They were able to create a company profile of an oil, which costs $ 4 million in 10 months. Offices of the company located in India and the United States.

Oleg Giyazov (’23) and Oleg Parpun (32 years) at the end of 2010 have created a startup in the field of oil refining. Today the head office of the company RRT in the United States, Center for Research – Russia, St. Petersburg. Read the story of Oleg Giyazova about what, why and how they started.

Then, ten months ago, I suggested to my boss deal. I called him in the meeting room and said, “I’m terribly tired of all these people with their tea and mandatory corporate party! Let’s organize our company, but in it I’ll be your boss. ” At present, the value of our company is $ 4,000,000, and the head of it, I, at least in the legal sense. Our main office – in the U.S. are doing now opening offices in Delhi, India. Global CEO of the company is engaged in Douglas Harris, who previously was vice president of British Petroleum.

How to convince investors engaged in IT, to invest in chemistry

Last November, I and my former boss worked for engineering company – engaged in the design of factories to China. And then one day, sitting in the lobby business center with a coffee machine, with a sheet of paper describe the meaning of the technology. Searching the Internet venture capital funds and all those who have found this leaflet sent. “Thanks, but we do not like, we have IT-profile” – we got a couple dozen of these responses. In the end we still agreed to invest the fund IT-Foresight Ventures. On our side, was a model of technology and experience in the industry. Foundation, for its part, has spent to conduct a serious examination by independent experts on oil refining, and concluded a deal with us after her success. We called the company Reactive Rectification Technology, or RRT, have been registered as a company and received an initial investment for laboratory tests, in the amount of $ 100,000.

difference between the U.S. and our oil industry

At the same time we began to chat with Russian major oil producers, but it was just an ordinary game of “talking heads”. You spend a presentation to the “talking head of the first level” – a person not taking any decisions. After that, you can call back or call back. If you receive a call, go to a meeting with someone in the second level. We were able to reach only the third, but there also do not make decisions.

Prior to Douglas Harris, a former president of BP, our presentation was able to get through the fourth arm. One person from the industry, our friend, our technology has shown a presentation of his acquaintance, and in two subsequent contact, we got to Douglas. Then he was in Africa, and was about to fly to Los Angeles, but flew to Moscow to us. He said that he believes in our technology, although it appears to him absolutely unrealizable. In our first meeting, Douglas tapped the presentation and said, “If these data are real, then it is – yes!” It is understood that Douglas Harris – is a business-tank, corporate machine. It can push an opponent in the negotiations and to conclude billionth of a deal. We may be surprising – we’re used to other amounts, but Douglas always works this way.

He suggested we do the promotion of RRT in global markets. But only under the condition of American specialists thorough technological expertise of our technology. Over the past six months, it tested by many Russian and foreign experts. The main characteristic of our experts and “leaders” – to begin with spitting in the face of developers, and technology to look after it. I keep the most insane comments in a separate folder on my laptop, it is called “Slop.” Foreign experts will begin with a constructive approach, even if the work interferes with the language barrier and the large difference in time zones.

We spent the first talks with an expert team of Harris during the night, as they have in Los Angeles was the day. We both speak English with a colleague at the very minimum. Therefore, in order to begin a conversation on Skype, we needed a double break. Explained the meaning of gestures and text chat. For many more nights we practiced their English. In the end, all understood each other, and Douglas was to work with us.

difference of cultures

We will soberly assessed our chances for the implementation of development in Russia. Therefore, initially focused on China and India.

In the summer we participated in the project Start-up Roullette, where MBA students from 15 world’s best business schools hold meetings with technology startups using video chat, in random order. The decision to participate, we have accepted for some half an hour before the start of the project. Although I improved my English, but have decided to invite an interpreter. We formally dressed – in white shirt, tie, jacket – even though it was summer and very hot. Seven minutes after the chat, we saw an Indian in a t-shirt, swaying in his chair. It was a student of MBA from Calcutta Business School, the school with the largest in the world contest entrants. Both participants experienced some culture shock. Now we are opening an office in India, half of the project we are funding, and the second half of money attracts the very Indian.

At the end of the summer, we were able to contact the Investment Committee Skolkovo. We needed to convince them to give us the additional investment. Was supposed to be an oral presentation (up to six weeks it is paper work). Hurricanes in the United States prevented the arrival of Douglas in Moscow, and we decided to include it in the talks via telephone. With half of the first day in Moscow (2:30 am in Los Angeles), Douglas held the phone and waited for a call from Skolkovo. I asked him, that there were no sounds in the background, the TV, running water in the kitchen – so everything was perfect.

We had a fairly long wait, an invitation to carry out protection to the Investment Committee – we went to the office only seven in the evening (six in the morning at the Douglas in Los Angeles). All this time our American CEO continually looking at the phone waiting for an important call. Our presentation took three and a half minutes, and then performed a representative of our Russian investors. It was the turn of Douglas, which has already established a connection. “Well, you can not Americans,” – said in Investkomitete, and he was immediately cut off, without even explaining why. Former vice-president of British Petroleum from such treatment was the moral stress. However, additional investment, we still got it.