Autobiographical essay

I came to the United States of America to realize my dream: the creation of a transnational corporation which, through utilization of mass-production techniques, would become the world leader in the market of custom software development. By this time, I had already devoted six years to solving the problem of mass production in custom software development. There were accomplishments during this period. For one thing, I created and tested a business-model for the company I had in mind, as well as a methodology on which the work of the company, with its subdivisions and franchises, would be based. Inspired by the knowledge that my attempt was pioneering, I nourished the hope that success in my plan would actually revolutionize custom software development.

I was born and raised in Minsk, the capital of Belarus. As a child, teachers and friends—and even my parents—noticed my “differentness.” Their observation was, no doubt, well-founded. First of all, I was unbelievably opinionated. No way could I be talked into altering my views, which were always contrary to established attitudes; even compromise was out of the question. Secondly, I had no interest in spending time with people of my age. In fact, I don’t remember ever in the course of 11 years of school hanging out with them at a youth club or discotheque. Instead, I found sustenance in books, chess, the piano, sports, and professional photography. I socialized with people who were much older than I. They taught me a lot.

There was yet another “trait” of mine that seemed strange to others: my obsession with modeling. I saw models everywhere—in how my school functions or the corner pharmacy operates, for example. Imagining a model for something, I then played “scenario-creating” by asking myself “what would happen if…,” in an attempt to construct a new, more perfect model. What will happen, let’s say, if the size of the tires on all buses is changed—what will follow? Or, what about the school from which one of three floors vanishes, how will this impact classes? By the way, I spent an enormous amount of time trying to solve such abstract problems while riding a bus to optional, and costly, after-school classes in far-flung locations. Gradually, in the course of thinking about scenarios, I developed the habit of “sketching in the air” a model and “asking questions,” which, not surprisingly, frightened more than a few fellow passengers.

While still in high school I witnessed what was a first for my city and country: an international IT exhibition featuring the American companies Apple and IBM, among others. Their technology so impressed me that I became “IT-obsessed.” I also yearned to create something entirely new. Toward this goal, I began an intensive study of programming and the architecture of computers, attending optional classes when available. It was then that I came up with a unique idea—the establishment of a computer club.

I graduated from high school in 1992, a time of shocking chaos caused by the collapse of the Soviet Union. The Institute of Management, where I began studying after high school, underwent a radical re-organization, such that I could not continue there without outside financial support. My formal education came to a halt.

But I remained active then, organizing my very first business at the age of sixteen. This was a computer club, which I named “The MK-88 Users’ Club.” We developed utility software, built and sold computers, conducted training courses, and even published our own electronic newspaper (this in pre-Internet days), the first copy of which I still have in my possession. While the Club was not a serious business undertaking (it was really an interest-connected group), it was, nevertheless, the first of its kind and succeeded in gaining outstanding popularity over the course of a few years. Even long after its closing, I continued to receive enthusiastic letters and phone calls from both clients and non-clients in areas of the Former Soviet Union.

In 1996, the Club attracted the attention of Belpromwest—at that time one of the country’s biggest corporations—and I was offered a job with them. For me, this represented an opportunity to move up, so I accepted the offer. I began work in their IT division, initially as a programmer, but eventually rose to division head. The three years I spent with this company turned out to be of inestimable significance for me, since I was able to observe the operations of a corporation “from the inside.” And I am very grateful for this experience. I left Belpromwest because I was ready to create my own business.

The franchising dream dates back to 1996, and I have been obsessed with it ever since. It was then that McDonald’s opened its first outlet in Belarus. Seeing once how the workers did their job and, momentarily, imagining the whole business-model for a network of restaurants, their business processes, as well as who makes the money, how and with what, I understood that I wanted to repeat their success in the field of IT. The idea of McDonald’s—the idea of a simple, well-defined and repeatable business construct—was so in harmony with my life philosophy that after my initial visit I made frequent trips there to observe how the restaurant functioned, trying to understand what improvements I might make in their work as well as which of their goals I might use in my own business. The franchising idea so fascinated me that even with the establishment of two computer centers, in 1998 and 1999 respectively, I was trying more to create a “repeatable structure” than a “business.”

The technical center BelComputerService, which began operating in 1998, was my first attempt at realizing the idea of IT-franchising. In order to win over the market, I devised a unique business model. As with our competitors, we solved problems with computers, but we did much more by immediately offering clients continuing servicing, which consisted of the following. Each client was given an engineer who helped eliminate computer difficulties, instructed staff members, and was on “round-the-clock” call for solving questions by telephone or at the business premises of the client. In addition, the service specialist made periodic office visits which he himself planned. What was truly exceptional was the service charge: $5 (US) a month per computer. The opportunity to receive a vast array of services for so little was an offer that clients could not refuse. Not surprisingly, their numbers grew exponentially. And we were not trying to deceive anybody. By providing servicing at a cost that was 10 times cheaper than our competitors, we were seeking a different goal. Visits to clients—both planned and emergency—provided us the chance to collect information about their IT infrastructure. This we sought. And such information, which indeed flowed into our office daily, was analyzed and served as the basis for the expensive, individualized solutions we offered clients: local area networks (LAN), training, and software implementation. So, our relations with clients were clearly beneficial to everyone. In short time, we started receiving huge orders, putting the company “in the black.” Today, ten years after its founding, BelComputerService is one the best-known technical centers in Belarus.

