Young, ambitious, and making a difference: inside the minds of Filipino Gen Z founders

Gone are the days when the titles “founder” or “CEO” automatically meant a person in their 50s and upward. It’s not unheard of anymore for the leader of a promising startup to be a fresh-faced youth straight out of college, or even just high school (especially in the world of tech). This seems especially true of Generation Z (or simply Gen Z), the umbrella term for those born between the late 1990s and early 2010s. Gen Z is known for its intense need to do meaningful work and a desire to drive innovation to change the world for the better.

The intense desire to innovate and take charge makes it unsurprising that Gen Z is already making waves in the startup scene. An international study on Generation Influence indicates about two-thirds of Gen Z have started or intend to start their own business.

It stands to reason that the Philippines’ young population (the median age is about 25.3 years old) would produce youthful startup founders. From mental health services and educational programs to sustainability-focused initiatives, a slew of Filipino startup founders are now making their mark on the world—all before their 30th birthday.

Meet the founders

There is Shawntel Nicole Martinez Nieto, co-founder of Sustainable PH which is a startup that creates customized capacity-building programs for businesses looking to be more sustainable. Similarly, Steph Naval also lasers in on a social cause with her startup Empath which works to make mental health services more accessible than ever. Finally, Kristoni Go of Studentship Philippines uses education tech to extend quality education to young Filipinos everywhere.

All of these startups have already enjoyed some success. Sustainable PH, for example, was able to launch a program focused on the ​theory and practice of sustainability management that produced 30 graduates from public and private organizations as well as civic spaces. Empath was recently among nine women-led businesses awarded P30 million in grants by the Department of Science and Technology. Studentship Philippines was able to provide technical expertise on distance learning and learning management systems to educators under the Department of Education Region XII.

Even the individual founders themselves are no strangers to receiving accolades: Nieto was the first Filipino recipient of the prestigious Diana Award, Naval was among those recognized by UN Women for championing gender equality and women’s empowerment, while Go was a winner at the NxtGen in Franchising 2022 Competition.

To understand how young startup founders got to where they are today, it’s necessary to go in-depth into their past struggles, what drives them as an entrepreneur, and how they see their mission.

Finding a problem and solving it

One might be surprised that there was no singular “go for it” moment for most of these startup founders. For them, the decision to go ahead with their ventures was a natural progression between observing a problem and wanting to solve it.

For Nieto, the idea to start Sustainable PH (and her other venture, the One Cainta Food Program) came from the need to assist marginalized communities during the pandemic in 2020. Go similarly cites that there was never a one-time moment for Studentship Philippines, rather he always reminded himself that someone would always have to bridge learning opportunities for the underserved.

Naval herself felt the need for improved access to quality mental health services. She got the idea for Empath after recovering from a mental health episode herself and reflecting on a decade of hospital visits, searching for a quality psychologist, and navigating the Philippine mental health system. Empath was simply a result of trying to fix the problems Naval saw and experienced first-hand.

Yet the founders admit their youth has afforded them a certain privilege in taking the risk to found a startup. Being in their 20s allows them time to learn and grow from their mistakes, with nothing much to lose (no families to support, for instance).

The ability to take risks is also amplified by having safety nets. This can be in the form of supportive parents, the help and services of various entrepreneurship programs offered by the government, the academe, and even private entities via incubator programs and startup grants.

Ultimately, however, Naval summed up the advantages of youth as the ability to fail fast, learn even faster, and carry the energy and drive to do the grunt work of growing a business. Combined with a never-ending curiosity to learn more and evolve, it’s a small wonder that youth-led startups continue to grow.

Learning from past mistakes

Despite the successes they’ve enjoyed at such a young age it wasn’t always smooth sailing for these founders. Instead of enjoying quick, almost overnight success, they are where they are now because of their past mistakes.

Nieto revealed that Sustainable PH wasn’t even her first enterprise. Her past ventures have taught her that founders need to be patient when it comes to their team’s progress and milestones. More than anything else, what’s important is to stay detail-oriented when it comes to setting up the structure of an enterprise.

“I would have doubled in more on the importance of pilot cases/tests and on the need to put up clear working policies, protocols, and systems at the get-go,” said Nieto. Learning from this realization allowed Sustainable PH to grow at a more suitable pace.

Go similarly advised taking a cautious approach when starting. He expressed that the one thing he would change in his journey as a founder was to take a more flexible, long-term approach to edutech, his startup’s bread and butter.

