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đī¸ Welcome to a new episode of The Corporate Venturing Podcast!
In Venture Clienting: Lessons from the Field, Iâm joined by Lisa Kratochwill (Startup Engagement, VERBUND X) and JosÊ âPepeâ Pascual (former Head, Cencosud Ventures).
Lisa runs a multi-corporate program that takes real business challenges to pilot and beyond. Pepe built a venture-client engine in Latin America with clear KPIs, budget ownership, and a bias to action.
Together, we unpack what makes venture clienting work in practice, and where it breaks.
In this episode, Lisa and Pepe share insights on:
đ§ The simple rule for tool choice: when to client, when to build, and when to invest, and how to decide fast.
𧊠From use case to pilot: framing the problem, scouting the right startup, and setting success upfront.
đ Procurement that helps, not hurts: pilot T&Cs, fast-track onboarding, and who signs the invoice.
đ KPIs you can read on one slide: cost savings or new revenue, time-to-pilot, SLA/quality, and a powerful input metric: number of challenges identified.
đ¸ Budget ownership = speed: why a dedicated pilot budget and a clear âpilot ownerâ reduce friction.
đĄī¸ Compliance early: how regulation can block a âsuccessfulâ PoC, and how to prevent late surprises.
đ¤ Multi-corporate as a force multiplier: sharing risk, budget, and skills on cross-industry topics (e.g., vehicle-to-grid).
đ From pilot to scale: land small, prove value, then expand, what changes between site #1 and rollout.
đĢ Common pitfalls: scope creep, âtourismâ pilots, and fuzzy goals that kill conversion.
⥠Culture-shifting moments: the small wins that flip skeptics into champions.
We close by reflecting on the moments when a startup solution made the value of this work obvious to everyone in the room.
Resources:
âĸ Open Road Ventures Newsletter
đ§ Follow the podcast for grounded stories and actionable insights from inside Open Innovation and Corporate Venturing.
