This week, the SphereCast team interviews Álvaro Ybáñez, Chief Product Officer at Fly-Fut. Fly-Fut uses modern drone technology and loads of creativity to make every amateur futbol player — or soccer player, as some say — feel like an idol. Fly-Fut’s main product offering features an aerial view of match highlights, paired with professional narration and energizing music. Though futbol is its first love, Fly-Fut aspires to delve into other sports such as basketball, tennis, volleyball, and more.
Ybáñez, who is both a veteran product expert and futbol lover, truly believes that Fly-Fut is going to revolutionize the game. But, while the rewards of startup innovation are high, Álvaro knows that getting a young company off the ground is no walk in the park. On the podcast, Ybáñez discusses some of Fly-Fut’s biggest challenges but also divulges the myriad ways he stays grounded as a senior executive at a fast-moving company.
Noteworthy Quotes:
"The most important thing for any company — and not just startups — is to talk to customers. Every single week. Discover and research, regardless of the phase you're in. You have to talk to customers all the time. Not a single euro that goes into research or discovery is badly spent."
"Technology never stops. And it's evolving faster. So, not knowing what is coming in the next 18 months is our biggest challenge."
"The thing about choosing technologies for a startup is that you never know what to use properly until you have a very well-defined business case."
"I plan my days ahead with time blocking... You can plan the day ahead and make sure you're producing the most work possible. That's a very proactive way to organize your day. Because if you keep responding to emails and let other people push you around, you don't get much done... Organizing days beforehand has been a life-changer for me."
"I don't need to relax. I have a couple of habits that have made me not need to relax."
Bullet List of Resources –
Álvaro Ybáñez
Fly-Fut
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