Anji ISMAIL

Entrepreneur

I want to change the world.

Fab, Square, Qwiki, Twitter, Mailchimp, Capseo :-)

Frustrating :
days only have 26 hours... I mean 24 !

Rewarding :
clients saying that the service is great
employees saying the boss is great

In fact there are two N°1 mistake to me :
1. Focusing to much on the idea and not at all on the business model beside it
2. Mixing up friendship and associates

Execution is the key
Focus on satisfying clients
Make cash, then improve the product

Steve Jobs
he is a guru, a visionary, a tyrant.
everything he touches almost go into gold
he is both an engineer and a great salesman
moreover he is one of the best showman ever seen
he is one perfect team in one person

1. That being an entrepreneur is not being unemployed
2. That being an entrepreneur is a choice
3. That being an entrepreneur is not working without rules
4. That taking risk is cool
5. That not having holidays, high wage, 9 to 5 and the big package is a shame
6. That entrepreneurs are entrepreneurs to be early retired :-)

25. French. Entrepreneur.

I get a bachelor in International Business as I've always been opened to intercultural exchange and countries discovering etc. At first, I was interested in traditionnal business (real office, papers, real meetings etc.) but after an internship in charge of some newsletters, I discoverd how the web was powerfull, how it can bring much more than any other business model.

I've worked 2 years as a Sales Engineer in SaaS for HR company. I was mentored by the founder of Monster in France, so I really saw how Web technologies were moving every industries and changing the rules. Working in HR teach me also a lot about human being, professional behavior, demand and supply for handwork paradigm etc. Only the web can resolve that and crowdsourcing is the best way to do so, but this is another story.

I then went to a MSc in Information System development, where I met my actual associate. In that year, I met high level people from big companies, but also web entrepreneurs who gave me the passion I've today.

It's been one year and half that I'm running the company full time, and what can I say except that everyday is a new challenge, everyday we are building a new company. I've never seen something as much exciting as a startup !

Hobbies : Soccer, Snowboard, world cuisine, globe trotter

Funny facts : Top 50 "Sellers" France on Ebay at 16 :-)