Saleh & The Birth of Sarahah

Doing business planning is something I enjoy now, but back in 2015, I was itching to put my technical skills to work. That’s why I kept pestering my manager to move me to a different department, something IT-related.

Saleh, my manager, was a great person. He was pretty strict and demanding, but also very supportive and kind.

There was something special about Saleh. Despite his many years of experience and being a grandfather while I was an entry-level employee, he would always ask us for feedback.

I started thinking: although Saleh was kind and always asked for feedback, I couldn’t really be fully honest.
Factors like age come into play (I come from a culture that highly respects the age gap).
And taking it a step further—what if I ever held Saleh’s position, How could I guarantee that the feedback I received was genuine? People might not feel comfortable sharing feedback openly with their managers. That's when the idea of a suggestion box came to mind.
Saleh: Zain, how are we doing?
Zain: Well, we’re doing great.
Saleh: No seriously, how can we improve?

I thought, maybe I’ll place a suggestion box and ask my team to share feedback. If they feared I’d recognize their handwriting, they could type it. But then the techie in me said: Why not develop a website that does just that?

But first, I needed to validate the idea with the market. I created a small survey and shared it with employees around me:

• Are you willing to hear your employees’ feedback?
• Are you willing to hear your friends’ feedback?

The results were conclusive—there was demand for both. Right after work, I’d head to a nearby coffee shop and develop the initial version of Sarahah…