Giving Back to the Community
Kutia is not an ordinary company—it's an organization with a desire to share its success to benefit the entire community. By starting Kutia X, the team wants to give back to society and encourage new startups to succeed.
Kutia is a Pristina-based software development company that strives for excellence and is dedicated to sharing its success with Kosovo’s entire startup community.
Faton Selishta and Arianit Fazliu started Kutia with a vision to provide the best possible software solution to their clients worldwide. We sat down with them to hear about what drives their work and their vision for the future.
Kutia has had a long journey since it was founded. What would you say is your most considerable success so far?
Aside from growth in people (from 2 in 2013 to 50+ in 2021) and expansion in geography and services, Kutia's most significant success is building its unique identity with a laser focus on two main pillars: people (employees & customers) and business. By integrating our specialists into business processes, we offer value with a unique delivery process based on agile methodologies and experience from hundreds of projects. Today, we have headquarters in Pristina and offices in Albania, the United States, and Sweden.
That is remarkable. However, there is always the opposite side of it—challenges. What was the biggest challenge for you developing a business in Kosovo?
Facing the global market in providing services and attraction & retention of talents is a challenge that most companies in Kosovo face every day. We're no exception. Doing business from Kosovo requires finding the right partners who will contribute to company growth.
Who supported you when you first started?
Starting a business is not a piece of cake. It takes commitment & support, not only by us but also from people directly related to our lives. Our families were a great source of motivation for both of us. We are always grateful for their understanding, support, and encouragement.
Families are crucial supporters of all young businesses. But, it's also necessary to include the community in the process. You have already made steps in that direction. What motivates you to give back to the community?
We believe we can make the world a better place by giving back and helping our community rise. We strongly believe that our job as entrepreneurs is not only to succeed business-wise. Our job is to make sure that everyone has access to education and work. Youth should have equal access to education and innovative technologies regardless of age, gender, nationality, or social status. This is why, for years, Kutia has been supporting several social programs and educational initiatives aiming to empower young people with IT knowledge and skills. Beetroot Academy Kosovo is our way of giving back to the community through scholarships, meetups, educational webinars, and internship programs.
You have also started Kutia X. What is your vision for this initiative?
Kutia X's vision is to become an Investment Company. This way, it will diversify its portfolio by developing new activities such as: investing in Startups, creating products, and expanding services in other industries. In addition to business services, Kutia X will also address the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
How can Swiss EP help you make your vision come true? What was the most significant help we provided you with so far?
Through its support so far, the Swiss EP has influenced us to think differently and focus on the things that matter. Therefore, we were hoping you could continue supporting us and other businesses in Kosovo. Bringing in individuals who have walked the same road we do now, you are helping us get through some stages of development more quickly and with greater ease.
We will certainly do our best to continue supporting you. What would be your message to entrepreneurs in Kosovo and the region — how can they set themselves up for success?
The most significant part of every big plan is the process. Sometimes, we get so caught up in the idea of success that we forget the importance of every small step on that road. As entrepreneurs, we should first dig deeper into ourselves, discovering what we want and what our mission, vision, and core values are. These are fundamentals, and they will unite us with our team members to articulate our unique voice and conduct work every day. Aside from our business goals, we should always give back! Our work should affect people's lives positively. Only when we believe that our work can impact other’s lives will we bring the best of ourselves!
Thank you very much for taking time to talk to us. We wish you a lot of success in the future!