9. Turning Ideas into Positive Impact with Mauro Cozzi

by Bobby Jagdevin Entrepreneurship, Leadership, Mauro Cozzi, Podcasts, Sustainabilityon Posted on


There is sufficient venture capitalist funding for every business to become a positive impact business. With this in mind, what is the formula for launching a successful startup?… Generate ideas, test ideas, execute on an idea, fail, then rinse-and-repeat… Fairly simple right?

But the secret sauce in the success of a startup is largely dependent on three ideals:

  1. A founding team blended by years of solid friendship or individuals that can quickly find a cadence with one another
  2. A team that complements each other and can rise from adversity stronger than where they started 
  3. A compelling answer to why the business exists and how it has the potential to change the world

These are one of many lessons I learnt from my conversation with Mauro Cozzi. Mauro alongside Eduardo Gómez and Ben Peddie are the founding team of Emitwise.

Emitwise empowers companies to accelerate their carbon to net-zero targets by using AI to automate how businesses measure, report, and reduce their carbon emissions throughout their operations and supply chain. Emitwise went from ideas on post-it notes in a kitchen to having some of the largest corporations in the world using their solution. 

All this in 12 months!

“Activism ‘in a pat yourself on the back type of way’ is a privilege. Activism in having real meaningful impact is a responsibility.“

Mauro Cozzi

The ambitious founders quickly identified the need to recruit the right people and expertise. It’s not only the right blend of experienced individuals, but how the co-founding team engages, that has been pivotal to their rapid success.

Mauro, Eduardo and Ben are building a moonshot. One with a viable business model and the ability to support real, sustainable climate action.

Mauro and Eduardo’s friendship stems back to High School in Chile. Even at an early stage, they were ideating solutions to help tackle the climate challenge. Inspired by a physics class that explained climate change principles and the feedback loop that exacerbates global warming. 

They were on a mission to make a real positive impact.

In this episode, we focus on Mauro’s story from his origins in Argentina and travel via conversation around Latin America, North America and the UK.

We also breakdown:

  • The mechanics around ideation. How idea’s should be tested and why noise around issues/challenges is largely irrelevant when pitching for investment.
  • How Mauro, alongside his dorm room friends Maciej Szpakowski and Przemek Zientala first got a taste for entrepreneurship at a University Dragon’s Den Programme
  • How Mauro’s first experience in the startup world landed him on the acclaimed Berkeley Skydeck accelerator programme in Silicon Valley
  • How Silicon Valley contributes to shaping core values and promoting a mindset change in young entrepreneurs 
  • Why Mauro’s first startup failed and how this contributed to Eduardo and Ben accidentally co-creating a new opportunity

There is a serendipitous nature to this story.

Mauro’s journey has a degree of randomness. Lots of disparate pieces that on their own are difficult to stitch together. But when viewed through the lens of Jazz Fusion – yes, I suspect you weren’t expecting that twist – there is a relationship, a series of events coupled with a degree of improvisation that can create a musical masterpiece. 

One that has the potential to change the world.

Blessings and love,

QUOTES

“You are here to build a moonshot.” – Mauro

“Ignore whether you believe in climate change or not, it’s the biggest game of Russian roulette the world has ever played – Elon Musk.“ – Mauro

“The most important thing about a business is the why. Everything falls out of the why.“ – Mauro

“I’m not any kind of exceptional person, I was just told I could do something different and I listened.“ – Mauro

“Every day on a constant basis we are reminded of the companies’ mission and vision. To accelerate the transition to a net-zero world.“ – Mauro

“By flexing the idea muscle you’re only going to make it stronger.“ – Bobby

RESOURCES

Website: Emitwise
Twitter: @emitwise
LinkedIn Profile: Mauro Cozzi
LinkedIn Profile: Eduardo Gomez
LinkedIn Profile: Ben Peddie
Twitter: @mauro_cozzi
Twitter: @eduardo_a_gomez
Twitter: @benjaminpeddie
Website: Berkeley Skydeck Accelerator
Website: Future Worlds Dragons Den
eBook: The Business Benefits of Carbon Accounting
Blog Post: The Ultimate Guide to Becoming an Idea Machine
Website: Snarky Puppy – A Great Introduction to Jazz Fusion

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