In my attempt to make the business model I had been working with truly repeatable, in 1999 I organized the second technical center, Ansiko. My task, as I saw it, was to make Ansiko operative without my direct participation and on the basis of a model which, in the case of BelComputerService, had proven workable. Unfortunately, the plan to create a repeatable business turned out to be not doable. Within the confines of a single company the model was eminently successful: everybody understood the company philosophy, why we worked “not like others.” But as soon as the model began to be applied to another company, it ceased to work. I organized branches, experimented with different personnel, management techniques, and everything I considered needed, but all to no avail. Without a center coordinating the work of the branches, the model was ineffective. Expenditures on synchronizing the actions and approaches of an entire chain of technical centers turned out to be so great that by 2000 I had come to the conclusion that the model for IT-franchising in the area of technical servicing was too complex. I therefore began to seek a solution in other areas of information technology.

Internet access came to our country in 1999. With interest I observed the birth of a new industry—custom web development, the rapid take-off of e-commerce, and the formation and subsequent bursting, in 2000, of the “dot-com” bubble. Around then I understood that custom software development, which did not have the limitations characteristic of the technical-services market, was significantly more in tune with my idea for IT-franchising, so I began working in this direction.

In March 2000, I began studies at the Belarusian State University of Informatics and Radioelectronics in Minsk. Initially, I took courses in C++ (120 hours) as a non-matriculated student; then, in September 2000, I enrolled full-time. I graduated “with distinction”, having majored in program engineering.

I launched my second attempt at realizing the idea of IT-franchising by studying the professional approaches to software development, including Microsoft Solutions Framework (MSF) and Rational Unified Process (RUP), trying to imagine how it would be possible to apply them to the organizing of mass production of custom software. The topic seemed so appealing that it consumed me completely for several months. And then a solution came to me. I thought up a work scheme which would make feasible the churning out of custom software development. I saw how it would be possible to achieve conveyer-belt production of projects that would be completely unique, yet based on the business needs and demands of the clients. Such a work scheme would make possible the practically unlimited turning out of projects, without necessitating a proportionate increase in the work force, or sacrificing quality, and with attention paid to deadlines and budgetary considerations. And, with practically 95% client satisfaction.

Fully understanding how such a declaration would provoke a smile from any specialist I, nevertheless, affirm that a solution does exist. But this solution is to be found on a completely different plane, and not in the creation of “the very best staff” or installation of “the most state-of-the-art technology.”

The idea I came up with seemed simple and ingenious. But it was only an idea: converting it into a working model for a business would necessitate major efforts. I faced thousands of tasks, the solution of which required money. So, in 2001, I sold my business and began devoting myself totally to the project of creating a model that in the future could serve as the foundation of IT-franchising.

Gradually, my theories and practices attracted the attention of specialists. In 2004, I was deeply honored by an offer I received from the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus to consult their software development team.

By the beginning of 2005, the business model which I had envisioned as the foundation for the functioning of an IT-corporation had taken on a clearer outline. Being a realist, fully aware that the market is constantly changing and that all ideas have to be put to the test, I founded a new company, which I named Studio Ansiko (n.b. not to be confused with above-mentioned Ansiko Technical Center). Its goal was to function on the basis of the model I had created in order to test the effectiveness of my concepts and ideas on projects that were real, not merely “on paper”.

The results achieved by Studio Ansiko over the following eight months surpassed all my expectations. By the middle of 2006 we had: completed 86 projects for the country’s most renowned companies; an office in the most prestigious location in Minsk; and a reputation as the most professional organization in the field. But it was not this which excited my imagination. Rather, it was the fact that after ten years of striving, I had come up with a real, proven, and very effective model of IT-franchising.

Nevertheless, the time came when I felt that is was necessary for me to move on. Sure, I had a big success on my hands, but this was not really my ultimate goal. Studio Ansiko, which was originally conceived as an experimental model, had turned into a rapidly growing business—the number of clients increased at an unbelievable rate, and the volume of orders rose. The time was ripe to make a decision. My choices now? Continue carrying on a business that was already functioning in Belarus, or bring the project to total fruition by attempting to create IT-franchising, first in the United States, then throughout the world. The second of these choices would entail not only a voluntary withdrawal from my business in Belarus, but my moving to the United States, where I would have to start from scratch. Learning English, getting an American education, establishing ties, and acquiring experience in conducting business in the United States were all things of a basic nature that would be, nevertheless, indispensable for the realization of this project. While the decision I made at the end of April 2006 was a very difficult one, it was necessary.

In August 2006, Studio Ansiko ceased functioning in Belarus. Not long thereafter, in December 2006, I received a visa for the United States.

I decided to begin my business career in the United States by building a strong foundation, that is, by acquiring, first the Bachelor’s Degree, and then the Master of Business Administration at Columbia University. Despite certain achievements in IT and excellent experience, I am well-aware of the fact that my education remains incomplete. Why, one might ask, Columbia?

First of all, I consider myself a nontraditional student since I interrupted my education in order to work. And Columbia University’s School of General Studies is geared precisely to this category of adults. Secondly, as the “International University in an International City,” this Ivy League institution is a perfect fit for my plan to create a transnational IT-corporation. Through interaction with professors, students and business people from all over the world, I shall be well-positioned to learn about their cultures, including the workings and needs of the different economies. Thirdly, since the School of General Studies draws people who already have significant experience in the business world, I would be in the right place for finding a competent future business partner, never an easy task and yet so important to my aspirations.

I can see vividly my future corporation, my “IT-Starbucks.” While entertaining no illusions about the challenges ahead of me at Columbia and beyond, I am also totally determined to satisfy my thirst for knowledge and to prove myself worthy of this great university—in the tradition of my compatriot, the wonderful science-fiction writer Isaac Asimov, who graduated from the School of General Studies in 1939.