I don’t think there are any secrets or magic formulas, there’s no “one size fits all”. It’s a combination of various factors which are unique to each company: having a good team, working hard, overcoming adversity, being committed to a vision and, of course, having a good product.

I also believe that an important part is the company’s philosophy and culture right from the outset. We’ve never had any doubt that in the digital era, opportunities are global and talent is everywhere. We’ve always had an international outlook, right from the beginning, as well as the understanding that success would not come easy and that we’d have to overcome many obstacles.

Our approach to projects is what is known as The Arithmetics of Compassion: transforming objective and cold data into empathy and sensations that raise awareness and stimulate change in the user

Today, we have more than nine different nationalities in the company, and our clients are mostly from the United States and Switzerland and can be divided into two groups: international agencies and innovative technological firms.

Collaborating with agencies like the United Nations or the World Bank enables us to work with issues we feel passionate about and to bring these closer to the user, like awareness about gender-based violence, the importance of vaccination, maternal mortality or food shortages. These are all issues for which access to objective information and raising awareness in society are crucial.

In this regard, our approach to these projects is what is known as The Arithmetics of Compassion. How can we transform objective, cold and impersonal data into empathy and sensations that raise awareness and stimulate change in the user?

Absolutely! When we began this was just an emerging industry; everything was yet to be invented. We’d been going for six months, they invited us to enter the competition and we thought it would be a great opportunity to see where we were in relation to our international competitors. And we won.

It really helped our entry into the US market, gave the product we were developing a seal of approval and boosted morale for all of us. But that was 5 years ago. 

Today, we’ve been able to consolidate our strong start and have gained recognition, for example, through two consecutive Webby Awards, in 2017 and 2018, known as the Oscars of the Internet. In addition, international public figures like Angelina Jolie, Nicole Kidman, Emma Watson or Antonio Guterres (the United Nations secretary general) have praised and promoted our work.

We’ve gained recognition, for example, through two consecutive Webby Awards, in 2017 and 2018, known as the Oscars of the Internet

Collaborating with agencies like the World Health Organisation, the World Economic Forum in Davos, Unicef or the International Labour Organisation helps to make our work more visible.

However, we still have a lot of work to do and a long road ahead of us before we reach where we want to be in the future.

This is recognition that I am grateful for. It boosts confidence and rewards hard work. Obviously in a world where emerging businesses are increasingly valued, this helps to open certain doors, potential clients look at you with other eyes.

Having said that, they are still just Vanity Metrics, and that isn’t what’s really important in a company. There are other aspects that have much more relevance and on which an entrepreneur has to focus their efforts and motivation. It’s probably by focusing on these aspects that you begin to receive recognition.

After university I had a brief spell in the world of international consultancy in health and development. I had the opportunity to travel quite a lot and began to deal with complex issues.

The main product the company offered was analysis and the simplification of complex information and data.

I founded Elkanodata in my bedroom in my flat on carrer Elkano, in Poble Sec.

Although it was highly rigorous on a technical level, I felt that the final product we delivered to the client had room for improvement, and I believed that this would be a growing need in the years to come.

I started to look around and found out that there were American businesses specialised in Information Design which were growing at great speed. So I decided to return to Barcelona and start Elkanodata in my bedroom in my flat on carrer Elkano, in Poble Sec.

They should have an aim or a motivation they are ready to commit to and for which they are ready to overcome adversity. If you’re looking for easy money or quick results, you should do something else.

Think big, think global. The world is a huge place, the opportunities are infinite, and if they don’t come to you, you have to go out and look for them, or create them yourself.

Once you’re sure about that, put together a team of talented people who are just as committed to the idea as you are, whether partners or employees. Everyone has to be pushing in the same direction.

Finally, think big, think global. The world is a huge place, the opportunities are infinite, and if they don’t come to you, you have to go out and look for them, or create them yourself.

On a personal level it was a great experience and a chance to meet new people and make excellent friendships. On the other hand, I was combining my studies with work, which, at that time, was not very easy. I hope that that’s improved today.

I also felt that the approach was too theoretical and not very applied. For me, the course lacked teachers who were also entrepreneurs or who had practical experience, and an ecosystem that promoted innovation, project creation and the development of skills beyond the accumulation of theoretical knowledge and written exams.

I think that it is in the education and university system where entrepreneurial values should be instilled and where the skills students will need for the future should be allowed to develop, which have clearly changed dramatically in recent years.

It’s in the education and university system where entrepreneurial values should be instilled and where the skills students will need for the future should be allowed to develop

Although there have been some major changes, I think that education still has an essentially conceptual base, designed for the industrial era, and has yet to adapt to the challenges of the future: artificial intelligence, robotisation, constant access to information, virtual reality...

Is accumulating theoretical knowledge, memorising information and sitting written exams the best way to develop the skills that will be essential to us in the future?

We love talking about American entrepreneurship, Silicon Valley and its entrepreneurial ecosystem, but I think that it is in education where there is still the need for a major change in mindset.

I honestly don’t think that I am in a position to give advice about how to approach the world of work, as I haven’t worked in many companies besides Elkanodata.

I can give advice to anyone who wants to be entrepreneurial based on my experience, help them to  believe in their ideas, anticipate the hurdles they might find and help them with their day-to-day decision-making.

Do what you feel passion for. Dedicate a lot of time to your work and focus on something you love and which gives you a sense of fulfillment

But it would be pretentious of me to give advice to anyone that is about to enter the world of work. Each of us follows a different path and has different ambitions and motivations. That’s what makes life interesting.

All I would dare to say is that they should do what they enjoy and what they feel passionate about. Be ready to dedicate a lot of time to your work and focus on something you love and which gives you a sense of fulfillment.