There is money in IT, and this is how we make it

They are ambitious, aggressive and tech-savvy. In their efforts, they’ve shown that one can turn technology into a successful business. Below, meet six ‘techpreneurs’ who have ventured and conquered the virtual world.

Hilda Moraa, 24, Head WezaTele Company

WezaTele is a solutions provider that applies mobile technologies such as SMS and USSD — a technology that is used to send text between a mobile phone and an application program in the network.

She honed her business skills at Strathmore University, where she was a student. After her studies, she set out to take advantage of the many opportunities that she saw in the innovation arena.

“My love for technology and innovation spurred me to look at my school projects in an applied dimension. My curiosity and self-determination also inspired me to become one of the solutions providers,” she says.

The young techpreneur, who employs seven full-time staff, says she hopes her firm will break even by June this year.

The firm now has clients from several companies in Kenya, including Mamamikes.com, a local e-commerce company.

Wezatele has been featured in global circles, and was most recently featured in TedX — a global set of conferences held around the world for thought-leaders and innovators.

‘My-Order’, an application developed while she was still a student, has gained continent-wide attention.

Mbugua Njihia, 28, CEO Symbiotic Media

The technology company focuses on mobile business, mobile entertainment, custom Web and mobile application solutions.

The company, Symbiotic Media, is a leader in this technological field, and its product ‘Sembuse’ was recently named one of Forbes Africa Top 20 start-ups.

Mbugua’s techpreneurial skills were fostered early — since his university days in 2006 — and he says his love for business and technology meant that he would eventually start his own firm.

Among the firm’s achievements is building East Africa’s first mobile social network, which achieved a base network of 250,000 users by 2009.

His advice to others venturing into techpreneurship is to first seek a niche, and settle where one is most comfortable.

“Will you be a solutions creator or a reseller? Will you develop from scratch or will you support and distribute? Such are the questions that one must answer. A real business means cash flows and margins,” he says.

Kamal Budhabatti, CEO and founder, Craftsilicon

CraftSilicon is a global software firm based in Kenya, providing software solutions to core-banking, microfinance, switching, electronic and mobile payments across four continents.