Meet the Venturelab team: A virtual coffee break with Ricardo Gago

07.04.2021 14:25, Isabelle Mitchell

Venturelab supports the most innovative Swiss startups with tools, programs, and a one-of-a-kind network of partners and investors. But who makes all of this happen? Let’s take a look behind the Venturelab scenes: We meet the Venturelab team members for a virtual coffee break to talk about their work and find out what makes them tick when they are not supporting Switzerland’s innovation ecosystem with their expertise and experience. The first guest is Ricardo Gago, one of our Venture Kick program managers.

Ricardo, thank you for taking a virtual coffee break with us in your garden in Lausanne. What were you working on just now? 
Business as usual: I am preparing the Venture Kick jury sessions (stages 1 and 2), which are planned for the end of April. I have just sent a reminder to candidates for the Kickers Camps (stage 1 and stage 2) next week, and I will prepare the meeting with the EPFL Vice Presidency of Innovation this afternoon.

You started as a Venture Kick program manager in January 2021. What are your main responsibilities? 
Venture Kick is the funding flagship program of Venturelab. As a program manager, I am the person in charge of preparing and coordinating all Venture Kick jury sessions and Kickers Camps, which represent approximately 100 events this year. I am also actively looking for great potential startup projects from Swiss universities and Swiss research centers for which I organize meetings to learn more about their project and discuss the advantages and value that Venture Kick can offer them.

What is your favorite part about being a program manager at Venturelab?
What I love the most about my current job is to be part of a game-changing ecosystem and industry. Venturelab is the number-one high-tech startup accelerator in Switzerland, and being part of the Venture Kick program is an amazing chance to support great entrepreneurs to develop their startup projects into successful companies.

What did you do before joining Venturelab?
I have a business and administration background and worked for three years at the IT headquarters of Nestlé, where I moved from internal communications into project and portfolio management. Then, I have worked at the World Road Transport Organisation in Geneva, where I was managing a CHF 30 million innovation fund. This fund aimed to finance innovative projects from IRU (International Road Transport Union) member associations, mainly but not only in the digitalization of custom procedures and also digital platforms for transport operators, toll payment services, or even e-learning and distance training for drivers.
 
Why did you apply for the job as a Venture Kick program manager?
Being part of the innovation ecosystem is my way of contributing to a better, cleaner, and safer world. Venture Kick will provide the entrepreneurs with the adequate tools, knowledge, network, and credibility to execute their growth strategy and convince investors to invest in their startup. The same can be said for my resume: This experience brings me adequate knowledge of investment strategies, increases my professional network, and gives it strong credibility.
 
What is your plan for your first year here at Venturelab?
First, I am currently learning as much as I can, and I am integrating myself into the Swiss innovation ecosystem. Secondly, I would love to discover promising cleantech projects and be among the first ones to support business ideas that will contribute to reducing greenhouse gas emissions on a global level. The sooner this happens, the better.

Now, let's get a little bit more personal. What is something your co-workers might not know about you?
I am very easygoing, and I adapt to any character. However, I can be a real pain if you do not respect the deadlines. Don't set meetings before 8 a.m. I can work all night on a project if needed. Work hard; play hard. There is a time for everything. Fight for what you want.

What is one of your guilty pleasures?
Haribo—I don't know what the world record is, but I can eat one pack in a few minutes.

What is always in your fridge or pantry?
See above: sweets, preferably sour ones. In the best interest of my dentist, I also always have the ingredients to prepare a croque-monsieur.

What are some social media accounts everyone should follow?
OK, so here are my secrets: Philippe Etchebest (@chef.etchebest) and Cyril Lignac (@cyril_lignac) help me to find cooking recipes. TED Talks (@ted) broadens my spirit with insightful people. National Geographic Travel (@natgeotravel) makes me discover new amazing places in the world. Work-related: Crunchbase (@crunchbase) and Business Insider (@businessinsider) to keep up to date with innovation, global tech, finance, and healthcare.  

What is your favorite topic to discuss during coffee breaks?
Everything except work: holidays, sports, hobbies, gardening, cooking, dancing, news, movies, TV Series, family, etc.

What is your favorite artist or playlist to listen to while working?
I started Latino dance classes but then came the pandemic. I am in desperate need of Latino music: salsa (Gente da Zona, Marc Anthony, Leoni Torres), bachata (Pinto Picasso, Daniel Santacruz, Romeo Santos) and kizomba (Elji Beatzkilla, C4 Pedro, Nelson Freitas). But also like more commercial Latino music, such as Maluma, Ozuna, Nicky Jam, or Manuel Turizo.

Last but not least, could you show us your smartphone home screen and tell us about your three favorite apps?
Google Chrome: how I learn and collect information about any sort of topic
Outlook: work emails and agenda (important: Notifications are turned off!)
Google Calendar: allows me to plan my private life and look forward to upcoming events (today it's more like COVID, COVID, and COVID, though)