In this episode we welcome Urs Wietlisbach. At the end of his first day at the SQUARE as a personality in residence, he shares his path to where he stands today. We cover how he left Goldman Sachs to become self-employed and talk about the founding process of Partners Group. Wietlisbach tells us how the three founders made the perfect entrepreneur when put together. We also talk about financially giving back – especially to the HSG foundation. Wietlisbach was one of the first to contribute to the building of the SQUARE and he expresses how private funding helps the University of St. Gallen to keep the high rankings it has.

Timestamps

(00:00:00) Intro

(00:01:04) Personality in residence at SQUARE

(00:01:23) Professional background

(00:02:53) Studying at HSG

(00:03:52) Wish of becoming self-employed

(00:04:33) Who opened doors for you?

(00:05:35) For whom do you want to open doors?

(00:06:24) Swiss Sports Aid Foundation

(00:07:18) Entrepreneurship as a banker’s son

(00:10:14) Fraud in the founding process

(00:10:51) Learning through mistakes or success

(00:11:21) Most rewarding moments

(00:13:21) Work-life balance

(00:15:28) HSG Alumni

(00:16:30) Private funding of SQUARE

(00:17:43) Summer sport or winter sports?

(00:17:56) Safe and predictable or risky but exciting?

(00:18:04) Early stage or established player?

(00:18:14) Hard skills or soft skills?

(00:18:23) E-Mails or phone calls?

(00:18:30) Advice for aspiring entrepreneurs

(00:19:24) Outro