“I should not have invested in physical assets that easily depreciate. The pandemic and the inevitable shift to hybrid learning taught me that this was impractical,” Go shared. “Instead, I should have allocated the little capital that I had in product development and continuous market validation.”

According to Go, the earliest version of Studentship Philippines focused on creating afterschool programs with physical learning spaces with equipment and tools used to accommodate online and collaborative learning. Naturally, Go invested in movable tables, chairs and cabinets, and ICT equipment such as computer units. Unfortunately, all of these investments became irrelevant when the COVID-19 pandemic forced learning online.

What yielded positive returns, on the other hand, were product development and market validation. Once Studentship Philippines realized its mistake and focused on what was doing well, it managed to land grants and partnerships.

For Naval, however, she simply wished she found the right people to grow her startup with earlier on. Once she was able to form the right team is when Empath took off. “It took a while, but I’m really glad to have found an amazing community of highly intelligent, well-skilled, intuitive, and really supportive people with me on this journey,” she said.

Staying on their toes

The founders’ ability to learn from their mistakes also ties in with their ability to keep from falling complacent. Despite all they’ve accomplished, all are hesitant to proclaim themselves an outright ‘success’—and even keep any celebrations humble.

“I think that it is still too early for me to claim to be successful,” shared Go. “Whenever Studentship Philippines achieved a milestone, we would only celebrate by sharing a meal.”

For Nieto, every sign of success only means it’s time to dream even bigger. “Any sign of success gives me the ability to believe that I can bet on myself and my vision, even when it seems daunting,” she said.

Naval even advises that budding founders take successes as an opportunity to rest and recharge. This is especially crucial given the potential for burnout among startup founders.

“I had to learn that, when it comes to building a startup, it’s a marathon, not a sprint,” said Naval.”

Wisdom with age

Considering the ‘marathon’ view of building a startup, there are still times when the founders wish they were older or further along their journey.

For others, like Nieto, being young means having to wait for the time and experience to become who they want to be. “I know I still have a lot of skills to develop, knowledge and concepts to learn, as well as work to do before I become the person capable of doing the things I wish I could,” she expressed.

Even the simple act of being a young founder can set one apart from peers who choose to go the more traditional, ‘safe’ route of seeking employment. Though startups like Studentship Philippines circumvent this problem by emphasizing the value of companionship among its teachers and learners, it is still a problem nonetheless.

The feeling of being seemingly alone on the path is one familiar to Naval. From her experience, starting out and having to scale a startup for the first time is akin to being a small, insignificant fish in uncharted waters. This is only amplified by having to work in Filipino culture, which Naval observed carries a bias against young, seemingly “unproven” entrepreneurs.

“Because I was young it would take a while for others to see what I can actually do and that I can be a reliable person to lead a high impact-centered enterprise,” said Naval.

Turbulence up ahead

Ultimately, Go, Nieto, and Naval show us that the life of a young startup founder is no easy task. No matter what they’ve done in the past, they understand that what matters is how well they respond to tomorrow’s challenges.

Anticipating tomorrow’s challenges is especially relevant given the expected slowdown for the world economy in 2023. Macroeconomic factors such as rising inflation rates mean global growth will slow to 1.7% from an expected 3% just six months ago. All of this is set to have an outright effect on businesses both big and small as investors become increasingly cautious.

Go advises startups to weather any coming storm by remembering their vision. “Regardless of the environment or the time, it is the very vision of the founder and the enterprise that the investors would mostly look into. The figures would then come next,” Go stated. Thus, startups should concentrate on staying true to their vision and work on showing they’ve done what they can to achieve it. With the right vision and results, the right investors will come.

Nieto reminds startups trying to raise funds to leverage their network. “For one, your work expands through your network. You can never know the infinite possibilities that can arise from a single connection,” she said. “Thus, determine what parts of your work can be expanded through partnerships, identify partners that could support you, and start sealing these relationships.”

Naval ultimately encourages people to see the coming headwinds as an opportunity.

“Some of the most successful startups such as Microsoft, Uber, Pinterest, WhatsApp, and many more were actually founded during recessions,” concluded Naval. “Rather than just a hindrance, I also see it as a good resiliency test on how sound and strong the startup is, and how well the team can continue to grow the vision despite the environment.”

Overall, Nieto, Go, and Naval demonstrate that anything is possible with hard work, the willingness to learn, and the desire to make the world a better place. Although they may be young, anyone can learn from their insights and experience.

