John Housty is Chief Executive at Housty Designs. Housty Designs is a software development and digital marketing company. Our mission is to revolutionize the digital landscape for our clients and their customers.

Housty Designs was born out of my passion for making websites and my interest in computers. It was founded in 2011 in my second year of University whilst studying Computer Science. I began building websites for companies and over the years as our team and portfolio grew, scaled into the application development and digital marketing. Since then, we have delivered exceptional websites, web and mobile applications and successful marketing campaigns for companies in Guyana, around the Caribbean, North America and Canada.

Recently my team and I celebrated our seven year company anniversary in November of 2018; another milestone on this exciting and fulfilling journey.

How did you arrive at the idea for your business?

Housty Designs was born out of my passion for making websites and my interest in computers. I began doing web design because I enjoyed building user interfaces and felt that I can work with companies to do the same.

What was your key driving force to become an entrepreneur?

My key driving force for being an entrepreneur was and still is the potential for development and innovation in Guyana. Guyana’s technological landscape is still in its infantry and I want to significantly contribute to its overall digital transformation.

What is your greatest challenge being an entrepreneur?

The greatest challenge I’ve experienced as an entrepreneur thus far, is being a bit more patient when implementing solutions. I realised that not all the solutions I implement will work in the timeframe that I expect it to and that I needed to be patient with the overall process.

What has been your most satisfying moment in business?

My most satisfying moment as an entrepreneur came on the graduation day of my first Digital Marketing Course where all of our students passed and were awarded their certificates. Watching their development over the course and the excitement on their faces for passing the course gave me more fulfillment than I had ever experienced.

What piece of advice would you give to other young people who want to become entrepreneurs?

My advice to other young people who want to become entrepreneurs is to ultimately determine what they want to accomplish and to be patient throughout the journey. Having a vision and a mission are two critical components. There will be challenges and even a few failures but giving up is never an option.

How do you define success?

Success for everyone is different. For me, it’s delivering exceptional work and experiences for our clients and their customers; this in turn generates successful results, which in turn leads to very happy clients. When our clients are happy I am happy.

Who has been your greatest inspiration?

For me, my biggest inspiration are two of the great tech CEOs, namely Satya Nadella of Microsoft and Dara Khosrowshahi of Uber. Satya since taking over Microsoft has redefined the company’s focus and overall global impact. Dara left an amamzing role at Expedia and stepped up to the challenge of improving and revamping Uber’s culture and global services.

The common characteristic between Satya and Dara is their continued pursuit of creating innovative products and revolutionary experiences for their customers.