Tell us a bit about yourself and your background.
I studied business administration for my bachelor’s degree at the University of St. Gallen and graduated from the MBF after that. I completed the double degree programme that the MBF offers and went to HEC Paris for the second master’s, where I finished a Grande École degree in international business.
After graduating, I started Datapods with three co-founders. With our mission to fix the data economy here in Europe, we secured a public research grant right after the MBF and later raised a financing round with investors who are deeply involved in the data economy.
What inspired you to found your company, and what is its focus or mission?
During my brief time working in consulting, we mostly enabled businesses to make data-driven decisions by standardizing data collection and reporting. However, we often experienced a lack of data or insufficient data quality, especially with regard to user data. Without sufficient data, companies are left stranded and dependent on inadequate technical solutions. At the same time, Big Tech companies have incredible amounts of data that they keep in their walled gardens, inaccessible for any business.
We are reshaping the data economy and are making the highest-quality data accessible to businesses, while doing it in a fair way that compensates individuals when businesses want to use it. We supply companies with user data that comes directly from Big Tech, offering the highest possible quality and dimensionality. With AI and automation use cases on the rise, this mission has only grown in importance.
How did the MBF programme influence your journey as a founder?
I completed the MBF as I was working on the idea that would later blossom into Datapods. During the MBF, the flexibility of the programme allowed me to hone my coding skills, while also benefiting from the diverse selection of financial courses. Consequently, my network also became a major asset for my entrepreneurial journey, combining technical people with venture capitalists and private market experts.
Building a startup alongside my studies also built a lot of resilience in me as a founder. For example, during my time in the MBF, I used CHF 4,000 of early funding from the entrepreneurial talents programme at HSG to build a first click-dummy that we could present to clients and investors. Armed with that, we went to a pitching competition hosted by Deutsche Telekom and T-Mobile US, one day before the spring exams of the MBF. I flew to Germany, where we won the competition as the “most customer-centric solution” and €50,000 (and the MBF exams the next day went well, too).
Which skills, insights, or experiences from the MBF have been most valuable in building your company?
In terms of hard skills, I make extensive use of analytical skills, from statistics to programming. I also benefit a lot from the fact that the MBF features some business-related coursework. When analysing business models or figuring out the best approach for us as a business when faced with a challenge, I typically interface between my more technical co-founders and the business side of things. Sitting at this intersection of technical ability and business expertise makes the MBF truly unique and prepares one quite well for founding a tech startup.
What advice would you give to MBF students who are interested in starting their own business?
Swing big and iterate as you go. Make sure you solve major issues with your product.
One last practical tip: When you want something from a person, no matter how far away they seem, always try a cold email. You’d be surprised how often that works.