Gen.T+
J.P. Morgan’s Private Bank’s Tomi Pierucci talks about the importance of having good mentors, trusted co-founders and keeping a business healthy with honesty in a closed-door discussion with Hong Kong’s young leaders
Tomi Pierucci, head of the International Tech Disruptors Vertical for J.P. Morgan's Private Bank, made his name on the global stage with a slew of innovative start-ups he co-founded.
Among them is Bluesmart, the world’s first smart suitcase company, and the first Latin American company to be part of Y Combinator which he eventually sold after scaling the business to $30 million in revenue. Yet, with that entrepreneurial pedigree, Pierucci isn’t waxing nostalgic about running start-ups. He’s extremely passionate about shepherding the next generation of disruptors.
Pierucci says, “My grandfather ran a company for 70 years but I never envisioned that for my life. I totally respect those who want to have a third or fourth-generation business. I’m fine with it. But it’s not what I wanted; I never wanted my kids to someday get involved in my business. As an entrepreneur, I simply saw an opportunity to provide a solution to a problem and decided I wanted to do something about it.”
Maintaining key relationships
Pierucci acts as a mentor for Endeavor and the Norrsken Foundation in addition to his advisor role at J.P. Morgan. This should come as little surprise, as mentorship was key to Pierucci’s success. In the mid-00s, it was a mentor that kickstarted Pierucci’s career by telling him to visit China. This was the trip that ignited Pierucci’s love of Hong Kong and Shanghai and allowed him to return to his hometown of Buenos Aires with “a business in my hand.”
Pierucci explains that while mentors can shift for different career stages, one constant should be that they are in sync with your values. “If you don't share the same values as your mentor, it’s very difficult to have an honest relationship with them. The mentor that I had during Bluesmart was literally as important as my co-founders because they were the ones helping navigate me to the best decisions and through the hardest moments.”
For Pierucci to place a mentor on the same pedestal as one’s co-founder means a great deal. When we ask him about the close relationship formed with anyone you start a business with, he compares it to a marriage, built on transparency and simpatico from the get-go.
Read more: Should you get a co-founder?
If you don’t share the same values as your mentor, it’s very difficult to have an honest relationship with them