In this interview piece, women++ is incredibly grateful for the opportunity to speak to Daniela Marino, Co-Founder and CEO of CUTISS. CUTISS is a bio-tech startup offering personalized skin tissue therapy to patients who suffer from large skin injuries and defects. Here’s Daniela’s story.
1. Tell us about yourself. Feel free to share your professional background, education and personal life (if you’re comfortable).
I am originally Italian, from Sicily, but I have been in Switzerland now for almost twenty years. I studied Biotech in Milano first, and then came to ETH for my PhD. During my postdoc studies at the University of Zurich (UZH), I started working on skin bio-engineering, and that was the start of my journey into the field of regenerative medicine.
In addition to co-founding and running a company as CEO, I am also a mom of 2 kids.
All in all, I love my life!
2. Share more about your startup journey with us! What was your motivation for starting CUTISS?
During my postdoc time, I was tasked with developing and writing the application for a large EU grant together with my boss, to try to get funding for a first-in-human study for our skin grafting product, denovoSkin™.
The denovoSkin™ is a personalized, bio-engineered human skin graft for the treatment of severe skin injuries, like big burns and scars. We got the grant which meant we could continue our research and development in clinical settings, and the clinical trial results showed positive results.
And so at that point, I thought that creating a company was the right next step to try and take this innovative solution to the patients in need.
3. What are some significant challenges you have faced, as a female founder, when working on CUTISS?
My second kid was born 3 months after the company CUTISS was born. As a result, while being a CEO, heavily involved in the entire company creation and securing financing, I was in parallel with my little one getting him to know the world. I was quite frank and open in juggling my professional and personal life, and some investors were skeptical of this situation. As such, it was not always easy to win their trust, but it worked. Things can change, not painlessly — it takes time, effort, energy.
4. Throughout your startup journey, what insights have you gained or discovered?
Creating a company is a huge social exercise. Building the team, finding the money, evolving the team, keeping up with commitments and energy — in good and bad times.
It is a real roller coaster with the difference that, at Disneyland the ride lasts 30 seconds, and here it has been ongoing for the last 6 years. You need a lot of strength and passion to keep on going.
5. Diversity and Inclusion (DNI) is a really hot topic of discussion these days. What is your view about the current DNI situation within the Swiss tech industry or even on a global level?
We need more diversity and we need more inclusion, of course.
According to Swiss government statistics, there has been a small increase of 2.2% of women in tech since 2019. Additionally, the Federal Statistical Office stated this year that women remain poorly represented in the field of science and technology.
On the other hand, Switzerland has 24 female tech communities, all of them focused on bringing more girls and women into the tech industry.
Ultimately, I think that education is the key. We need to start educating the new generations on it or we will get stuck sooner than later.
6. What advice would you give to women looking to start/switch to a career in tech?
Go for it if you think this is your passion, your dream. You need to do what makes you get up every day and start as if it was your first. Think about it, find your happy place and just go for it.
7. Do you consider your work as purposeful tech? In your view, is it important to help the new generations find purpose within their jobs?
Absolutely. The world is changing very fast. Just look at the rate of development in AI. If your job has no purpose, you will soon be in trouble. Younger generations just need a little guidance in finding their purpose. They are already on the right track and we should not “teach” them, rather accompany them in the exploration of the future so they will feel engaged and not alone.
#purposefultech #femalepreneur #femalefounder
About the author
Clara Cho is a volunteer content writer with women++ based in Zürich. Armed with an academic background in European Studies and Political Science, Clara has embarked on a unique career path in communications and marketing for a variety of organisations, making her a versatile personality. She is enthusiastic about new ideas for creative and effective communication and is a big advocate of teamwork. Clara hails from cosmopolitan Singapore. She enjoys Zumba, hiking, travelling, handmade crafts and discovering new places during her free time.
One of her favourite quotes:
“I think everything in life is art. What you do. How you dress. The way you love someone, and how you talk. Your smile and your personality. What you believe in, and all your dreams. The way you drink your tea. How you decorate your home. Or party. Your grocery list. The food you make. How your writing looks. And the way you feel. Life is art”. ~Helena Bonham Carter
