Why did it take so long for ceviche to make its mark on the restaurant world? It can only mean one thing – it’s Lucky 13 time, with Paulo Cunha, CEO at ShiftForward.

1 – Summarise yourself in three words.

“Many-hats-man.”

2 – What made you want to pursue a career in media and marketing?

“It was a mix of luck and wanting a challenge; I was fortunate enough to stumble across the industry during the exciting early days of digital media and I could see that this was a sector at the start of something big, and where people on the outside had little idea about how complex and tricky it could be.

“Us techies were therefore a bit like wizards! And I found it very motivating to be able to make the wheels turn in the way that people wanted them to. Since then it has grown into a healthy obsession.”

3 – Describe your ideal client.

“One that keeps us engaged in its own product and business innovations. This creates an honest relationship and also allows us to foresee our own market fit, something that has helped us shape our own roadmap many times.  Most recently this has been with AudienceScience with whom we are working very much as a team to create the best ad forecasting solution for their clients.”

4 – Name your favourite ever campaign.

“Any of Carlsberg’s ‘Probably the best’ campaigns. They probably are.”

5 – Which award win are you most proud of, and why?

“The next one. I’m a firm believer that the big things to come tomorrow are built today. At ShiftForward we tend to spend a lot of time working on our goals and how we are going to achieve them – but this then leaves us less time than it should to actually enjoy those successes!  We would also love to help an advertiser win an M&M Award by optimising their campaigns with our technology!”

6 – Who is the best industry speaker you have seen?

“Although he’s not as active as he used to be, I still rate Mike Nolet, co-founder and former CTO at AppNexus, as one of the best. He has the rare ability to anticipate and explain the fundamental business shifts that new technological developments bring to this industry.”

7 – Which is your favourite social media platform, and why?

“Even if I’m not the biggest consumer of social media, I do rate LinkedIn and Twitter: the first for business updates, the second as a way to stay in touch with my inner geek.”

8 – Where is your ideal meeting venue?

“I would avoid the fuggy, windowless meeting rooms in huge buildings, preferring (in an ideal world) a sunny, not-too-noisy bar by the sea.”

9 – What is your favourite restaurant?

“Anything South American – why did it take so long for ceviche to make its mark on the restaurant world?”

10 – What is hot in international media and marketing, and what is not?

“This is easy to answer.

“Hot: transparency, automation and data science.

“Not: LUMAscape.”

11 – Which industry buzzword would you ban?

“Big data. In advertising, there’s no other kind.”

12 – Where do you see yourself in 10 years’ time?

“Relaxing a little more than I allow myself to nowadays. Realistically, I’ll probably be working to exactly the same frantic schedule as I have today but with a bigger team and ever more interesting ideas to bring to life.”

13 – Finally, who would play you in a movie of your life?

“Humphrey Bogart, although I appreciate time-machines might be useful to make this happen.”