Ravshan Kurbanov (CELA'13 Tajikistan) details his journey from law enforcement officer to business leader in this interview. Discussing key inflection points, mindsets, and lessons learned throughout his career transition, Ravshan provides an inside look at his motivations, values, and growth. Touching on topics ranging from developing Tajikistan's startup ecosystem to the importance of continuous learning, he emphasizes service, adding value, and building solid relationships.

Ravshan, you’ve had such an inspiring transition from public service to the world of business. Share with us how you navigated this change in your career path.

Every person in life comes to a point where he must transform. He loses himself if he does not transform, and crisis situations begin. I felt that I needed to transform. Another reason is financial; I had to meet my needs, and I needed money.

Public service is noble, but earning a lot is impossible if you work honestly there. In principle, it does not imply capital creation. I participated in the CELA Academy while transitioning from public service to business. I will be eternally grateful that CELA helped me in this situation to transform appropriately into the right community, to find the emphasis properly, and to understand myself.

I tell many who want to apply to the CELA Academy that if you compare it to medicine, you undergo a complete check-up and get to know yourself in detail. You start to understand yourself, your principles, values, and who you would like to be surrounded by. CELA seriously helped me with this.

I moved into business, and there was a very rapid transition from an ordinary specialist to CEO; it literally took a year or two. Now, I am the CEO of 55 Group, an investment management company. I am also the founder of Tajikistan Venture Capital; I am engaged in the promotion and development of the startup ecosystem in Tajikistan in terms of venture investments.

Ravshan, how old were you when you made this transition?

2017. I was 33 years old.

And how long did you serve in law enforcement?

From 23 to 33, 10 years. I dedicated the earliest, most ambitious years of my life to serving the state, the people, and society.

So, in 10 years, what rank did you make?

To major.

You held a significant leadership position as a major, with many individuals looking up to you. When you stepped away from that role, especially in those initial days and months, what were your feelings about leaving behind that robust support structure and the people who were once under your command? How did you adjust to this new chapter where those dynamics were no longer a part of your daily life?

Oddly enough, although public service is considered more responsible, I felt more responsible in business because, in public service, this responsibility is amorphous; in general, you do not feel it personally. But in business, when I have almost 3,000 people in different countries, you feel responsible for everyone, directly or indirectly subordinate to me.

But you didn't immediately have that level of responsibility for so many people. You had that interval between service and entering business, right?

Yes, it took about a year to become CEO. But I felt it from the first days: even when you have five people reporting to you, there is already a personal responsibility for each one, their behavior, and their results.

What were the key factors or strategies enabled you to ascend to the CEO role in such a remarkably short period?

Firstly, I do not wait for favorable conditions for the prosperity of the business or the team but try to create them.

Secondly, it's discipline because the private sector is not as disciplined as public service. Discipline, rigor, flexibility, and the ability to adapt and adjust to different conditions, people, and trends.

And third, what always helps any person is a thirst for knowledge. The desire to always read something, subscribe to something, listen to podcasts, take online courses, and do offline training. The desire to get into the CELA Academy was also due to my love of knowledge. I've been that way since childhood. Straight A's in school to a gold medal, straight A's in university to a gold medal.

From your previous professional experiences, what habits or practices did you carry over into the business world?

Probably a sense of justice from my previous job. But in general, the desire to work, develop, achieve results, and serve society selflessly are probably the habits I was able to bring to business and the team.

You mentioned that flexibility was instrumental in your career progression, yet the law enforcement sector, where you come from, is known for its hierarchical and almost military-like rigidity. How did you reconcile this with the more fluid nature of the business world? Did you find yourself introducing elements of vertical management and strict discipline into your business approach, or did you adapt differently to the new environment?

No, no, no. Discipline helped me be diligent in working late into the night. In the private sector, everyone works very lazily. Saturday, Sunday to go to work - how, why? For me to work 24/7 is not a problem at all. But flexibility is probably my personal quality that has always been there.

I was able to bring regulation to business. In public service, that is when you mainly refer to laws, rules, and procedures that solve at least 80% of all problems. And this regulation also helped create structure. In our and any business, regulation is normal when you try to write down all the procedures to cover the main problems so that the business works without problems.

However, the modern trend is not a pyramid but a circle with process participants, and everyone can interact directly with each other. As CEO, I have no reception days at all. Any employee or project manager knows they can write me after eight in the evening, call me, contact me directly via email, or just come by.