No matter what challenges they’ve faced, what’s clear is that these young startup founders have demonstrated impressive creativity, resilience, and drive in changing the way we live and work. Their ambition, determination, and adaptability are all proof that the future is indeed bright for Philippine startups.

The Q&A in full

1. If you had a chance to change ONE thing about your journey as a founder, what would it be, and why?

Nieto:   “Slow is smooth and smooth is fast.” SustainablePH is not my first enterprise. If I were to do things differently, I would have been more patient with my founding team’s progress/milestones and more detail-oriented with regard to how we set our structure as an enterprise and as a team up. I would have doubled in more on the importance of pilot cases/tests and on the need to put up clear working policies, protocols, and systems at the get-go.

Naval: I think it was to find the right people sooner to surround myself with. It took a while, but I’m really glad to have found an amazing community of highly intelligent, well-skilled, intuitive, and really supportive people with me on this journey.

Go:      If I were to go back to 2019, our pilot year, I would have reminded myself to be guided by the Jesuit ideal of “living with one foot raised”. This means that I should be comfortable and always ready in this constantly changing world that we live in.

One particular realization relative to this is that I should have not invested in physical assets that easily depreciate. The pandemic and the inevitable shift to hybrid learning taught me that this was impractical. Instead, I should have allocated the little capital that I had in product development and in continuous market validation. The early version of our startup, Studentship Philippines was that of an educational technology company that provides innovative after-school programs with the effective use of “learning commons”, a learning space that featured equipment and tools used to accommodate online and collaborative learning, among others.

Naturally, I invested in movable tables, chairs and cabinets, and ICT equipment such as computer units. In the past 3 years, these assets didn’t serve their purpose. What yielded positive returns, on the other hand, were product development and market validation. By investing in the improvement and iteration of our programs and services and by continuously understanding the market, we were able to secure grants, forge partnerships, and implement programs with various partners and institutions.

2. Tell us about that one moment that made you decide to just “go for it?”

Nieto:   Things just happened. I did not plan to start SustainablePH nor the One Cainta Food Program. It just so happened that at the start of 2020, the need to unite and improve the Philippine sustainability sector of practitioners and provide for our marginalized communities brought about by the pandemic, respectively, came about. I saw these two big needs as opportunities to do something and so I jumped in and co-founded the two organizations. I went for it because there was a clear need and I knew that my teams had good solutions for it.

Naval: It took place back in my university condominium unit. I had just recovered from one of my mental health episodes. I sat on my bed thinking that I’d been under the Philippine mental healthcare system for more than half a decade, and until now there hadn’t been much significant improvements and changes to it. At this time, I knew that mental healthcare was important and impactful for everyone, and, in fact, it had saved my life.

However, in order for me to have crossed that bridge, it took me a lot of money, several hospital visits, so much trial and error for finding a quality psychologist, and blind searching of how to properly navigate my way through the mental healthcare system. I didn’t know who to talk to, where to start, how to even go about this, and so on. There were so many barriers to accessing mental healthcare, and not much had significantly improved over the past decade. I’ve met so many others who have struggled but haven’t been as fortunate as I was with navigating through the mental healthcare system. So, as I was on my bed that afternoon being so frustrated with this injustice, I thought: “F*ck it. Something needs to be done now about it.”

Go:      The “go for it” moment was never a one-time thing for me. To be honest, there are times when I would ask myself if this was still worth the time and effort. When this happens, I take a pause and go back to the social enterprise identity of our startup and to our vision of bridging learning opportunities, especially to the underserved.

I would then ask myself 3 questions. First, would somebody else have and work for the same vision as we do? Second, would they do better? And third, would they have the preferential option for the underserved? As long as one of these three questions yields a “no” for an answer, I know that I should keep going.

3. Youth can have its advantages and disadvantages. What makes you sometimes wish you were older or further along your path?

Nieto:    I firmly believe that there are still some dreams I have to “grow into.” I know I still have a lot of skills to develop, knowledge and concepts to learn, as well as work to do before I become the person capable of doing the things I wish I could. I am doing what I can to develop what I need to. Sometimes, especially when I think of all the things I want to do and stand for, I wish I could already be the person whose skillset, platform, and ability match such dreams and roles; but as with everything, I understand that these things take time and experience.

Naval:   In the beginning, there were times when I’d feel insecure that I was a small fish in a vast ocean of uncharted waters for me. When it comes to Filipino culture, most especially, there is sometimes that bias against young entrepreneurs. Because of this, it would take a while for others to see what I can actually do and that I can be a reliable person to lead a high-impact-centered enterprise.

