A story on starting a company without 99% of knowledge and resources

1. Building Something
out of Nothing
A story on starting a company without
99% of knowledge and resources.
@edolopez
Co-founder @icalialabs

2. First of all...

3. Who am I?
● Technical background on the software industry.
● Co-founder & CEO @icalialabs.
● Co-founder & Advisor @codeandomexico.
● Creator of the Socialware program.
● Professor of CS at PrepaTEC CSC.
● Worked at IBM, Infosys (India), startups, etc.

4. A product development and design firm focused on Web
and Mobile consumer products.

5. Before...

7. * 2+ years operating.
* 15+ team members.
* 30+ built products.
* 50% of current portfolio
are US clients.

8. ...a story on starting a company without 99% of
knowledge and resources:
● How to literally start? Why are we starting this?
● How to achieve objectives and vision constantly?
● How to build culture and share it between team
members?
● How to do sales in a proper way?
● How to retain clients?
● How to expand internationally? Why do we want that?
● How to grow without investment?
● How to maintain quality + good time2market +
affordable prices for our clients?

9. Being a first-time entrepreneur
without money and without a huge
network available is a struggle.

10. 8 lessons learned from a
true story and a struggle

11. 1. Starting with almost
nothing is hard but helps
to build long-term
companies.

13. Reality
“The common rule of thumb is that of 10 start-ups,
only three or four fail completely. Another three or
four return the original investment, and one or two
produce substantial returns.”
The Wall Street Journay. The Venture Capital Secret: 3 Out of 4 Start-Ups Fail
http://online.wsj.
com/article/SB10000872396390443720204578004980476429190.html

14. ● Starting with almost nothing means: No
funding, no grants, no credits.
● You need to validate how and why you are
adding value in this world.
● The way to sustain a company relies on
value rather than funding.
● There’s no backup, so you will be trying to
close new deals, partnerships, and growing
based on real demands from the market.
● Remember: Sacrifice.

15. 2. Focus of the founders
is a key factor.

16. ● Not all people founding a company are able
to grow it.
● Be close to the team, guide with the
example.
● You are everything but the boss.
● Focus in only one project. Putting efforts in
multiple projects doesn’t work.

17. 3. Do the things right and
with passion; people will
talk about you.

19. ● Our first clients were people trusting us: Old
jobs, friends, friends of friends.
● Word of mouth could be your biggest
distribution channel.
● The more activities in your field you are
involved outside your daily work, the more
passion it is recognized.

20. 4. There are certain
things you can’t exclude
at all.

22. 3 things
1. Accounting.
2. Legal.
3. Finances.
Recognize the value of their services.
Recognize the value of operate legally.

23. 5. Be humble and find a
refugee.

24. Your Family

25. Advisors & Mentors

26. 6. Shape your mission,
achieve your vision.

27. ● Attitude is one of the main reasons you can
advance. For instance, US clients.
● Getting into new frontiers and achieving
objectives is more about attitude than
anything.
● You need to seek the opportunities.

28. 7. The first 10 employees
determine the culture of
the company.

29. Culture & Hiring

30. ● The biggest asset in a technology (services)
company is the people.
● Continuous Recruitment is a must: you need
to find the best people always.
● Have a behavioral and core values interview.
● Periodically assessments & interviews, both
technical and cultural.
● It is better to have a strict procedure for
hiring rather than firing people.
● Retention relies on the culture you have.

31. A team, a family

32. 8. Don’t forget about
yourself.

34. Conclusion

35. You need to build a company once or be part of a small and
risky project to really understand the path of
entrepreneurship.

37. Thanks :]
Questions?
@edolopez - edolopez@icalialabs.com
Co-founder @icalialabs