Best of Bootstrapping: Ukrainian Entrepreneur Bootstrapped to Global Scale

If you haven’t already, please study our Bootstrapping Course and Investor Introductions page. 

This is a fascinating story from 2016 of a Ukrainian entrepreneur bootstrapping her CRM Software company to global scale. We’re thrilled to bring you Creatio (formerly BPMOnline) Founder CEO Katherine Kostereva’s inspiring and super intelligent entrepreneurial journey.

Sramana Mitra: Let’s get going. Where are you from? Where were you born and raised? Let’s go to the very beginning of your personal journey.

Katherine Kostereva: I was born in Ukraine. Since childhood, I’ve been traveling a lot and visited many countries worldwide. I graduated in 1999 with a Bachelors in Computer Science. Shortly after that, I got my MBA. Even from high school, I was obsessed with technology. I was thinking of the ways to transform business through technology. Technology has always attracted me.

>>>

Featured Videos

Cloud Stocks: Analysis of Qualys’s Blue Hexagon Acquisition

According to a recent report, the global cloud security market is projected to grow at 18% CAGR from $29.26 billion in 2021 to reach $106.02 billion by 2029. Cloud services security provider Qualys (Nasdaq: QLYS) recently announced its stellar quarter results.

Thought Leaders in Cyber Security: IRONSCALES CEO Eyal Benishti (Part 2)

Sramana Mitra: We’ve talked about the who. What happens in the what? I’m doing this manually. I don’t have a big system like yours protecting me. I do have enough experience to know that this doesn’t make sense. I check the email address. Then I check the offer, eyeball, and pass. What are the heuristics of the what?

Eyal Benishti: Just to be clear, with AI, ML, and the new way of doing things, humans will always be part of the solution. With a solution like IRONSCALES, AI can do 99% of the job. It can do very impressive things when it comes to prediction and predicting things that it has never seen before.

Video FAQs

Best of Bootstrapping: Bootstrapped and Managed a Successful Pivot

If you haven’t already, please study our Bootstrapping Course and Investor Introductions page. 

Oomnitza Co-founder CEO Arthur Lozinski talks about an excellent pivot that is quite enlightening.

Sramana Mitra: Let’s start at the beginning of your journey. Where are you from? Where were you born and raised? What kind of background did you have?

Arthur Lozinski: Both my parents were from the Soviet Union. I was born in the Soviet Union in a country called Latvia. It was in 1989 right before the wall fell. Both my parents grew up in the Soviet Union. There is a quote by Napoleon Bonaparte that says, “If you want to understand a man, you have to understand where he was in his 20s.” My parents grew up in communist Russia and my upbringing was influenced by that. Education was really important. I grew up in Germany. My parents emigrated to Germany when I was a small child and then we moved to the Silicon Valley just before high school.

>>>

Cloud Stocks: Analysis of Bill.com’s Acquisition

Bill.com (NYSE:BILL), a leading cloud-based provider of financial services for SMBs, recently announced its first quarter results. Despite the current economic conditions, Bill.com had a very rosy outlook for the second quarter, exceeding market’s expectations.

Thought Leaders in Cyber Security: IRONSCALES CEO Eyal Benishti (Part 1)

We all understand Phishing. Eyal has built a fast-growth company addressing this ubiquitous nuisance.

Sramana Mitra: Tell us about yourself and IRONSCALES.

Eyal Benishti: I’m the Founder and CEO of IRONSCALES. We mitigate the risk of email phishing that businesses face today. We offer simplicity and speed for accelerated visibility for all types of phishing attacks especially those that get past traditional security. We are the fastest-growing email security today. We know how to harness the power of the cloud.

Thursday, November 17 – 596th 1Mby1M Mentoring Roundtable for Entrepreneurs

Entrepreneurs are invited to the 596th FREE online 1Mby1M Mentoring Roundtable on Thursday, November 17, 2022, at 8 a.m. PST/11 a.m. EST/5 p.m. CET/9:30 p.m. India IST.

If you are a serious entrepreneur, register to “pitch” and sell your business idea. You’ll receive straightforward feedback, advice on next steps, and answers to any of your questions. Others can register to “attend” to watch, learn, and interact through the online chat.

You can learn more here and REGISTER TO PITCH OR ATTEND HERE. Register and you will receive the recording by email, even if you are unable to attend. Please share with any entrepreneurs in your circle who may be interested. All are welcome!

Best of Bootstrapping: Following the Bootstrap First, Raise Money Later Strategy

If you haven’t already, please study our Bootstrapping Course and Investor Introductions page. 

“My journey was as unexceptional as you can imagine,” says Rukkus Founder CEO Manick Bhan, in describing how he got to $1 million annual revenue rate in transactions before raising financing. He shared the whole story with me in 2021. Rukkus was acquired in 2018.

Sramana Mitra: Let’s start by going back to your very beginnings. I want to hear about where you were born, raised, and in what kind of background.

Manick Bhan: Both my parents come from Kashmir. They raised me in Baltimore, Maryland. That’s where I was born. I’ve grown up mostly in the United States. In the very early days, I liked to take things apart. When I was nine, they bought me this bicycle. The first thing I did was I opened the whole thing up. I took out all the screws and basically dismantled the beautiful bike. They were a little horrified about it because it was a birthday present. This has been pretty constant in my life. I like to take things apart and figure out how they work.

>>>