Andrey Khusid has been the founder and CEO of Miro since 2011. The company produces online whiteboards for visual collaboration, disrupting conventional whiteboards. Before Miro, Khusid was a graphic designer and ran a creative agency for seven years. He used his background knowledge in creative design to produce remote whiteboards as an online meeting tool. Today, Miro has attracted more than 20 million users from different countries worldwide. According to the INSIDER, Miro has five hubs, and Khusid oversees all their operations from his residence in Amsterdam. Below are ten interesting facts about him that you probably didn’t know about:
1. His father’s entrepreneurial skills and experience is behind his inspiration
In his interview with Accel’s Harry Nelis, Khusid recalls his father, who was an entrepreneur. He had a printing business with at least four employees. Thanks to his father’s business proximity to his home, Khalid would watch how his father managed every aspect of the process. He says that his father’s passion and dedication shaped his entrepreneurial goals.
2. Khusid’s Miro was initially branded RealtimeBoard
To Khusid, RealtimeBoard sounded more technical. It didn’t resonate with a wider audience, particularly the non-tech-savvy type. Together with his co-founding partner, they decided to re-brand it as Miro. He named it “Miro” after a renowned Spanish artist whose paintings came in different shapes with extremely conspicuous colors. Upon observing how closely related his boards were, he saw it fit to re-brand it as Miro. That way, users have an easier time pronouncing it and using their artistry skills using their whiteboards.
3. Khusid has a net worth of $725 million
To Khusid, disruptive technology is the only way to stay relevant in the ever-changing world. Whiteboards replaced chalky boards as meeting or conference tools. Today, digital whiteboards have replaced conventional whiteboards, explaining why Miro came to birth. According to Forbes, Khalid was worth $725 million. He began his Miro business by raising $75 million, promising investors that he’ll take it all digital along with its online collaboration product. By 2020, the company had doubled its employees to 1,000. With more than 20 million users from reputable companies like Dell, Cisco, and PepsiCo, Khalid believes the number will grow. It’s all due to the demand for digital whiteboards as a meeting tool of choice.
4. Khusid lives in Amsterdam, Netherlands
Khusid is a married man with a daughter, and they live in Amsterdam, Netherlands. He oversees all Miro’s five hubs from his office. His goal is to make online collaboration and brainstorming sessions more practical than conventional ones.
5. Khusid doesn’t view entrepreneurship in the light of making money alone
One time, Khusid approached an anonymous person for business advice. He got that making money should be every entrepreneur’s motivation. While every business’s goal is to make money, that can only apply if the entrepreneur is passionate about their success. In his interview with IDG Connect, Khusid says that it takes between seven and ten years to be a successful entrepreneur. To Khalid, ten years may seem like forever, but if you’re passionate and dedicated in what you do, then you won’t give up or feel worn out.
6. Before Miro, Khusid co-founded a creative agency
Before Miro, Khusid was partly in charge of graphic design and video production in his creative agency. He confesses that he was content with his CEO role, but he didn’t find it as fulfilling as tech. At the time, everything was conventional-based. Every meeting had to happen in-person and traditional whiteboards were the order of the day. The challenges he faced while navigating his business using conventional whiteboards triggered his digital brainstorming sessions. He saw it fit to use his background knowledge and talent in graphic design to invest in online whiteboards. The primary goal of these tools is to disrupt in-person whiteboard usage to virtual whiteboards to increase work productivity.
7. Khusid has recruited employees with different educational backgrounds
Miro may be having a robust IT background, but that doesn’t mean all employees must be tech-savvy. The company hires people with different educational and training backgrounds. The 1,000 employees include former teachers, nonprofit workers, civil servants, and journalists. To Khusid, having a passion for anything you do matters a lot, not what you’re trained to do. He also noted that technology users come from various backgrounds. So, it would be best to recruit employees with different educational backgrounds.
8. He views interpersonal skills as a great asset when recruiting employees
Staff recruitment is an important process that Khusid participates in. Applicants pass through three recruitment stages. He features on the last one. Besides skills and abilities, he focuses on four vital interpersonal skills:
- Great communication skills with teammates from around the globe to come up with user-friendly products
- Empathy- He likes it when his employees put themselves in their customers’ shoes. He believes in viewing the value of a product under their user’s lenses.
- The desire for curiosity- He confesses that his talent keeps evolving. He believes the best employees should be curious to learn new things and share ideas.
- Passion for learning about the functions of the business to promote interesting networking.
9. He’s one of Eric Yuan’s (Zoom’s Founder) biggest fan
According to Inside Intercom, Khusid thinks of Zoom’s founder (Eric Yuan) as brilliant and humble. Like most of his fans, Khusid is impressed by Yuan for creating wonderful products quickly.
10. He spends most of his time on LinkedIn
LinkedIn is an important place for Khusid. He likes to meet and chat with his potential and loyal clients there. Also, he likes to share informative pieces regarding the company and the visual collaboration market trends. His LinkedIn address is always open for everyone to access.
Verdict
As Khusid and other young inventors keep breaking the ceiling in the world of technology, we only hope others will follow suit. His zeal for success and passion for disruptive technology gives hope to budding entrepreneurs and creative minds out there.