Over the past six years, could you share some of the professional milestones or achievements you're particularly proud of? Additionally, if there were any setbacks or failures during this period, how did you address and overcome them? What strategies or mindsets played a pivotal role in helping you navigate through those challenges?

Fails are always there, and failure is the engine of development. Now, when a startup team comes to me that has not had a failure, for me as a professional investor, it's a red flag. Because you do not know how the team will behave when they have some failure. As for my personal failures - we launched business projects that did not take off, and we realized with the team in time that it is better to stop investing further, record the loss, and close. And there were many of those in logistics, in the HoReCa, and with a couple of fintech startups, so this is normal.

Speaking of achievements, I can proudly say that we were the first in Tajikistan to introduce international corporate governance standards, boards of directors, management, documentation of activities, clear written rules regarding financial monitoring, and a concept of independent board members.

Plus, you can note a significant contribution, and here I'm talking about myself to the startup ecosystem in Tajikistan. I also worked in parallel as a national consultant for UNDP in entrepreneurship. Together, we developed an entrepreneur's roadmap. I am a co-author of the book that helped many young entrepreneurs start a business. I was among the first to launch a state business incubator in Tajikistan. It was a good example of a public-private partnership when the state asked the private sector to establish the proper functioning of a business incubator.

And the best achievement I am proud of is Tajikistan Venture Capital. This school is for startups, investors, and ecosystem players in venture capital. We have initiatives and plans to propose legislative changes so that venture deals can occur more smoothly and transparently in our country.


Do you have females in corporate governance?

Yes, we try very hard. We do it not because it is an international trend but because everyone can do some work better than others. For example, almost all are females in the financial sector because women are more meticulous. They do not think about various frauds, are careful with numbers, and are very concerned about their responsibilities. There are many women in management. We comply with this not because these are obligations but because we understand that this is a vital necessity.

Considering you've already broached the subject, could you elaborate on what you perceive as the primary challenges and opportunities for the growth of venture investment in Tajikistan? How do you envision these elements shaping the region’s future venture capital landscape?

First of all, this is awareness. Wealthy people have a lot of capital, and many startup founders do not know that the most accessible financing option for innovative projects is venture investment. Until recently, until we started developing everything, startup founders always relied on grants.

I am a staunch opponent of grants. They relax any entrepreneur. Money that does not carry responsibility is no longer money. So startup founders relied on grants, private equity, and bank loans with high interest rates. And people with this money didn't know there was another way to invest, albeit high risk, like venture capital. Accordingly, there was no awareness. We have done a lot to spread information in the form of schools we launched, articles, videos, and everything else.

The second problem is skills and knowledge. You need knowledge when you know that you can get money in a venture format. Because even a basic understanding of due diligence and dilution of shares, neither side in Tajikistan, neither the investor nor the startup founder, knows this. This is one of the basic rules of investing when you give 10% of your business to an angel or a group of angels, a venture fund, or some organization. In the next round, when you want to attract more investors, you give away another 10-15% of your business to develop further.

I'm interested to hear about your venture school. Is it still operational today?

Yes, this is an ongoing tool. 2-3 day trainings are held on the main aspects of venture investing. We talk about the role of venture capital, legal nuances, and financial nuances of venture investments. We divided the school for startups to teach them how to pitch to investors, build a financial and investment model properly, and protect their interests legally. And we do the same for potential investors.

Investors are a whole separate story. It was difficult and still is to introduce the institution of business angels. In Tajikistan, many do not want to show themselves and do not want to shine their resources. Because of this, I could not launch a venture school for investors for a long time. Then, thinking about it, I decided to come in through another door, through corporations, firms, and companies owned by business angels. The risks are lower there, so the corporations themselves began to come for training went through it, and I even know that many corporations became very interested in venture investing after our school, and they are already making deals up to M&A.

Could you describe typical profiles you encounter in your work - one of a startup founder and the other of a venture investor?

A startup founder is a young team, a girl or guy, usually with a technical background, who sees a problem and has an innovative IT solution for that problem. And not always graduates of foreign universities, often local guys, young, and very often guys from the regions. They are confident that their idea is the panacea for the problem. Hence, they do not want to share the business idea and send a pitch deck without an NDA. This is a big mistake, and we always say that in school. Many eventually realize that the idea is nothing at all. The team is the number one criterion for an investor.

As for the portrait of an investor, it is mature people who have achieved great heights in business, have free capital, and are entrepreneurs who understand that the future belongs to innovation and technology; understanding this, they are interested in investing in innovative projects.

