Jeremie Amsellem of Fenrir.pro.
Tell us about yourself?
I am Jeremie Amsellem, I graduated from Epitech Paris in 2017 and have always been curious about computer science. I worked as a desktop, web, mobile and IoT developer, sysadmin and trainer/instructor.
In 2018 I quit the startup I was working for to focus on cybersecurity and start working on my own project.
My main goal was to both help companies be more secure and people in general be more educated about information security.
What do you think is the single biggest misconception people have when it comes to startups?
In my opinion, most people think (either explicitly or not) that a startup is a short-term project that requires huge funding.
I personally always aimed for realistic profitability, making the company grow a little bit more each day until we achieve the next goal.
If you could go back in time to any moment from your journey, and give yourself one tip, what would it be?
“Trust your instincts”. Oftentimes I would feel like there was something wrong about a client, a project and not listen to myself. Every time I felt this, something actually went wrong.
What makes you stand out as an entrepreneur?
I’m not on the entrepreneurial scene to make money, I am happy to make a decent living but my main goal is to share knowledge and educate as much people as possible in computer science and cybersecurity.
What are some of the best working habits you’ve gained over the past couple of years?
As a person with ADD (attention deficit disorder) I learned that routine helps a lot when you have a short attention span, planning and having a given routine for everything gives less mental space for improvisation, doubt and anxiety.
I still don’t plan absolutely everything of course, but planning my week ahead of time will make it easier for me.
Give us a bit of an insight into the influences behind the company?
I have been influenced by companies trying to work with their collaborators in a modern and smart way such as Buffer, Alan, GitLab amongst others.
Nowadays, it became obvious that remote work is without any doubt beneficial for everyone (the environment, collaborators, company), also asynchronous work, if your processes are well defined enough, there is no reason people can’t work together ; I look up to companies who understood and acted upon that.
Where do you see your business in five years?
Hopefully we’ll keep growing every year and have more people in the team, also host our own training sessions and classes either online or offline and have trained thousands more people.
What do you think the biggest challenge will be for you in getting there?
Staying the course, it sometimes is more difficult to stay motivated and be reactive enough to launch new attractive products as time goes. But we’ll get there!
Talk to us about your biggest success story so far?
In 2020 we went from auditing startups and small companies to auditing one of the biggest medical research center in Europe, it was such a thrill, especially in the midst of the COVID pandemic the project was thrilling!
How do clients and customers find you? Are you much of a salesperson for yourself?
Mostly online, we try to have some online presence with webinars, articles and social media posts but also offline during training sessions!
What one tip would you give to fellow startup founders?
Don’t give up, the first year is often the toughest but you will get better at it in no time if you hold on.
Choosing entrepreneurship is a hard choice when one can have a monthly salary instead, but in the end it is worth it.
And finally, what do you hope the future brings both you personally, and your business?
I hope I’ll get to meet more and more interesting and passionate people, discover new countries, cities, that my company will grow and be more independent on the training part and that I will enjoy whatever life will bring!
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