Today’s guest on the “Phil with Forbes 30” podcast is Alyona Tkachenko – Founder & CEO of Nommi

-- Forbes List: Asia

-- Year: 2019

-- Category: Consumer Technology

Alyona Tkachenko is the founder and CEO of a hardware-as-a-service startup, Nommi, that focuses on providing a global secure infrastructure for remote workers, a mobile WiFi hotspot that runs on eSIM that works at home or remotely.

Nommi is one of the most successfully crowdsourced projects in Kazakhstan, raising $142,000 from it’s campaign on Indiegogo and followed with a $435,000 seed round. They recently signed corporate agreements with PWC and Mars.

She has 9+ years of experience in marketing and is originally from Kazakhstan. She’s also leading the largest STEM initiative in the country called “Hour of Code” as a part of her social responsibility effort.

In this episode, Alyona shares their incredible story:

• The culture of Kazakhstan and the Sasha Baron Cohen's “Borat” movie.
•  The reason to visit Kazakhstan with untouched and diverse nature; it’s close to Malaysia and in spirit to New Zealand and Australia.
• Both Kazakhstan and the company embraced the changes that need to be made in the new COVID-19 remote workforce reality.
• Her love of science fiction at an early age and liking math and physics. Her desire to do “something” on a global scale.
• After working in large Corporations, she moved to the start-up area with a technical cofounder.
• The company started with crowd funding and aimed for the largest market – the USA.
• Alyona’s previous global vision started with co-founding Hour of Code. The program grew from 80,000 students to now serving 400,000 students in every school in Kazakhstan.
• Personal philosophy - To tell everyone that you're going to do something and then you should do it.
• Mentors – people including a partner who thinks differently from her. Proctor & Gamble manager who taught her about being in the customer’s shoes and building relationships.
• Alyona expands on the different relationships with B2C and B2B customers.
• She expands how Nommi technology works and how it serves customers.
• She shares the behind the scenes start-up creativity of buying foreign SIM cards and using airline attendants who inadvertently became company sales reps.
• Future goals – the New York and California markets.

“Under 30 Seconds Round”

1. What is the book you’ve gifted more often than any other book, and why?

-- Surely you’re joking, Mr. Feynman! by Richard P. Feynman

-- The Innovators by Walter Isaacson

2. What’s one of the best investments and one of the worst investments you’ve ever made and why?

a. Best-All investments in people are always the best ones

b. Worst-Worrying about the future, because the future is totally different from what you expect it to be.

3. What’s your guilty pleasure or favorite cheat meal?

-- On the guilty pleasures, it’s stargazing and skygazing. I can waste a lot of time doing this.

4. Pretend you won the Peter Thiel Fellowship and you were going to get money to start a business instead of going to college, what’s the very first thing you’d do to start a new business?

-- Find a partner

5. What’s something you never knew you needed?

-- Nommi

In the REVIEW SECTION, please let me know…

1. The city / country you’re tuning in from!
2. How Alyona’s story has inspired you! And, your favorite part of this episode!
3. Tell me the questions you’d like me to ask future Forbes 30 Under 30 Members!

GUEST INFO: Alyona Tkachenko – Founder & CEO of Nommi

CONTACT: on instagram @all.ona42

WEBSITE: https://nommi.net/

COUPON CODE DISCOUNT for audience 20% OFF with CODE “PhilWithForbes30”

HOST INFO: Phil Michaels

SOCIAL MEDIA: @iamphilmichaels

YOUTUBE: www.youtube.com/philmichaels

PODCAST WEBSITE: www.philwithforbes30.com

PHIL’s WEBSITE: www.iamphilmichaels.com

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