When I started the business, I knew for sure I wanted to have our entire operations running on Google.
Sergio Rodriguez
Founder & CEO
Born in Chile, Sergio Rodriguez raked leaves and spread mulch to pay tuition while earning a degree in biomedical physics in the U.S. In 2019, Sergio used that experience to create ToDooly, an easy way for people to hire help for their to-do list. Customers use an app to find “doers” for all kinds of odd jobs, from lawn care to event help. “ToDooly evolved from my personal experience. Our top labor pool comes from underrepresented communities, so Black, Latino, low-income families. They need that first job,” says Sergio. He knows that getting a foot in the door is key to his employees’ long-term success. Sergio uses Google Workspace’s real-time collaboration tools like Gmail, Calendar, and Sheets to gain an edge. “It allows us to be significantly faster than people who are still working in some of the older competing products,” he says. ToDooly now serves Detroit and Houston, with plans to expand to other cities soon.
When the pandemic took a big toll on business, the team kept adapting. ”One of our biggest strengths is that we always try to find different ways to do what we do,” says Sergio. In 2022, a Google for Startups Latino Founders Fund award provided a big boost to the company. “Less than two percent of venture capital goes to Latino entrepreneurs,” Sergio points out, “so being funded by Google validates that we are in fact building a highly scalable, venture-backable business. Everyone knows Google–it’s a sticker of approval that we’re moving the right direction." And that direction is up, with a 4.9 percent rise in jobs from their Google Business Profile and 23 percent from Google Ads. Sergio is also proud to be a member of the Michigan Founders Fund, a nonprofit that helps businesses grow in their community. He says, “We want to continue to be part of that ecosystem and provide support in creating jobs and educating the next generation of entrepreneurs.”