Dr Manuel Seidel

What began as a classic Kiwi start-up has morphed into the leading health, safety and risk-management software company in Australasia, with its sights set on global expansion. 

Dr Manuel Seidel started his business ecoPortal during his PhD which he completed in 2011.

The concept was to create innovative software that could challenge traditional, clunky paper-based systems to help businesses manage sustainability in an easy, engaging and meaningful way. 

“My final-year Bachelor of Engineering project involved helping a local manufacturing company reduce the environmental impact of their flat-pack furniture,” Manuel, 39, says. “I realised companies were struggling to develop and implement sustainable business practices, and I saw an opportunity to help companies make money while minimising their negative impact on the planet.”

Manuel graduated as the top Senior Scholar in his year and went on to complete a PhD, during which he developed the framework for ecoPortal.“The goal of my doctorate was to understand the barriers in creating and executing on sustainability strategy and developing tools to make it simple. That formed the basis of ecoPortal.”

In 2008, Manuel and a team of PhD students officially founded ecoPortal, and entered it into Velocity, the University’s student entrepreneurship competition.They didn’t win, but left with some valuable advice on how to grow the venture.

“There was plenty of interest in our product but a lot of companies at the time did not have the budget to buy software for environmental sustainability management,” Manuel says. 

Over the following ten to 15 years, events such as the Pike River mining tragedy, new health and safety legislation, and the Covid-19 pandemic have seen organisations take more action and leadership around managing risk, and place greater value on stringent health and safety practices.

During this time, the ecoPortal team took stock, evaluated the external environment, and subsequently adapted the software to include health and safety, meeting the rising demand for streamlined compliance solutions.

“As a leader, the ability to adapt is critical,” Manuel says, “Along with surrounding yourself with excellent mentors.”

In particular, Manuel acknowledges the support he’s received from his father Dr Rainer Seidel, a well-respected academic in the Department of Mechanical Engineering.

“He spent the better part of his 30 years at the University of Auckland fostering relationships with the industry and helping students get experience working with businesses during their degrees,” Manuel says.

Manuel also works alongside his wife, Dr Helene Seidel-Sterzik, who did her Master of Engineering Management at the University of Auckland and her PhD at Massey University. 

In 2018, the pair bought out the other co-founders of ecoPortal, and now Dr Helene Seidel-Sterzik is the COO and a Director.

While the journey hasn’t always been easy, Manuel has retained a laser-focused mentality and drive to succeed, more than tripling the company’s size since 2018.

Both Manuel and Helene are big on team culture and credit ecoPortal’s rapid growth to the environment they’ve created – one that firmly values its people and holds space for innovative, visionary thinking.

“Around 30 of our staff work in the product and engineering teams and we are constantly evolving to improve usability and the breadth of the features that we offer.

“Our goal for the business is to continue to grow at a sustainable rate and ultimately become recognised as the leader in our industry, with a relentless mission to improve workplace health and safety, alongside corporate sustainability.”