Meet the Team: Ksenia Kurileva
We chat to Ksenia about her thoughts on the innovation industry and her advice to corporates looking to work with startups.
Dana: “As Programme Manager, I’ve been working very closely with Ksenia and I can say without a doubt that she is an unwavering presence in Metta.
Having designed and delivered the previous two iterations of the ATI Boeing Accelerator — now known as Aerospace Xelerated —as Programme Associate, Programme Manager, and now Programme Director — Ksenia is full of experience and knowledge about how to carry out a successful programme.”
At Metta, we pay close attention to who we work with and the same goes for the Metta team. As such, we are making an ongoing effort to highlight the people behind Metta in our Meet the Team series.
In part 1, we talked to Gabi & Wil about Metta’s founding philosophy. Part 2 saw us talking to Heather about sustainable innovation. In part 3, I talked to Ksenia about my work in student entrepreneurship.
I recently chatted to Ksenia to learn more about her journey into this industry, what problems she’s passionate about solving, and her tops tip on successfully working with startups.
Q1: Hi Ksenia! 👋 How would you describe what you do at Metta?
At Metta, I’m responsible for our operations and marketing, and I’m also the Programme Manager for the projects that we take on. Managing the corporate programmes, I get to engage with a variety of stakeholders from founders and internal champions to mentors and investors. In my role, I support founders day-to-day as well as corporations to help them achieve their organisational goals.
Right now, we’re scouting for startups for one of our programmes and it’s been a fantastic few weeks connecting with founders over office hours and learning about new startups. As we gear up for the start of the next accelerator, I’ll be reviewing our previous programmes and helping shape the curriculum for the next one. I’m excited to support this new cohort and the next wave of founders. We also have some interesting projects in the pipeline at Metta and I can’t wait to share more soon.
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Q2: How and why did you get into tech and the innovation industry?
I moved to London in 2016 and started out working in medical technology. It was an inspiring experience to connect with doctors, medical students and startups building life-improving solutions and to play a part in advancing the MedTech space. In the industry, I helped launch Barts X Medicine at Queen Mary University of London, the first digital health course for medical students in the UK, and I was involved in creating and running The Future of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Healthcare conference, sponsored by the likes of Aviva Ventures, Bayer G4A, and Balderton Capital.
From that point on, I was interested in AI and I went on to work with B2B software developed to bring speed and new insights into sectors like market research and knowledge management. I joined early-stage startups Streetbees and CognitionX to work across various roles including sales, marketing and customer success. I spent a lot of time working directly with founders and understanding their pain points — from explaining the new technology to clients to developing the necessary tools for the internal teams within the corporate.
“To date, 36% of the world’s startups are in Europe but only 14% of these are unicorns. Looking across the pond to the US, the figures look very different — of 45% startups based there, 50% are unicorns.”
Having worked at startups for several years, it feels great to now be part of the ecosystem that supports founders and their teams on their startup journey. I’ve met some amazing mentors, entrepreneurs and investors along the way, too.
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Q3: Within this ecosystem, what is something people are not paying enough attention to?
To date, 36% of the world’s startups are in Europe but only 14% of these are unicorns. Looking across the pond to the U.S., the figures look very different — of 45% startups based there, 50% are unicorns. This isn’t a question of failure but rather why startups in Europe aren’t advancing at the same pace. Several things come into play here but a fragmented startup ecosystem is one of the first things that comes to mind.
If we take a look at just the UK, founders come to tech hubs like London to launch their business because of the networking opportunities, the talent pool and access to investors and capital. However, they’re often overwhelmed by the number of incubators, accelerators and communities that exist. It’s hard to identify quality from quantity. There’s also a lack of knowledge about how to start your business in the first place. If you’re an academic entrepreneur in the process of commercialising your research, you’re bound to face excessive bureaucracy and unfavourable spinout terms (more on that here).
“Sustainability provides a competitive edge, attracts top employees, and increases the bottom line.”
What we need is synergy in the startup ecosystem to make scaling as easy as possible. I’d like to see an ecosystem that shares best practices and works together. I think we’re moving in the right direction but there’s still a long way to go.
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Q4: What’s been the best part of working at Metta?
One of the most exciting aspects of running accelerator programmes has been witnessing change for both startups and corporates. The collaboration between them has obvious benefits. Startups get access to funding, strategic and technical industry insights and customer access, and on the other hand, corporates start to innovate and work with new technology, gaining a competitive advantage.
“Adopt an agile mindset.”
I’ve loved the scouting process and talking to founders but also the programme planning and execution. For me, nothing beats the feeling of seeing those same startups post-programme delivering successful POCs and pilots, hiring new talent and entering new industries. This is the point where you know you’ve made a small contribution to their growth journey.
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Q5: What do you find most exciting about where Metta is going?
We support startups, industry and government with sustainable technology-driven innovation. We aim to embed sustainability in all aspects of innovation and use technology to consider the work that we do and its impact on society, the economy and the wider world. The big challenges faced by society are the same challenges faced by businesses. In the wake of climate change and recent human rights movements, the industry knows it can’t operate as usual, and we’re seeing more and more organisations implement sustainable business practices.
The case for doing so is strong — sustainability provides a competitive edge, attracts top employees, and increases the bottom line, to name a few benefits. I’m particularly excited about working with corporates on their long-term innovation strategies and driving change in areas where they need it most.
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Q6: Any tips for corporates looking to work with startups?
For corporations looking to connect with startup ecosystems and set up their own innovation programmes, it’s important to understand the pace at which startups move but also what needs to happen internally to create an ‘innovation’ culture.
- Be clear on your objectives and what you’re trying to achieve for the long term. If you’re setting up an innovation programme, what is your why? This will help attract the right startups and ensure a successful relationship.
- Find a key stakeholder that can become a champion for the startup. Allocating an internal champion to support the startup is critical for the collaboration to take off but also to explain and guide the startup through complex processes within the corporation.
- Adopt an agile mindset. Take a look at your procurement system, or areas like legal, compliance and payments. What might be designed for your usual suppliers may be a massive hurdle from early-stage startups. This is a good opportunity to look at existing processes and how you can improve them.
If you want to hear first-hand about building successful corporate-startup relationships, tune in to this Metta Talks episode hosted by Metta cofounder Gabi. She talked to Carlton Washburn, Systems Engineer at Boeing, and Andre Wegner, CEO of Authentise, about why established industries should work with startups and the biggest challenges and barriers in corporate-startup collaboration.
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Q7: Outside of work, what’s a project that you’ve enjoyed the most or are most proud of?
What unites us at Metta is our vision for a sustainable future. Outside of work, I’m building a community around artisans called Around the Corner, where we aim to support sustainable production and consumption. The mission is two-fold: help artisans develop their business and educate consumers on what quality and sustainability look like. On weekends, you can find me at markets and fairs getting to know artisans that make everything from handcrafted tableware and furniture to bookbinding.
Connect with Ksenia — ksenia@metta.partners | LinkedIn
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Get to know the rest of the Metta team:
Gabriela Matic and Wil Benton | Metta Co-Founders and Directors
Heather Baden | Sustainability & Innovation Lead
Dana Zou | Programme Manager
Fatema Basim | Lead Researcher
Gianna Pinasco | Programme Associate
Matt Briggs | Key Account Lead
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Want to learn more about Metta — and the latest about #startups, #innovation, and #sustainability? Let’s talk —
Email | hello@metta.partners
Website | Metta.Partners
Podcast | Spotify — Google — Amazon — Apple
Twitter | @mettatalks
LinkedIn | Metta
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