Conversations With Changemakers: Julian Owusu

Julian Owusu was born and educated in the UK but has West African roots, which deepened when he returned to Ghana to play for Eleven Wise. Founder of Zuberi, a fintech offering loans to government workers, Owusu now leads his new company, BUILD, which creates tech products for startups worldwide via a regular monthly subscription, or they’ll build an MVP for $15,000 in twelve weeks.

Shara Karasic: You were a former professional footballer (soccer player, for the Americans) before you become involved in tech. What are lessons you can apply to tech from football? 

Julian Owusu: Football taught me so much from a leadership perspective - I've spent almost all my life on a team, so over the years I've been in the mix with teams that have won and lost. Transferring lessons learnt into my business made me realize how invaluable my football experiences were. I actually see my tech team as though they're a high performing sports team on a mission to win and overcome various challenges. 

How did you first get interested in tech?

My interest in tech started as a child whilst I was gaming with friends and family -- I always used to wonder how they made the games work and how the designers could make the characters in the game look so real (well I thought they looked real at the time). So when I started planning to retire from football, I knew I was going to get into the tech field in some way or another. I couldn't really see myself doing anything else. I had to do something with technology & media. 

How did BUILD get its start? How's it going?

We started BUILD early last year, after I decided it was time for us to make a big pivot. My previous startup, Zuberi, which was a digital bank for government workers in Ghana, was built with a community-led approach. We'd always been known for building in public and also for being good at creating solid products. I looked into where tech is going in the future, and realized that the next billion-dollar business will be a community-led product. Zuberi had 15,000 customers and 90% of them used our product more than four times per month until we ran into some regulatory issues. But that experience made us realize that the right way to was to focus on niche communities and solve problems for them. 

At BUILD we build products for select companies, and this year we've decided to build for fifteen companies via a subscription service. So far there are six subscribed and we're already a profitable business. So BUILD is doing very well, thanks. 

What are you working on now?

We're currently working on two AI-led SaaS products which are being built for large niche communities, where we've spotted they need help. One of those communities is church-based and the other is for the beauty industry. So we're building products for very different industries which is great! 

What's your product philosophy? How do you bring an idea to life?

We believe in taking time to understand people who are part of large niche communities and solve problems for them - to bring an idea to life, we do a lot of product discovery using various techniques depending on the situation so that we can get feedback very early and very quickly. There are times where we'll create a high fidelity prototype that works just as though you're experiencing a real app, and get it into the hands of multiple people early before we've written a line of code. 

What are the biggest challenges in working in tech and entrepreneurship in West Africa?

I've experienced firsthand how regulatory challenges can slow down innovation, so I would say that's one of the biggest challenges. The good thing is that the regulatory agencies do communicate with you a lot. However, I think the regulatory requirements could be modernized to fit the current landscape. 

What are the biggest opportunities in working in tech and entrepreneurship in West Africa?

In terms of opportunities, well there's more than you can imagine - I think when you look at everything that's wrong in every area of life in Africa, you'll find an opportunity to build something great. I actually have more ideas based off problems I've seen - the issue is I don't have enough time to work on them!

What advice would you give to people wanting to break into the West African market?

I would say if you don't live in Africa, come on a few trips to experience the culture firsthand. Then when you're ready, put together a group of like-minded people who understand various aspects of the market, and you all start working together as early as possible. 

You grew up in the UK. How do you compare the tech/innovation scenes in Ghana vs the UK? What are some notable cultural differences?

I think in the UK, things move faster because the infrastructure has already been built. However, I think Ghana, and Africa in general, has a much larger opportunity in terms of disruption. I've managed and led teams both in the UK and Ghana, and I would say from a leadership perspective you need to understand that if you're building a team in Ghana, you need to pay attention to the culture much more. For example, when you're leading in Ghana, you need to take into consideration more than if a team member is okay at the office - you also need to ensure that your team member is okay outside of the office. I would say 20% of your leadership will be spent on ensuring your best teammates are comfortable in their non-work life. So it's just a different type of way to lead.

What's a favorite book and piece of music and why?

One of my favorite books over the past couple of years is The Almanack of Naval Ravikant. In terms of how the world works today in the context of technology, that book can help us think more innovatively and position our lives in the best way. I'm currently listening to a lot of house music at the moment, different types including gospel house music and also Jamiroquai. He's one of my favorite artists ever -- his music helps me to keep focused when I'm doing deep work. 

What's a must-do while visiting Accra?

You need to go to Bojo Beach for relaxation, and to Bistro 22 or Kozo for some great food. And you need to spend a lot of time with locals because they're amazing and you will learn so much about life from them.