088: What the Hell is a Water Entrepreneur? Find out with Trevor Hill of FATHOM Water.
Background on Trevor Hill of Fathom Water:
Trevor Hill is Chairman & CEO of FATHOM Water. Prior to that, he co-founded Algonquin Water Resources of America in 2003, a division of the Algonquin Power Income Fund, of which he served as Director of Operations from 2000 to 2003. In 1994, Mr. Hill co-founded Hill, Murray & Associates, a design-build firm specializing in the construction and operation of water reclamation facilities in British Columbia and the Canadian Arctic.
Mr. Hill retired from the Canadian Navy in 1994, after serving as an engineering officer and receiving the Gulf Kuwait Medal for his service in the 1991 Gulf War. Mr. Hill graduated from Royal Roads Military College with a degree in Mechanical Engineering in 1987. He attended the Royal Naval Engineering College in Plymouth, England and completed his post-graduate studies in 1988.
Time-Stamped Show Notes:
- [3:54] Trevor was in the navy operating the latest and most modern water equipments, which got him into the water technology business.
- [7:00] In the navy, Trevor had the opportunity to become an Engineering Officer of the ship. He regards this moment as a valuable learning experience in his life.
- [12:03] After the military, Trevor started his water business and he took the most challenging and complicated jobs that most companies would not accept.
- [15:50] He suggests to new entrepreneurs to keep your overheads as low as possible. Trevor started his consulting business in his garage with a few of his navy friends.
- [19:59] Trevor learned about the downside of business regarding personal guarantees and liabilities. This experience has taught him a lot when structuring his business.
- [25:50] He joined a Wealth Creation program where he learned about Sustainable Competitive Advantages. This program taught him that in order to succeed in business, you should have three things – Better, Faster, & Cheaper.
- [27:22] Trevor explains more about Sustainable Competitive Advantages and how the principle of Better, Faster, and Cheaper can create wealth for you.
- [31:27] Trevor used the lessons he learned about Sustainable Competitive Advantage (Better, Faster, Cheaper) and applied it to his next business venture, which is a utility company.
- [35:01] Trevor learned his second lesson, which is – “Wealth is created through equity and transactions, you have to own equity and you have to do a lot of transactions to create value in the equity you hold.”
- [36:44] He wrote a new business plan that modernizes utilities through automation and new technologies. Trevor believed that he is designing new utilities that could help the environment by using less water.
- [42:24] Trevor believes that creating a big company cannot be done by just one man. You need the help of investors and a lot of people who are knowledgeable about the business.
- [45:19] Trevor regards going public as the most challenging thing he has done in his career.
- [48:50] It is very important for Trevor to get the brightest people with the best talent as early as possible.
- [49:29] His primary role in his company today is Evangelize, Recruit, and Align.
Fabulous 4 Questions:
- 📖📚 Favorite Book(s)? Never Split the Difference by Chris Voss
- 🙌😎 Favorite Amazon.com purchase? I bought a Grand Piano off of Ebay 🙂
- 🌱💸 Favorite Tool that's GROWN your Business? Birthing of Giants
- 💭💡 BIGGEST Challenge keeping your Business from GROWING? Talent – it always comes down to people.
Key Point from the Interview:
- “I didn’t appreciate that wealth could be created. I thought the mission was to get through high school and go to university, get a job and earn a salary, and try to improve that salary overtime. I never understood the difference between what is commonly talked about in school, which is that path versus being self employed and creating wealth, or even generation of wealth for yourself and your family. I think there was a huge difference between the two and I wasn’t aware of that until I was 35.”
Resources Mentioned:
- Email: [email protected]
- Trevor Hill on Twitter (not often used…)
- Crunchbase | Trevor Hill & FATHOM
- YouTube Interview with Trevor Hill
