You don’t have to be a maths whiz to become an innovator

Catherine Kiguru is a force to reckon with in the world of mobile technology innovations in the continent. She is the founder and chief innovator of Ukall Limited. This is a tech startup that provides a mobile-based application called Akida, Swahili for ‘Supervisor’.

Akida verifies and tracks staff in the field, such as security guards, and brand ambassadors for marketing firms, in real time. This application also offers companies interested in research work an additional customised questionnaire option capable of capturing the sound of respondents, and questionnaire feedback in real-time.

Catherine has clients from Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, Tanzania, Zambia and Uganda, and is also working with the University of Leicester in the UK.

Her childhood was challenging, especially when she lost her mother to cancer and her father soon after. It was the foresight and planning of her late parents that kept her and her three siblings in school after their demise, when Catherine was only 14 years old.

She was very close to her father, a veterinarian, and it was her father’s dream to have her attend Mary Hill High school in Thika: “It was where he met his first girlfriend,” Catherine chuckles.

She did fulfill her father’s dream, but she also had a dream she wanted to fulfill; study computer science.

MINIMUM PASS

“By the time I was in Form Two, I knew I wanted to study computing, but I also knew I wasn’t going to get admitted to university.”

She explains that she had made up her mind not to study Physics, since the career she had chosen to pursue did not require knowledge of the subject. However, the absence of Physics in her KCSE combinations would deny her the chance to study her course of choice at university. There was also the fact that she did not perform very well in maths.

In 2004, Catherine graduated from High School with a B+ mean grade.

“When I left High School, I had two options, play professional hockey, which I had thoroughly enjoyed in school, or study journalism, since I had been in the journalism club.”

Several times, she walked from town to South ‘B’, in the outskirts of town, to seek admission at Kenya Institute of Mass Communication (KIMC), but she was not accepted. Her elder sister suggested that she try the then Mombasa Polytechnic, but Catherine did not see the need to travel that far for a diploma in journalism.

“The only people who understood my journey from the very beginning were my sisters, who encouraged me to keep going,” she says.

Even as she tried to find her footing, her desire to study Computer Science was unrelenting, and she asked her sisters to support her. After visiting numerous institutes; she finally got a chance to study at Kiambu Institute of Science and Technology. They granted her admission on one condition: she had to pass physics.

Catherine got help from her classmates in practical experiments and gave her all in studying the subject, even taking home assignments.

“In the end, I met the minimum pass mark, so the effort was worth it.”

Catherine’s hard work paid off; and she ended up completing her three-year course in two years, and as part of her final project she automated the billing system of Kiambu Water and Sewerage Company.

She was desperate to find a job after graduation, and found herself working at KenCall, a telemarketing and customer support service to customers in the UK and US, where she was a ‘Love Coach’ offering relationship advice to US callers.

“That’s where I learned that Kenyans can do anything; given the opportunity we are able to do anything.”

She learned a lot about relationships, but more so that it could also be turned into a business. Nine months later in 2008, she decided to put her computer training to work – she got a job as a software developer at Tracom International, a software development company, for two years.

In December 2010, still thirsty to focus on mobile software application development solutions, she commenced her business; Ukall Ltd. Catherine now has a staff of seven, who she has personally trained and who she fully entrusts to provide quality service to her clientele.

ACCELERATED GROWTH

“I invest in training them, a cost I am willing to take up. I am building a team, and  have trained each team member on the direction we are to go.”

Catherine is indiscriminate in her training, fore instance, one of her employees initially joined the company as a driver, but she insisted that he learn basic spreadsheets.

“His interest grew, and I encouraged him to understand what other team members were doing. He would even attend our business meetings.”

This former driver is now, “a great quality analyst”.

Her willingness to invest in others has seen her recognised on global platforms. In 2013, she was awarded best female entrepreneur at the GIST East Africa Startup camp. In the same year, she was one of 18 entrepreneurs at the infoDev Mobile Startup Camp; a week-long camp to accelerate growth of mobile-based startups. Catherine was also a speaker and panelist at the 2015 Global Entrepreneurship Summit in Nairobi.

She believes that the best is yet to come, and fulfilled that she is doing what she dreamt of doing, many years ago.

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Name: Catherine Kiguru

Company: Ukall Ltd.

Institution: Kiambu Institute of Science and Technology

Awards: Best female entrepreneur at the GIST East Africa Startup camp, 2013

Speaker and panelist, 2015 Global Entrepreneurship Summit in Nairobi.