Correntics: The Venture Leader Cleantech developing a predictive software for weather-related supply-chain disruption management

02.10.2023 09:37, Rita Longobardi

Meet Michael Gloor, CEO of Correntics. The Zurich-based startup helps clients to future-proof their supply chains and improve their resilience in the face of climate change while ensuring the sustainability of business activities.

Name: Michael Gloor
Location: Zurich, Switzerland
Nationality: Swiss
Graduated from: ETH Zurich, PhD
Job title: CEO    
Number of employees: 8
Money raised: EUR 900’000
First touchpoint with Venturelab: Venture Challenge 2014 during PhD and later Venture Kick

Can you tell us who your product or solution helps, and how?
We are building a software solution that empowers companies to predict supply-chain disruptions from weather and climate extremes. Companies are facing more and more costs from climate risks and sustainability challenges. With our software, our clients can easily manage these risks and fulfil reporting requirements without processing immense amounts of data themselves. We already support large international corporations in the food and agriculture, chemical, and logistics sectors. At the same time, our software also helps consulting firms to improve their climate analytics capabilities. 

What market are you addressing and what is the potential of your startup in that market?
We want to become the leading European provider of environmental supply-chain risk software. Already today, we are well positioned to address this emerging but strongly growing market that is expected to reach approximately EUR 1.4 billion in the next years.

How and where did you come up with the idea for your startup?
I used to work for one of the largest global reinsurance companies and realized that many companies are struggling to manage and foresee risks in their value chains. At the same time, there were no good software solutions out there that considered the effects of climate change adequately. That’s how the idea for Correntics was born in 2021 when my cofounder Gaudenz Halter and I started our entrepreneurship journey.

What do you expect from the Venture Leaders Cleantech roadshow, and how will it help you achieve your vision?
The roadshow will be the perfect opportunity for us to launch into new markets and define our strategy for international growth. We also start fundraising in October and the meetings with investors during the roadshow will be a great opportunity to find ambitious partners who support our vision to future-proof global value chains.  

What are your team’s key achievements to date?
We are excited about the fact that during the first two years, we managed to build a great team, develop, and launch an innovative software solution, and find large clients and investors who believe in Correntics and partner with us on this journey. This was also recognized in the startup ecosystem with multiple prizes such as the Venture Kick, >>venture>>, Top 100 Swiss Startup Award.

What is the most challenging and rewarding aspect of being a founder?
I think one of the biggest challenges is to stay hyper-focused on the problem that your startup is solving without getting sidetracked by the many potential distractions in the startup world. It is very rewarding when you achieve this focus with the whole team and gain traction in the market.  

What is the most important lesson you have learned as a founder?
The most important lesson for me was that you can achieve a lot with very limited resources if you manage to build a small, dedicated, and passionate team. That’s how you can outrun even large incumbents and competitors.

What is your favourite productivity hack/tool and why?
The off switch. Even though building a startup requires endless hours of dedicated work, the best breakthrough ideas and progress usually arrive when you zoom out and open your mind for other inputs from outside of the daily work rhythm. 

What was your dream job when you were a child?
I wanted to be a pilot. This didn’t quite work out but I’m now flying glider in the beautiful Swiss Alps in my spare time.

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ABOUT THE PROGRAM
The Venture Leaders Cleantech 2023 were chosen from over 90 applications by an expert jury. The roadshow in Munich will accelerate their ventures’ growth and expand their international presence. Venture Leaders Cleantech is organized by Venturelab and supported by EPFL Lausanne, ETH Zurich, EY, Helbling Technik, Romande Energie, St.Gallisch-Appenzellische Kraftwerke (SAK), Swisscom Ventures, Vaud, and Vischer.