S&E Guarantee Pilot: Roberto Henriquez Perozo

Born and raised in Venezuela, Roberto moved to Spain “for nationality and opportunity”. He interned in the energy sector but felt that the things he was doing could be easily automated and replaced by code yet didn’t know how to write that code himself. That’s when he decided to take the Ironhack course.

Data analytics adding value

“Business-specific knowledge is one thing,” says Roberto Henriquez-Perozo, “but with data-analytics, you can leverage your position. Data analysis, extraction, cleaning, interpreting, machine learning, AI… it helps you digest information and convert it into actionable decisions. If you have an expertise, and you add to that data analytics, you can put the two together and become a real expert.”

Skillset expansion

Roberto took a 9-week course on data analytics in early 2020, deciding to expand his skillset and equip himself with programming and data analytics skills - in the midst of the pandemic. “It was intense, but it was fun; digging into the tools, exploring, everyone online at the same time…we learned a lot in a short period of time.”

In order to pursue the Ironhack course, Roberto turned to Student Finance, where he got financial support in the form of an ISA (income-sharing agreement) backed by the EIF under the EU’s Investment Plan for Europe. “I was always sure that I needed to study something like this. It just took a while to find the right opportunity. Having the ISA was what allowed me to do it. Otherwise, I simply had no capital to pay for the course. The way the ISA is structured allowed me to do it without worrying about the financing. I had just arrived, with no credit history or funds. It was really the only path I could take to upskill myself.”

“If you have an expertise, and you add to that data analytics, you can put the two together and become a real expert. ”

- Roberto Henriquez Perozo

Starting his own project

After finishing the course, Roberto joined a freelancer cooperative and with them cofounded ‘Polywrap’, a bleeding-edge tool for the blockchain industry, creating systems that support DAOs (decentralised autonomous organisations – a new type of legal entity that lives on the blockchain and is formed by individuals working remotely from different locations). “What we’re building is very technical, but you can think of it as a tool that we expect to be as prevalent as https. Polywrap started as a four-person team and now we are closing our second round of funding. I feel like I’ve found my sweet spot, bringing together my corporate experience and my new-found data analytics skills.”