do to lead effectively during uncertain and turbulent times? Please share a story or an example for each.

#1. Be number one. If you want to beat competitors in the market, you should simply be better than them. We created e-bikes and established the Guinness World Record for the longest distance traveled on a single charge. Tier-1 media wrote about our e-bikes and said: “Ebike from Ukraine goes farther than Tesla 3.” This is how we fight with competitors — we’re creating better products.

#2. Rule of 99 percent. I raised $3.4M in a Delfast crowdfunding campaign. When I spoke to investors and tried to persuade them to invest, 99 percent of them told me “no,” and only one percent said “yes.” The same rule is everywhere: 99 percent of potential clients won’t buy. 99 percent of developments and experiments won’t work. Be prepared to fail 99 percent of the time.

#3. Focus. In 2019 we had seven different e-bike models (a long-range e-bike, a fast e-bike, three-wheeled, off-road, an affordable e-bike, etc.) An investor looked at these models and asked us: “What is your main model?” We couldn’t answer. Then we realized that 80 percent of sales volume comes from one model. And we understood that we couldn’t afford to have seven different models with seven sets of spare parts, seven different target audiences, and seven different advertising campaigns. So we cut six out of seven models and focused on one bestselling model… and it helped. We could now concentrate on one product and one target audience.

#4. Make small steps. Use checklists and everyday routines. When I go to a gym, I must exercise regularly. Four days a week, 1-hour practice with a slight weight increase every week. When I do these steps every time, without exceptions, there is no way I can’t see the results in a few months. The same rule works everywhere: in business, art, sport, or anywhere else. Small steps bring you closer to victory with the certainty of clockwork.

#5. Never give up. Never ever give up. Don’t listen to people who will tell you that you will fail. Don’t listen to yourself when you want to quit. Concentrate on small steps and keep walking. Don’t give up.

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?

Bernard Shaw said, “Life isn’t about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself.”

This is true. You don’t find yourself; you create yourself. I can’t afford to wait until I find a better life for myself or not. I should proactively do and build my own life and my business and achieve my goals. I can’t just find myself “rich and healthy” one day; it doesn’t work that way. I should design and build myself to come to these goals. I should plan, do, learn, do again, and then my goals will be materialized.

Thank you so much for sharing these important insights. We wish you continued success and good health!


Daniel Tonkopi of Delfast: Five Things You Need To Be A Highly Effective Leader During Uncertain &… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.