PARTICULARS
First name: Gianfranco
Last name: Gaio (origins)
Born: 1980
Nationaliy: Swiss, Italian
Profession: Product Owner @ KLARA
MY PERSONAL LIFE
My parents sent me to take piano lessons as a kid. With the years my interest in classic music waned and the motivation to practice was very low. Eventually I stopped taking lessons, but I am glad for the years of practice and the ability to read music notes. Once, a work-colleague told me that people who can play the piano develop stronger problem solving skills and learn to approach problems in a more systematic fashion.
As a teenager I developed a strong interest in dance and techno music. Soon I started to experiment playing music with vinyls and practicing to become a DJ. Besides making music for my own enjoyment and for friends (mixtapes), I also started to DJ at the local youth club. The first experiences in which we are able to give our creativity free space.
Together with a group of friends we founded a party label called ISP and organized parties in our hometown as well as in the city of Zurich. We had more success in our local town and surrounding area than in the city where competition was higher. After a few years I quit/sidelined my career as a DJ and started to focus more on the event management tasks. Our ISP adventure was a great experience that helped me further develop and grow in my organizational and planning skills.
By the end of 2002 I finally decided to leave in order to improve my English. So I visited a the EF language school in San Diego, USA. The focus was to improve my English, but thanks to all the good people on campus I had an unforgettable time. I definitely recommend such an experience to everyone!
Growing up my favorite sport was soccer. I started playing at my hometown soccer club when I was eight years old, and went on to play in every youth category. I eventually went on to train as a coach and obtained the UEFA B coaching diploma. My new diploma allowed me to start coaching young kids. It was my first experience leading a group. Working with kids was an enriching experience and further developed my leading and coaching skills.
Following years of engagement, the club’s board asked me to fill in the position as the head of the youth department. I believe that I achieved a lot during the three years that I served under this position. Thanks to my background knowledge and online skills, I took over the club’s online presence and was able to build a more professional image of the club. I introduced processes to facilitate communication among stakeholders. With the help of other members we introduced new internal tournaments and worked to improve the organization of existing ones. The many challenges tackled during this experience gave me the opportunity to grow in my leading and managing skills.
After three intensive years of work in the club’s board I stepped down, mainly because the time investment was too high. My experience enabled me to help my successor with many useful tips and helped him build a bigger team to help manage the youth department. Today I am still in charge of the club’s online presence and for the organization of the yearly indoor and outdoor tournament.