In September 2016, I started something without really knowing how far it would go. I had experience as a software engineer, a desire to do things differently, and the intention of building a company of my own. That is how what was first called Right Away began, and not long after, it became Coorva. Today, ten years later, when I look back, what I feel most is gratitude, because Coorva became much more than a company.
At the end of 2017, Daniel Trinchero joined as my business partner. That was one of the first major turning points in this story. I was no longer building alone. We began sharing decisions, problems, lessons, and responsibilities that, over time, became much bigger than either of us could have imagined back then.
Then came the clients, the projects, and the people. We worked with small companies building their first products, and with organizations such as the Smithsonian, Shell, Loma Negra, and Siemens. Some projects lasted a few months. Others turned into relationships that lasted for years. Over time, I stopped measuring our story only by the projects we delivered. I started seeing it in the relationships we were able to sustain.
Attune, HITN, and many other clients trusted, and in several cases continue to trust, people from our team to work on systems that are part of their businesses every day. Over these ten years, hundreds of professionals have been part of Coorva, and we have helped fill more than 250 positions. That number impresses me less because of its size than because of what it represents. Behind every position there was a person, an interview, a professional opportunity, a client deciding to trust us, and a team welcoming someone new. Many times, what started as one placement turned into a relationship that lasted for years.
There were also mistakes. Decisions I would make differently today. Services we tried that did not work. Ideas that looked promising and later turned out not to be. Times when we grew, and times when we had to step back and reorganize the company. I think an important part of these ten years has been learning to look at those decisions with better judgment.
I changed a lot too. When I started Coorva, my professional identity was closely tied to being a software engineer. I knew how to build systems and solve technical problems. Running a company was something else entirely. I had to learn about people, sales, finance, strategy, negotiation, and leadership. I had to learn how to make decisions without having all the information, and how to take responsibility for the consequences.
Vistage played an important role in that journey. For years, sitting around a table with other business leaders exposed me to problems, experiences, and ways of thinking that I probably never would have encountered if I had only continued my career as an employee. In 2021, I also had the privilege of being recognized as a Remarkable Member of my group. But that recognition was only one small sign within a much longer process.
Coorva gave me something I value deeply: the opportunity to grow into the leader of an organization. It was not a position someone offered me. It was a responsibility I had to learn how to carry.
The company also changed my life outside of work. Thanks to Coorva, I was able to travel to the United States several times, meet clients in person, meet people I probably never would have crossed paths with otherwise, and discover new places. Each trip expanded my world a little. It helped me better understand how other companies operate, how other business leaders think, and how professional relationships are built between people living thousands of miles apart.
Coorva also made something much more personal possible: owning my own home. That was an important goal for me. I know how difficult that can be in Argentina, and despite all the challenges, I was able to achieve it. When I think about what these ten years mean, I think about that too.
Entrepreneurship is often described through revenue, headcount, clients, or growth. All of that matters. But there is another side of the story that never appears on a dashboard. A company can also change the life of the person building it. It can open doors that were previously closed. It can make it possible to meet people, travel, learn, make mistakes, try again, build financial stability, and discover abilities in yourself that you did not yet know you had.
Coorva did all of that for me.
At the same time, throughout these years, we were also learning what kind of company we wanted to build. We went through different stages: software development, staff augmentation, recruiting, engineering teams, new initiatives, and experiments. Every stage left us with something.
Today, we are entering a new one around Risk-First Engineering and an idea that captures a lot of what we have learned over this decade: when software becomes important to a business, writing code faster is not enough. Judgment matters. Who makes the decisions matters. Understanding what can fail, and what the consequences might be, matters.
Maybe it is not a coincidence that we arrived here after ten years. Many of the things we are now trying to make explicit in the way we work came from real projects, real problems, and years of working alongside engineering teams.
When I look back, there is a lot I could celebrate: the clients who trusted us, the more than 250 positions we helped fill, the projects that made it into production, the relationships that lasted for years, the people who grew within Coorva, the trips, my own professional growth, my home, the good moments, and the difficult ones too.
But there is something I value even more: having had the opportunity to live through all of it.
I did not build Coorva alone. That is why, after ten years, what I feel most is gratitude. To Dani, for sharing so much of this journey with me. To every person who has worked, or still works, at Coorva. To those who trusted us when we were much smaller. To the clients who gave us important responsibilities. To the people who referred us. To those who told me things I did not always want to hear. To my Vistage peers and everyone who helped me grow as a business leader. To my family, who also lived through the consequences of every stage of this company. To my parents, who bought me the laptop I used to start this company. And to everyone who, in one way or another, became part of these ten years.
I am also grateful to the version of myself who decided to try back in 2016. I did not know how to build a company. I did not know everything that was going to happen. I simply decided to start.
Ten years later, Coorva is still here. And so am I. Different. With more experience, more questions, more responsibility, and, I hope, a little more judgment.
Thank you, Coorva, for these ten years and for everything you made possible.
