Business Interview – Clear Sky Communications with John Groot

Today we’d like to introduce a new interview series to introduce our Canadian Chamber of Commerce in Taiwan business members to the general community.

If you’d like to interview with us for our business interview series, please email us at info@cancham.tw with the subject line “CCCT Business Interview”.

To kick off this series, we have an interview for you with Mr. John Groot, owner of Clear Sky Communications based in Taipei.

CCCT: Thanks for joining us today, John. Can you tell us a little about yourself?John Groot

I used to be a journalist back in Canada. I’ve been working here in Taiwan as a trainer for 14 years. Last year I finished a project where I walked around the entire coastline of Taiwan.

CCCT: Can you tell us a little about your business?

We’re a small training and consulting company, a bit of a boutique business. We do customized programs that include business English training for teams with a specific purpose, like marketing teams, IT teams, sales teams etc., as well as some more interesting programs like cross-cultural communication. We also do writing and editing work, like technical editing, online articles, and also some curriculum design.

CCCT: How did you get started with Clear Sky Communications?

Well, I had been working as a freelancer for a while, and had a chance to do a big project for a major ICT brand. But I needed to issue them an official tax receipt, so we incorporated. After that, things just snowballed.

CCCT: Can you describe your customers?

They’re a pretty diverse group. I’ve worked for many of the biggest ICT brands, some less well known Taiwanese tech firms, big pharma companies, and lots of individuals. I’ve had some private clients who were newly arrived business people who wanted to get a cultural orientation to Taiwan. I’ve done training for the Canadian Trade Office in Taipei’s trade assistants. I guess the common thread is that they all have an international focus.

CCCT: Would you mind answering how you set your business up here in Taiwan?

I set up the business with my wife, as it was the easiest way to do it.

CCCT: Where do you see your business in the next year? In the next five years? In the next ten years?

Over the next 2-4 years we hope to become one of the top customized training companies in Taiwan. Our plan is NOT to hire more employees, expand, and compete for market share with established players, but rather to follow the small team approach and go for higher-level training opportunities.

CCCT: Is there anything about your company that you feel makes it special? Clear Sky Communications Taipei

We really take the time to get to know what senior managers want, what HR wants, and what the trainees want. Then when we deliver the program, it is almost always very close to what everyone actually needs. If it isn’t, we can correct course very quickly. This is actually rarer in the training business than you might think.

We can do all this because the trainer, the training program designer, and the contact window are one person, myself. So I can get to know everyone and don’t operate at a distance from decision makers or end users. I think this helps us deliver a special level of customized service.

CCCT: Thanks, John. We look forward to seeing you out at a CCCT event some day soon! Good luck!

Business Links

http://www.clearskycommunications.tw/

https://www.facebook.com/clearskycommunications

If you’d like to interview with us for our business interview series, please email us at info@cancham.tw with the subject line “CCCT Business Interview”.

Event Recap: Working in the Entertainment Industry in Taiwan

Event Recap: Friday, 15th January 8-10pm at DV8 Pub

We had a great event a few Fridays ago at DV8: excellent speakers and solid support from our hosts Gary O’Connor and Stephen Hepples, as well as the entire DV8 staff. Thanks also to Chef Jason for the good food!

Our first speaker was Elias Ek, founder of B2B sales and marketing firm Enspyre. Elias talked about the Foreign Entrepreneur’s Workshop on January 28th, in cooperation with the City of Taipei Department of Economic Development.

The workshop (there was an earlier one on November 30) will provide a space for foreign entrepreneurs to share their frustrations with local government officials, in the interest of reforming government policy over time. In addition, expat small business people can also learn how to apply for grants and subsidies to start or grow their businesses.

Then we had three speakers who presented on the ins and outs of being an expat entertainment worker in Taiwan:

First, we had Mr. Brook Hall, Managing Artistic Director at The Lab Space. Brook gave the packed room a run down on his long career in Taiwan. He said it took him years and years to get comfortably established, and encouraged anyone interested in acting to contact him to get more info on how The Lab Space can help them. The LAB Space on Facebook.

Contact Brook
Email:bfly.efx@gmail.com
Tel:  02-28985382

Second, we had Mr. Daniel T, of the Foreign Students Club. Daniel spoke mainly about being a model and actor in Taiwan, and gave useful tips about working with agencies. If you are interested in modeling or the Foreign Students Club (which aims to help foreign students have the best possible experience in Taiwan) you can contact Daniel through the FSIT Facebook page.

Last but not least, DJ Marcus Aurelius described his journey as a DJ (plus writer, actor etc.) in Taiwan. Among several great take-aways was this: Don’t burn your bridges! He said that he had previously had issues with Frog in a Sock, but now they are working together in harmony. Take the long-term view and grow positive relationships!

After his speech, Marcus went on to DJ for the rest of the evening, laying down some great tunes for the convivial after-party. Want to contact Marcus? Find DJ Marcus Aurelius on Facebook or email him at DJMarcusA@gmail.com.

Stay tuned for more fun and useful events by the CCCT Small Business Committee!

Photographer: Josh Yang – Visit the CCCT Small Business Network Facebook album for event photos.