Tim Hosking
Founders in Focus looks closely at the people behind startup growth. Founders like Maxim Melamedov that have spotted a unique perspective, created something individual or had the sheer determination to drive change when it’s easier to take another path.
We provide a platform to Founders and look to amplify their stories, detail the individual journey as well as the aspirations for the future.
talent.ai shares and elevates these stories to create insight and inspire others who are on or considering similar journeys.
Zesty
Founded:
2019
Industry:
Cloud Solutions
Head Office:
Tel Aviv, Israel
Website:
We spoke to Maxim Melamedov the CEO & Co-Founder of Zesty, about what makes the company stand out in its industry, talent and the founder’s journey.
Discover what’s behind taking a company founded in 2019 to raise over $100 Million in funding, hitting incredible milestones in just 3 years, and what’s next for Zesty!
Why are you the one to solve this particular problem/need?
I first encountered the issue of managing cloud costs at Feedvisor, when a lack of cloud resources caused problems for our user experience. Feedvisor is also where I met my now-CTO and co-founder Alexey Baikov, who worked as a DevOps Engineer and needed to modify cloud configurations to solve this problem.
I encountered the cloud cost problem again when I was a VP of Customer Success at Gimmonix, a travel tech company. It came up a lot in conversations with our customers and I realized this is a ubiquitous problem. Since it’s easier to solve problems that we ourselves have had experience with, we were inspired to tackle the cloud cost issue once and for all through the creation of Zesty.
Why is now the time for Zesty to thrive?
We believe that automation is the key to saving the most precious resource given to anyone, especially to those who drive innovation and develop software —and this resource is time. And in today’s economy, another resource –– money –– dramatically increased in value.
Being a solution that saves both time and money is a big part of why Zesty has mass appeal.
CEO and Alexey Baikov
CTO. Source: Zesty Website)
How do you know a person is right for a job?
We look for people who are passionate about their day-to-day tasks, who enjoy building relationships with peers and bringing value-added innovation to the business, who know how to give and receive feedback, who operate with high trust and respect to peers, who are connected to the company goal and, of course, who meet the skillset we need.
What’s most exciting about your journey to date?
The people we meet on a daily basis and partners we operate with.
Every relationship we have only strengthens Zesty and inspires us to do better.
What funding advice would you give to a first-time founder?
First, do market research on your thesis, and crystallize what makes you different. Go to your target market as soon as possible, validate your assumptions, and build your product while constantly incorporating feedback from your customers.
What are your plans for the latest funding received?
Our goal is to optimize as much cloud infrastructure as possible. With the new funding we received, we’ll develop new capabilities and support additional cloud vendors as well as expand our GTM footprint to support the US market.
Talent Intelligence 