In your other interview, you mentioned the significant role your parents played in your life as mentors. Could you share advice or a lesson from them that you find particularly valuable and would like to pass on to your children?

From my parents, I developed humility and tolerance for people of different nationalities and religions. Humility in terms of being content with what God has given you, being grateful for everything you have and loving those close to you and around you very much because at work or in networking, friends, family, first of all, children, wife, that is, you treat everyone with love, care, that's probably what I got from my parents.

At this moment, what are the things in your life or career that you feel most grateful for?

I always thank life, God, for having an excellent family and an excellent wife who understands and supports me in any situation. Well-mannered children in whom I do not see negative character traits. They are good-natured and responsive. They also like to study. I am grateful that I live right now, in a time of change and major global and local crises, because any crisis is always an opportunity, not just a business opportunity, but an opportunity to assess the situation, and every time you assess something, especially in a crisis, you get to know yourself more and more, what your values are, what your principles are.

You've shared that you're a reader. Could you tell us about a book or author that particularly inspires you or has significantly influenced your worldview?

Probably, Harari, all his books are relevant. They are about the 21st century, about the current situation. I also really like reading our Tajik fiction, especially Sadriddin Ayni and Mirzo Tursunzoda. I have read all of Fyodor Dostoevsky. These are probably the authors I really like.

You've mentioned an interest in developing environmental projects. Could you elaborate on what specific types of projects you're considering?

Probably a clear awareness that there is a problem with water. We must solve this problem, preserve water, use it properly, and distribute it. Some project that uses AI, for example, to predict. Maybe there is something like that already, but it needs to be widely implemented everywhere so that everyone understands that at the current rate at which we use water, the planet will soon come to a big catastrophe.

Ravshan, now there will be quick questions.

Who would you choose if you could invite someone to dinner, a loved one, a celebrity, or even a very wise person?

I would be interested in talking with Adele. I like her music. And, of course, Cristiano Ronaldo.

Would you like to be famous? If so, in what?

Honestly, I don't have a desire or ambition to become famous. I want to be useful. The most important lesson from CELA for me is the phrase I still remember - "Leadership is about finding your uniqueness and putting it in the service of others"—the phrase of Michael Kouly. Yes, yes, I will remember it for life. I don't have any desire or ambition to become famous at all. Maybe 5 or 10 years ago, I had some ambitions, but not now. Now, my only desire is to be useful to society, my surroundings, my people, my family, and my team. Just to be useful.

What would it be if you woke up tomorrow and could have a superpower?

I would want to be able to go back in time. Yes, go back, not just go back yourself, look and go back to reality, but literally rewind reality back.

And if you could, what would you change about the past?

At a minimum, I would not offend those I once offended. I would make the right decisions. And on a global scale, I would probably convey in some way, guys, don't do this. It will be bad.

Since you recalled the past, what is your most precious memory?

When I was 14, I had not seen my father for nine months. He is a pilot and worked in Africa. There were no cell phones then, only landlines, and calls were expensive. And so he flew in, and my mother works at the airport. We could go right up to the plane's ramp. I remember he got off, hugged me, and kissed me… Yes, that's probably the most precious memory, I guess.

If you imagine your house burning down with all your property, you saved your family; you have time to run into the house and save something else. What would you take and why?

So if I took the kids and wife, then basically nothing else is needed. Why take risks if there's a fire there? The main thing is that I took the kids and my wife. This is just basic risk management. Documents can be restored. Money: sane people nowadays don't keep money at home. Photos, some disks, weddings. It's all in the cloud. It's all in the cloud, so what's there to risk? Why take risks, really? Gold, jewelry, it won't burn.

Is there anything you've long dreamed of doing but haven't done yet?

I dream of opening a school but haven't done so because of a lack of financing. I still need to work, earn money, and open a school. In a remote region, in some villages.

And what is most valuable to you in friendship?

The most valuable thing in friendship is that it is already a high value. When you are respected and loved, not because of your position, connections, or money, but simply because you exist. And that's probably the most valuable thing.

Name three traits that you and your wife have in common.

Systematicness, pragmatism, desire to raise healthy children, healthy physically and mentally.

If there is anything else you would like, a message for your community, maybe from you.

We are now living in very difficult, global crisis times, and any crisis generates a crisis in all institutions and everything that exists; leadership itself is also experiencing a crisis now. Accordingly, as a leadership alliance, we must also carefully relate to the fact that leadership also requires transformation. Not necessarily taking sides but making at least some small contribution to solving the problem.