Nasi Rwigema doesn't have a background in software, but that didn't stop him from building his tech platform: Umwuga, a social network for blue collar workers in South Africa. To his surprise, he found that figuring out what people want is much harder than learning about tech.
Nasi is one of Sophia's students from London Business School. He took her course three years ago, and used his knowledge, network and resilience to build his platform.
If you have an idea for a tech venture, as a founder or a corporate innovator, or you want to invest in tech businesses, but don't have a tech background, this episode is for you.
Learning notes from this episode:
It’s easy to put the tech sector on a pedestal, as we’re constantly bombarded with its power and profits. But “technology is just a tool to affect business outcomes,” says prop tech entrepreneur Sebastian Rivas.
Sebastian runs Andes STR, a which uses machine learning algorithms to find property investments for short term rentals. If you want to invest in a property and rent it out on Airbnb, Andes STR will find the investment and manage the rental.
Sebastian started his career in finance, and created a smart plan to break into tech. Listen to this episode to learn how he did it.
Learning notes from this episode:
Creating a successful business is a huge feat, but even founders with profitable exits struggle when they first break into tech. Bryan Clayton co-founded Greenpal, the Airbnb for lawn mowing, after he sold his first business. But, his first business was a landscaping company, which meant that even as an experienced entrepreneur, he was a newbie in tech.
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Andi Govindia has gone through three accelerators on her start-up journey. This helped her build a business model, find co-founders and get her first major clients.
Andi leads Riviter, a visual search company that uses AI to predict fashion and beauty trends, and counts L'Oreal amongst its clients.
If you’re interested in entrepreneurship and how non-technical founders can succeed in tech, this one is for you.
Learning notes from this episode:
Put on your party pants! In this episode, you'll hear from Julie Novack, the CEO & non-technical co-founder of PartySlate. PartySlate is a platform that connects event professionals to people planning events.
During the pandemic, PartySlate had to quickly reinvent its offering, but managed to end 2020 with no revenue loss. This is a great story in about resilience, leadership and giving users what they want.
Learning notes from this episode:
“The biggest lie told in tech is that you that you need to be a coder. I think that being able to understand the user experience behind tech, being able to articulate technology, and being able to get other people excited about it, is what you really need to run a good company,” says Jenny Griffiths MBE, founder of Snap Vision.
Jenny is the founder and CEO of Snap Vision, a visual search company that works with the biggest names in fashion and publishing.
She has been featured on the World's Top 50 Women in Tech by Forbes lists. She was appointed MBE for Services to Innovation in 2015, and in 2019 was awarded the Royal Academy of Engineering's Silver Medal for contributions to UK engineering.
Learning notes from this episode:
In this episode you'll hear from Beri Meric about how he built a global social platform as a non-technical founder. Beri began his career in banking, has an MBA from Harvard, and is drawn to big picture thinking rather than writing code.
IVY, a global content and community platform, attracts celebrity speakers, works with blue chip clients and has investor backing.
Beri shares how he went from idea to product, how he works with developers and the benefits of being a non-technical founder.
Learning notes from this episode:
Beri’s first hire was a designer, not a developer. He found her through via a recommendation. This is the best way to hire product talent.
Beri has never had a technical co-founder, like most of the successful non-technical founders we’ve had on TFNT.
Many people get put off starting work on their venture because they do not have a technical co-founder. We keep seeing that this does not have to get in your way.
Beri has...
Sophia Matveeva spoke to Jung Seok Kung (JS) founder of Aizen, a fintech company which uses AI to support decision making and manage risk for banks. JS is a non-technical founder, who now leads a company that processes 10,000+ algorithms in real time.
If you want to learn what AI is in practice and how it's changing business this episode is for you.
We cover how JS went from spotting a market opportunity to creating an algorithm using a spreadsheet, and the ups and downs of entrepreneurship.
Learning notes from this episode:
David Segura is a perfect example of how non-techies can thrive in technology. His first venture, Giant Media, was a native video advertising exchange which David sold for millions to an ad tech company backed by TPG & JMI in 2014. Since then David has invested in almost 50 startups, many of which have technology at their core.
In this interview, David talks about what he had to learn about tech as a non-technical founder, whether you need a co-founder and why learning to code is a waste of time.
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Robyn is the CEO & Founder of HER, the world’s largest brand for LGBTQ women & queer people. Their app is home to 5 million people across the world, with dating and community connections, and their events run in 15 cities, hosting 50,000 people per year.
She is also an alumna of Y Combinator, the prestigious Silicon Valley accelerator, and has raised $2.5 million from investors.
Despite Robyn's Silicon Valley successes, she is not a technical founder. Her background is in branding.
Listen to hear how Robyn:
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