This article was first published on our 37th Edition, released on January 2025
. . .
Born and raised in Addis Ababa, Kidus describes himself as a curious child. He was first introduced to computers when he was 7 years old. This gave him a headstart from his peers when it came to tech-saviness. He expresses gratitude for his parents, who allowed him to exercise his curiosity, which made him the man he is today.
Kidus moved to the United States to pursue a degree in engineering. He had always dreamed of returning to Ethiopia despite not knowing how or when. His father and a close friend inspired this aspiration, encouraging him to use his good fortune to create opportunities for others in his home country. After a decade of building a career across various countries and organizations, Kidus turned his dream into reality by founding Kubik.
Kubik Ethiopia
Before establishing Kubik, Kidus didn’t see himself as a businessman. He views his business journey as the path that led him to his true calling: striving to create a better future. He shares an important lesson from the book Doing Good Better by William MacAskill: understanding your role in changing the world reveals various alternative paths to achieving it. For Kidus, his role became clear—improving the lives of his fellow countrymen.
Kidus’ interest in waste recycling first began when he heard the news of the 2017 Koshe landslide which killed 115 people. Hearing of the disaster, Kidus started thinking of ways to solve the problem. He reached out to one of his mentors, who invited him to Abdijan and gave him a tour of a school, which was built entirely with recycled waste. Inspired by what he saw, Kidus collaborated with his mentor to get funding for a project where waste is turned into bricks, which are used to build schools. Through the project, Kidus oversaw the building of 500 schools.
The project’s success reached new heights when a model of one of the schools was showcased at the UN headquarters. This recognition led to calls from UN offices in various countries, eager to replicate the project. Kidus realized that to scale the initiative effectively, it needed to transition into a sustainable business model. His initial plan was to create an investment fund through UNICEF to support companies capable of undertaking recycling projects. However, when he discovered no such companies existed in Ethiopia, Kidus decided to take on the challenge himself, leading to the establishment of Kubik.
Leaving behind a high-paying career to start a business while raising three children was a significant risk. But when he asked himself, “If I fail at this, will it still be worth it?” the answer was a resounding yes.
According to Kidus, Kubik is solving four main problems; poor waste management in cities, better income for its residents, climate change, and women’s empowerment. Kidus is particularly passionate about women’s empowerment. Although there are many women garbage collectors, their incomes are often reduced by middlemen. Kubik circumvents this by buying the garbage directly from collectors. This model proved extremely successful in Harrar, where 400 women were selling up to 5,000 kilograms of waste daily.
“Unrealistic” Goals
When Kidus founded Kubik, he planned to establish a processing plant in 8 months. Kidus says he didn’t do this out of delusion, but rather a need to push himself. Achieving even a portion of that goal would take him further than he’d ever imagined. “Aim for the impossible, and if you can get 1% right, you’ve succeeded very well,” Kidus says. Kidus gained this philosophy from his experience in software development. “Fail fast, fail often” he adds.
The Messy Middle
Kidus shared a valuable lesson he learned from the book The Messy Middle by Scott Belsk. The book taught him to have a wider lens when thinking about a company’s future. Founders should be able to notice the trends in their industry and manage their operations accordingly. In the early days of Kubik, Kidus says that he was focused on growth. But this speedy growth led to high costs. Although Kubik has managed to gain plenty of funding from investors, Kidus realized that they needed to build a sustainable business first. Although it was a difficult decision, Kubik decided to scale back on its operations.
Although the decision sounds irrational for someone hearing of it for the first time, Kidus sees it otherwise. Many promising companies tend to overspend in their growth phase. As their momentum slows, they become unable to keep up with costs and manage their cash flow. As a result, a company with high growth potential becomes stymied. Given the impact Kubik had and the people it was helping, Kidus believed that long-term sustainability should be prioritized over short-term growth.
The Need for Storytelling
One of the key skills Kidus developed through Kubik is storytelling. Kidus doesn’t see himself just as the CEO of Kubik. “I’m an ambassador to the incredible people working at our office,” he says. He believes that he has the responsibility of telling the stories of the people working with Kubik, from its employees to the garbage collectors Kubik buys from.
The key to storytelling, Kidus says, is being yourself. Each person is unique and has their own story to tell. To best way to develop our storytelling skills is to look within. Finding your voice and understanding your audience are important parts of that process.
Personal Life
“I don’t believe in work/life balance”, Kidus says. “I believe in being healthy, investing time in people that matter to you, and doing things that fulfill you,” In this sense, Kidus tries to maintain his health through exercise and managing stress. Although he believes it's not enough, he tries to spend as much quality time as possible with children.
Despite the inevitable ups and downs of running a business, Kidus has managed to stay stress-free. He attributes this to being surrounded by people who love and care for him, which has kept him grounded and resilient. While he is deeply committed to Kubik's success, especially for the sake of those who depend on it, he remains unafraid of failure.
As a life lesson, Kidus shares a piece of advice from his mentor: “At the end of the day, your headstone is going to say, ‘He was a good father.’” This perspective drives him to spend quality time with his children and help shape their future. Beyond his family, he also strives to support those around him. “I want to be remembered as a person who tried” he adds. For Kidus, the key is not in doing but in trying. As long as you give your best, that’s all that truly matters.
