Tech Nest: The Proptech Podcast S4E45 Interview with Michael Driedger, CEO of Operto
Our founders both sought to improve wellbeing for people and the world we live in, but from diverse perspectives: green architecture and brain fitness. These unique paths converged thanks to a shared love of technology, sustainability, and travel. Operto was born from a desire to make life better for property managers, who are the busiest people we’ve ever met.
Originally called Slickspaces, our first goal was to reduce the environmental impact and energy consumption of short-term vacation rentals. Like many problems, it was simple in theory but challenging to solve. Convincing guests to turn off lights and thermostats was impossible, so we turned to technology - using smart locks to automate the process.
These early days of managing guest access revealed a much greater need. Property managers were spending countless hours getting guests in and out of their properties. They had almost no visibility into the status of their units and no centralized system from which to operate. While smart home technology was becoming increasingly common, nothing brought solutions together to create a truly cooperative ecosystem.
That seed brought us to where we are today: the world’s leading operating system for property managers across the full spectrum of guest accommodations.