# SE1E94 - From Dial-Up Belarus to 350 Engineers | Andrei Yurkevich

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/40-better-engineering-leadership-6759823/se1e94-from-dial-up-belarus-to-350-engineers-andrei-yurkevich
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/40-better-engineering-leadership-6759823/se1e94-from-dial-up-belarus-to-350-engineers-andrei-yurkevich.md
Podcast: [40% Better - Engineering Leadership](https://stenobird.com/podcast/40-better-engineering-leadership-6759823)
Published: 2026-02-13T16:00:03+00:00
Episode link: https://www.spreaker.com/episode/se1e94-from-dial-up-belarus-to-350-engineers-andrei-yurkevich--70014416
Audio file: https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/70014416/audio_file_podcast_andrei_yurkevich.mp3
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Duration seconds: 3161

## Resource

In 2002, a 25-year-old Andrei Yurkevich started a software outstaffing business in Belarus with internet speeds under 100 kilobits per second for the entire country—slower than a dial-up modem. Twenty-two years later, he's President and CTO of Altoros with 350+ engineers across 25 countries, plus multiple spin-off companies including Protofire, a Web3-focused venture. Andrei shares why he spent two years answering seven questions that should have taken two hours, why distribution must always come before delivery, and how giving everyone equity ownership creates the type of organization where people leave, gain experience, and choose to return. Discover why Andrei's biggest hiring mistake was starting initiatives without a "single thread leader," why he motivates leaders with revenue shares but learned that scaling teams before having solid sales pipelines is fatal, and how following the Scaling Up methodology's "7 Strata" document became their most powerful alignment tool. Learn why Altoros operates as a venture studio with each business having separate leadership, cap tables, and P&Ls, why they explored but ultimately didn't fully implement DAO principles, and how their back-office shared services model enables spin-offs to focus purely on delivery and customer acquisition while finance, legal, marketing, and HR serve everyone. Key Topics: - Starting a software business in 2002 Belarus with dial-up internet speeds and no venture capital - The "7 Strata" strategy: why answering seven questions took two years instead of two hours - Distribution first, delivery second: why you can't scale teams without solid sales pipelines - Why single thread leaders are non-negotiable before starting any new initiative - Building a venture studio: separate P&Ls, cap tables, and…

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