Duuple CEO Abby Frimpong: “Let’s start a challenge movement where we find something in common with a stranger; I wish we could live in a world where we see all the ways we are alike than the ways we differ.”
I am deeply involved with grass-roots movements since I believe in self-organization and encouraging community members to contribute by taking responsibility and action for their community. How about a challenge to highlight an unsung hero — it could be the kid that takes out the elderly neighbor’s trash. Or a movement where we find something in common with a stranger? I wish we could live in a world where we see all the ways we are alike than the ways we differ.
I had the pleasure to interview Abby Frimpong. Abby is a business executive with nearly two decades of successful experience leading organizations from late-stage product development through to commercialization. Abby thrives at building and sustaining strong corporate cultures, providing steadfast leadership to her teams and establishing effective working relationships with her board of directors. Abby specializes in implementing corporate strategy to profitability and cross-functional leadership for high potential, late-stage start-ups. Abby has worked in prominent positions with a number of non-profit organizations including Mines Advisory Group (MAG) America, Shady Grove Adventist Hospital Foundation, and Georgetown Preparatory School. As the CEO of Duuple, a social media app that employs challenges to create change for both individuals and companies, she wears many hats. In this key leadership role, she drives engineering, product development, customer engagement and business development for Duuple. Her efforts have led to Duuple’s partnership with award-winning actor, Neil Patrick Harris, which resulted in a successful campaign for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. She looks forward to helping to implement change; one download at a time.
Thank you so much for joining us Abby! Can you tell us a story about what brought you to this specific career path?
Duuple was first designed and later launched in 2018 to encourage change in the world. Personally, it has a special place in my heart. Having worked as a fundraiser in the nonprofit world, I consistently saw the gap between the haves and the have- nots. There was always another brilliant kid in need of a scholarship, another cancer patient to get to or another deadly accident caused by a forgotten landmine. Duuple to me was a way to bridge the gap- how can we give back, how can we empower people to leave a mark and to inspire change in a fun and meaningful way! At the heart of Duuple are millions of people who are looking to make a difference in the world around them, inspiring community action for users to participate in exciting challenges, donate to causes and advocate for issues that matter.
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began leading your company?
Every day is an interesting and exciting one but what still amazes people the most is that a tech company like Duuple is being led by a woman. I get a lot of support from all sorts of communities and I get a lot of interest from women who share their own stories with me. We mentor each other as we learn from one another. I have always known women were increasing their influence in the business community but being able to make an impact on each others’ lives is truly rewarding.
Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?
We are still making mistakes along the way as we continue to grow but we are keeping an open and honest relationship with our community. We listen to their recommendations and we try to improve ourselves as much as we can. The funniest mistake we made was with our logo. When Duuple was created, we sent out a memo with a typo. Someone added the “:” infront of the word Duuple, which created our current logo. We loved it so much that we decided to keep it.
Can you describe how your organization is making a significant social impact?
Duuple empowers individuals, brands, and NGOs to create their own goal-based challenges. Through user-generated videos, users inject social good along with cheers, energy, excitement, prizes and sharing to people’s daily lives. These user-created challenges provide discoverability and virality –with immediate calls-to-action for fun and/or social good amongst friends. Whether it is just friends competing with each other or a charity raising funds, it is a fun and interactive way to challenge your network and share hilarious and engaging content. Over the past few years, we’ve witnessed how social sharing can turn a simple act into a movement — especially when aligned with charities and social initiatives. It’s the best way to challenge your friends, get out of your comfort zone and do a world of good.
I am grateful to everyone I worked with or reported to in my previous roles. The bosses who took me under their wing taught me the ropes and the ones who challenged me helped me learn what integrity meant and decide what kind of boss I would be. My parents instilled hard work in me at a young age and encouraged me to be passionate about life. They always showed passion and drive in all aspects of their big or small which inspired me to fight and to reach for the sky. Having strong, driven, multi-talented parents shaped me in so many ways, and I am so grateful.
Are there three things the community/society can do help you address the root of the problem you are trying to solve?
Duuple is a new form of social media where users can interact with each other, brands and non-profits. It removes the “spectator” method of social media and makes it more interactive. People can challenge each other for fun or for social good e.g. I can create a vegan challenge to encourage my friends to eat healthier. Nonprofits can challenge their communities to educate others about a particular cause to raise awareness. By raising awareness people will better understand the cause and be more willing to make donations. Finally, Brands can spend less on advertising by creating challenges using products as giveaways to incentivize users to provide feedback, comments and case studies. We want our community to be transparent, sincere and honest.
How do you define “Leadership”? Can you explain what you mean or give an example?
Everyone at Duuple is encouraged to take an active role in all that we do. They have control over their tasks which gives them more room to think, innovate, and come up with ideas that help us grow by leaps and bounds. Of course, this means putting a lot of faith in people, but as a leader, it is important to guide people in the right direction, rather than constant hand holding. I make it a priority to explain our goals, vision and mission so that all stakeholders understand the thought process behind decisions. I believe in always putting the Duuple Community first. This crystal clarity also makes it easier for our colleagues to make decisions. As a leader, I need to do the same. I don’t just put the customer first, I put myself in their shoes and gauge how they feel when they use it.
What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started” and why. Please share a story or example where possible.
1. There is no such thing as “a comfort zone”. You can’t achieve anything if you are always afraid of stepping outside.
2. Start small, start right away because it will take longer than you think
3. Find your niche and play to your strengths
4. Research & validate the market
5. Get your finances in order and then add 20% extra
When I first began working on Duuple, I was worried that it needed to be similar to other social media platforms. Then I realized it needed to be much better than them. It needed to be faster, simpler and open. Once I let go of my concerns, Duuple improved and grew into its’ current state. We are not competing with other social media platforms. We are building the next generation of social media.
If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be?
I am deeply involved with grass-roots movements since I believe in self-organization and encouraging community members to contribute by taking responsibility and action for their community. How about a challenge to highlight an unsung hero — it could be the kid that takes out the elderly neighbor’s trash. Or a movement where we find something in common with a stranger? I wish we could live in a world where we see all the ways we are alike than the ways we differ.
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
We all have ups and downs in our lives but we need to be persistent and try to rise above all the difficulties. Stay positive and optimistic no matter what life throws at you. Only then can we unlock the greatness we have within. We need to keep trying until we succeed in life, whatever the definition of success to us may be. When I told my father I was going to be a fundraiser and work for a non-profit, he responded by saying it was not a real job. In fact, he said it was what HR managers did in their spare time. He thought I was too smart to do something compassionate. I was supposed to become an international lawyer. I insisted that I could be smart and compassionate at the same time and stuck with my passion.
Is there a person in the world whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why?
Afternoon tea with Princess Diana. Who advocated for those less fortunate. She was big on HIV/AIDS when it was unpopular and walked through a minefield in Angola to advocate for landmine victims. She was strong, fearless and yet kind and compassionate. Female leaders struggle to balance both and I think she fully represents what it means to be a strong leader, mother, humanitarian. She also had a great sense of fashion and pushed the envelope with her style — again setting the example that femininity could still be strong.
Where can our readers follow you on social media?
You can find the most up to date news on www.duuple.com. Or follow us on Duuple’s Facebook, Instagram and Twitter accounts.