Despite some of these disadvantages, being part of the youth has given me advantages as well. It has allowed me to fail fast, and learn even faster. I come from a growth-hungry and fresh problem-solving mindset. I have more energy and drive to even do the grunt work needed for the business to succeed. At the same time, I am able to easily pick up rich learnings and insights not just from my own experience, but also from others with generations-worth of wisdom before me.

Go:      While the energy and creativity of the youth can definitely break barriers, starting young as a founder can be lonely at times as it is a road less travelled. Oftentimes, you’ll find yourself to be distant and distinct from your peers who traverse the traditional path of employment. In Studentship Philippines, we beat this by highlighting “companionship” as one of our core values. And so, we consider ourselves as each other’s learning companions. Nothing beats genuine relationships and networks. These aren’t something that you could just have overnight, and this is a treasure that older people had the advantage of having. Finding, spending time, learning, and growing with your “companions” just like what the oldies had done over time, is something that I wouldn’t want to neglect working on.

4. A lot are saying 2023 is a year of being cautious, with what’s happening in the world today. Investors, for one, will be painstakingly selective in their ventures. What would you advise fellow startups who are trying to raise funds in this environment? 

Nieto:   Build your traction and your network. For one, your work expands through your network. You can never know the infinite possibilities that can arise from a single connection. Thus, determine what parts of your work can be expanded through partnerships, identify partners that could support you, and start sealing these relationships. For another, every small thing counts. Don’t be discouraged by barriers to investment that you may face now. Focus on growing as you go, to the extent that you can. The more you build up traction, the greater your chances of building trust and securing investments and support.

Naval: Some of the most successful startups such as Microsoft, Uber, Pinterest, WhatsApp, and many more were actually founded during recessions. Rather than just a hindrance, I also see it as a good resiliency test on how sound and strong the startup is, and how well the team can continue to grow the vision despite the environment. Yes, it may be difficult, but not impossible and it is a learning opportunity.

Go:      Regardless of the environment or the time, it is the very vision of the Founder and the Enterprise that the investors would mostly look into. The figures would then come next. Startup founders must make sure that they have a solid vision as this serves as the very foundation of their enterprise. When they are then able to effectively communicate their vision and successfully produce significant figures, the right people will come.

5. Achieving success at this young age deserves more than a pat on the back. What did you do to reward yourself for all that hard work?

Nieto:   I gave myself permission to dream more and to dream bigger – to believe that I can bet on myself and on my vision even when it seems too daunting and too impossible at times.

Naval: Rest. I had to learn that, when it comes to building a startup, it’s a marathon, not a sprint.

Go:      I humbly believe that the definition of success is relative and to be honest, I think that it is still too early for me to claim to be successful. What I could speak about and be grateful for instead are our milestones for the past 3 years. Whenever we achieve a milestone, I reward myself by sharing the achievement and spending time with my family and companions in the startup. We would often celebrate by sharing a meal.

6. How would you say that your youth affects your risk appetite as a founder?

Nieto:   I must admit that I leverage a lot on the privileges I get from where I am in life right now. Being a young person, I don’t have as many responsibilities and dependents as adults do; while thanks to my family, I am also able to leverage a relatively good safety net for my needs. Beyond these, as a young person, I acknowledge that I also have a little bit more time and societal permission to “figure it out,” “make rookie mistakes,” and overall “explore.” As a founder, such privileges allow me to take more risks and double down on my vision more than others do. Sometimes, being a founder is not the most practical thing in the world. I’m thankful that at this stage in my life, I still have the opportunity to be more flexible and daring with my choice

Naval: For me, it’s not necessarily the age that may have a direct effect on risk appetite, but more on the values and type of problem-solving skills as a founder. I’ve seen this vary across different ages.

Go:      Building a startup definitely involves a huge amount of risks but I find starting young to be beneficial towards the risk appetite as a founder. The youth can tolerate much more risks as they have, most of the time, nothing much to lose. This is also a great time and opportunity to think outside the box, to dream, to imagine, and to seize the day. With this, I am reminded of the Jesuit ideal of “heroism”. By espousing this, one can transform opportunities and shape their own vision of the future. This is, however, best paired with a safety net. With minimal resources and capital, startup founders can take advantage of the help and services of various entrepreneurship programs offered by the government, the academe, and even private entities. These are mostly offered in the form of incubator programs and startup grants.