Founder's Story
2 Rejections. No Office. Global Success – The Kuty Shalev Playbook | Ep 209 with Kuty Shalev Founder of Lumenalta
02 May 2025
Kuty Shalev shares how a college accounting grad became a pioneer of fully remote software consulting—25 years before “work from home” was a thing. He explains why speed, adaptability, and “soft skills” (EQ as deliberate practice) trump raw IQ in today’s agile, AI-driven world.Key Discussion Points:A Serendipitous StartFrom PwC-sponsored coding at Columbia to founding a lean software firm with Pricewaterhouse as Year-One client.Early adoption of Skype‐powered remote teams to solve developer shortages.Building a True Remote CultureLessons learned: codifying checklists, connectivity standards, and clear response SLAs.Hiring only those who thrive in remote settings—surfing from the beach, caring for family, or rural living.Soft Skills as a “Must-Have”Reframing EQ as a learnable “soft skill” through deliberate practice and gamified coaching.Engineers with high EQ excel at adapting to rapid change, cross-team collaboration, and maintaining motivation.Digital Transformation ReimaginedRejecting one-size-fits-all platforms in favor of modular, vendor-agnostic architectures. Rapid, low-risk proofs of concept that scale, saving time and budget.Remote model enables access to global talent, faster staffing (2–3 weeks), and reinvesting office savings in senior engineers.Speed & ResilienceSpeed as competitive advantage in a landscape where AI and new tools emerge daily.Overcoming early stumbles by showing up, iterating fast, and leveraging trust and feedback loops.Key Takeaways:Speed Wins: Rapid iteration and fast staffing trump slow, monolithic “big-bang” IT projects.EQ Matters: Soft skills can be learned; they unlock collaboration, resilience, and better outcomes.Remote Is a Strength: A 25-year remote track record proves that location-agnostic teams deliver quality, flexibility, and cost efficiency.Modularity Over Monoliths: Architect for choice—cloud providers, SaaS, and stacks—so you can pivot as technology evolves.Show Up Relentlessly: Consistent effort, forgiveness of failure, and learning from mistakes fuel long-term success.Closing Thoughts: Lueinalta’s journey shows that innovation isn’t just about tech—it’s about people, practices, and the courage to redefine work itself. By mastering speed, empathy, and modular design, founders can build resilient organizations ready for whatever comes next.Our Sponsors:* Check out Indeed: https://indeed.com/FOUNDERSSTORY* Check out Northwest Registered Agent and use my code FOUNDERS for a great deal: https://northwestregisteredagent.com* Check out Plus500: https://plus500.com* Check out Rosetta Stone and use my code TODAY for a great deal: https://www.rosettastone.com
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Hey everyone, welcome back to Founder's Story. Today we have Kuti Shalev, the founder and CEO of Lumen Alta, an innovative digital transformation company that's been fully remote for 25 years. That is amazing. I mean, no one was even talking about that 25 years ago. Now that's all we're talking about. And now it's the norm. And then we are going to dive into EQ and
which is maybe the most important thing we'll need for the future. But Kuti, can you tell me what was the spark for you that made you say, this is the company and industry that I want to be in?
Yeah, it's a funny story. My beginnings are in accounting. When I first graduated from college, I ended up at Price Waterhouse, the accounting company. And they sent me off to Columbia Business School. And at that time, it was the very first time that they had Ethernet jacks in the classroom. So I'm dating myself here, right? We're talking about ancient history.
But at the time there, we started to create systems that interacted with the teachers and the students. And the code that I wrote at the time got very popular. I got written up in the school newspapers. And the dean called me into his office and asked me for the code I had written for the school. I said, that sounds amazing. Go ahead and take it.
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