LaunchVic taps former DoorDash executive to scale Victoria's startup scene
Puji Fernando brings five years of scaling experience to the government-backed startup agency as it works to create 30 billion-dollar companies by 2030.
Victoria’s startup agency, LaunchVic, has appointed former DoorDash general manager Puji Fernando as its chief operating officer, bringing private sector experience to the government-backed organisation.
Fernando, who spent five years scaling DoorDash’s operations across Australia and New Zealand, steps into the role as LaunchVic works to nurture more billion-dollar startups in the state. His appointment follows the Victorian Government’s commitment to another four years of funding for the agency.
The appointment reflects a broader push to bring commercial expertise into government-backed startup initiatives ."What really blew me away was meeting the team and seeing their alignment to the purpose, the network and rapport they have with everyone in the ecosystem already," Fernando said. His first two weeks have been spent meeting founders and program alumni to explore how LaunchVic’s support can be improved.
Fernando sees strong parallels between his own experience and that of startup founders navigating challenging market conditions. At DoorDash, he joined when the team was just a couple of dozen people and left when it had grown to hundreds.
