Willmott: I live in a small remote town up the west coast, called Melkbosstrand, work at 30 Barnet Street, just off Dunkley Square in Gardens, and I find people take life and work way too seriously so try make the most of every opportunity and have fun wherever I am and whatever I'm doing. That's why I'm trying get a new skate ramp approved for the new office!
Moulder: I live with my family in an old victorian house in Woodstock and work out of a building in Gardens, just off Dunkley Square. My play time has been lacking somewhat over the last few years with work, kids and spending time with friends keeping me busy. But hey, that's no excuse. I'll grab a skateboard in the office every now and again and try and pop a 360-flip without falling too badly!
Willmott: Me and Riaan Cruywagen hung once. I also had the opportunity to visit Google Plex.
Moulder: I was first in South Africa for skateboarding for a while and tried to repeat that in surfing but opted out of becoming a professional surfer for design and computers instead.
Willmott: July this year it would have been 10 years of co-running Urbian and all I can say is: it's been a wild ride! From coder to product manager to company founder to startup founder.
Moulder: I studied classic graphic design at AAA, but left after two years, my first job was in a digital shop making CD-Roms – that gives away my age! I then continued to spend time in digital agencies as a youngster, working late into the night on deadlines to make the best face-melting work possible. I freelanced for a while, as people do, and then finally founded Urbian with my good mate Gary Willmott, which would take us to 10 years of being in business July this year.
In the 10 years of being in Urbian, I've gone from loving very design-led digital work to becoming a company that actually builds its own startups. So, less concerned with pure execution and code and heading more into the venture space, which involves an understanding of how to build something fast as well as how to make money from it. Goodness, how things have changed! If you asked me 10 years ago if I would be a business owner that runs a company that makes robust software, creates startups and invests in companies, I would have laughed at you!
Willmott: Working with amazing smart people. Making products people actually use, then watching the data unfold – I'm a data geek! Watching people grow into a career that they didn't even perceive was possible.
Moulder: It may sound fluffy, but I really get a kick out of working with people that love what they do. I hate the idea of working in a company that feels like a boring place full of bosses, managers and employees. ARGH! Gross. After all you spend so much of your time at work, that it might as well be fun, for crying out loud. I want to work with a group of people that laugh a lot, are super smart and have fun.
I really like food. I think it all started when I shared a house with a chef once. He opened my eyes to the crazy world of high-end food. I like to make it, I like it eat it and I like watching amazing chefs create it. It's fascinating. Netflix is my friend for this food inspiration.
Willmott: Tech is rapidly changing and evolving, it's almost impossible to get bored. I know this term gets overused, however, the opportunity to 'disrupt' or change the way people do their everyday job or task is an amazing opportunity.
Moulder: My industry is obviously digital product, which is design and technology. Man alive, software is eating the world and every industry is being disrupted by this. It's amazing. Sometimes I have to pinch myself. Is this really happening while I'm alive? So exciting, man. A time when a kid with a computer can make a business built with software and not bricks and steal and become rich doing it. A time when someone in Africa gets blood delivered to them where no cars can drive.
Willmott: As I'm spinning multiple plates, I try to block off time and get structured about my day as much as possible:
Moulder:
Willmott: Everything I use is in the cloud.
Moulder:
Willmott: 'Made By Many' and 'UsTwo' are great product companies that are inspirational and on the leading edge of product design. Moulder: Betaworks, Science Inc and Expa are great startup studios that we aspire to the business model of.
Willmott: The problem with our line of work is that it is generally too far-fetched for your average client, hence a lot of education and hand-holding is required. Alternatively, we look for brave clients, who are open to ‘failing forward’ and risking with us. The best products require a large amount of risk and diving into what hasn't been done before – we are in the innovation business, after all.
Moulder: There is too much painting the horse with black stripes and calling it a zebra. Words like disruption, agile, technology, digital product and UX has everyone just cutting and pasting these services onto what they already do when they don't have a clue what they are doing, and clients believe them.
Consultancies and ad agencies all present work they have already done as innovative product work and it's just not. When a consultancy takes 6 months to hand a client a 300-slide deck and says: "There is your innovation strategy," that is ridiculous. A startup has shipped a real product to real consumers in that time. When an ad agency sells a Facebook app or marketing website as a 'platform for consumer engagement', I just want to say: “Really guys. C'mon, if you haven't built a product that someone wants to come back and use every day by providing some kind of utility, all you have done is consult or marketing.”
Willmott: My main focus to continue and scale the success of one of our own internal products called Hi5, a recognition and peer-review platform.
Moulder: I'm helping our team gear up to scale a new service we built and operate for a client this year. It’s going HUGE! I'm in the middle of buttoning down a potential new joint venture we want to dive into. I'm helping define an MVP based on business cases for a few new clients who want to build projects with us in the finance, insurance, FMCG and self-storage space. A new team of 5 people from Next have also just joined us and I’m spending a lot of time trying to blend our cultures, making sure we like each other.
Willmott: Disruption, innovation, product. I generally find a lot of companies 'talk-the-talk', but don't have any previous products to show.
Moulder: Disruption. Innovation. Product. MVP. Platform. AI.
Willmott: When I'm switching off, usually whilst surfing or travelling.
Moulder: In the most random, unrelated moments when what I'm doing is far unrelated to any kind of work like travelling in the car. The shower is another regular place, where it is tricky to write anything down.
Willmott: I try to encourage mandatory Hawaiian shirt wearing on a Friday. Also, capturing weird people having conversations on the plane.
Moulder: None, I'm super mediocre at parties. My moustache carries most of my personality.
Willmott: Generally a technophile, however, on the weekends I try switch off completely.
Moulder: I'm unfortunately an insanely curious person, which makes me a technophile, I suppose, but I'm really trying to be ruthless and stop the constant need I feel of trying to read the internet every few days.
Willmott: Most of the tools listed above.
Moulder: Screenshots of apps and micro-services that have sparked a thought. Pictures of friends. Videos of Leo at the aquarium and doing funny stuff – I'm a real dad in love with my daughter.
Willmott: Punch above your weight class and take on something that you haven't done before. No one is going to spoonfeed you – it's up to you to master your own destiny. If you’re not sure how to do something, Google it! Use every spare minute to learn how to code, even if you aren't a coder. It will change the way you think for the better.
Moulder: Don't wait for a qualification or permission to do the best work of your life! You've got one life – make it count. Don't get stuck in a job you hate, doing stuff for money. Go for it.
If you don't know how to do it, ‘leargle’: that's learning through Google. Don't wait for permission or recognition. You can do anything. It's not about your skill; it's about being a person who is more of a doer than a talker.
Simple as that. Be sure to follow Willmott’s blog and Twitter account, You can also click here and here for Moulder’s views on technology and the revolution of usefulness, and follow him on the following social media channels: Twitter | Instagram | Medium.
*Interviewed by Leigh Andrews.
