founder

Ep 65 – The art of hypothesis testing in startups with Alex Osterwalder

March 29, 2023

🎙️ Want to know how to optimize your hypothesis testing and find out how the experts do it?
Tune in to today’s engaging podcast, where Alex Osterwalder, the creator of the Business Model Canvas and co-founder of Strategyzer, is interviewed. Ranked no. 4 of the top 50 management thinkers worldwide and visiting professor at IMD, Alex is known for simplifying the strategy development process and turning complex concepts into digestible visual models.
Within the episode they dive into the art of testing and developing hypotheses to give you the most valuable insights, indulging into deep dives in topics such as:
– Why hypotheses should focus on desirability rather than feasibility
– The relevance of leveraging AI in hypothesis testing
– How to test hypotheses without direct contact with the desired data sources
– Testing hypotheses in corporate or B2B environments
Plus, stick around for some great advice Alex would have given his younger self! You don’t want to miss out on this thought-provoking conversation!

P.S. The YouTube video can be very beneficial to see the great visuals Alex creates during the podcast to make the content more digestible.

Thank you for listening to our podcast! Don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast and stay tuned for more exciting episodes 🙂

EP 64 – How to screw up your startup: 5 financial mistakes with Dr. Sven Greulich

March 15, 2023

Do you know about all the different ways to screw up your startup’s financials?

Managing investments for your startup is bound to come with difficulties and requires a lot of learning by doing. However, you can learn how to avoid these mistakes beforehand!

Tune in to todays episode and listen to Sven, Gerrit and Dries discuss about:
Both sides of the financing table
What type of red flags to identify in investors
Do you get in bed with the devil?
Equity shares in university spin outs
And many other interesting topics!

We hope you enjoy!

EP 63 – How to screw up your startup: 5 human mistakes with Dr. Sven Greulich

March 1, 2023

Learn from legal expert Dr. Sven Greulich how to avoid typical founder pitfalls!

In episode 63, we are excited to introduce Dr. Sven Greulich to you, who elaborates on the main pitfalls the Orrick Legal Ninja Series identified. To give you a little insight, here are the first two problems discussed:

1. Not thinking about founder team dynamics and founder departures
2. Creating an unreflect equity split

There will always be conflicts which arise throughout the founding process. Whether those occur because you believe in deserving more equity, since you had the founding idea, or you are struggling to retain good talent, informing yourself will give you a kick start!

Listen to the episode to avoid falling into these common pitfalls.

EP 62 – The Mentor Perspective on Startups with Joerg Hellwig

February 28, 2023

Today our guest Jörg Hellwig, an active angel investor, is here to share his insights with you! Having had experience as a chief digital officer, co-founder and investor, he has valuable insights that you can benefit from!

The different perspectives Jörg encountered make this podcast so valuable for aspiring entrepreneurs. Learn about:
– the challenges and benefits of change in corporates
– How one of the first B2B marketplaces in the chemical industry was founded
– And what it’s like helping inexperienced founders

We hope you enjoy the episode, and feel free to leave questions in the comments that would interest you in future episodes!

EP 61 – Leveraging startup failure learnings with Kilian Karrasch

January 14, 2023

Do you ever wonder what it’s like for your startup to fail?

Then you’re just right in today’s episode #61! In this episode, we’re here to listen and learn about Kilian Karrasch’s startup failure with Connme.

Tune in to Kilian’s reflection on what it was like to experience your own startup failure. Within this episode, Kilian shares the deep and valuable learnings he was able to extract. Make sure to listen closely and use the tips Kilian shares, such as choosing the right co-founders, examining the crucial potential risks, staying close to your customer, and so on.

We appreciate these interesting insights and hope you can make the most out of them!

EP 60 – Building two mergers in fourteen years with Jan Reichelt

January 4, 2023

Kick off the year right with startup guidance from the successful WHU founder Jan Reichelt. His successful entrepreneurial journey began with Mendeley and has led him to reach two consecutive acquisitions. After his own founding, he began investing as an angel and has now moved towards venture capital.

Listen and learn more about Jan’s journey, what it’s like to be an entrepreneur in diverse countries, how to live the entrepreneur lifestyle successfully, and tips for investor relationships.

We hope you enjoy the episode!

EP 59 – Building an app that hooks with Niklas Brackmann

December 28, 2022

The last episode of 2022 and we are very excited to share our first recording in front of a live audience. Dries interviews Niklas Brackmann, co-founder of the amateur football app Prematch.
Niklas talks about how hooks help create social platforms, how implementing a shared culture in a young venture looks and about WHU supports activities for entrepreneurs.

We hope you enjoy the episode!

EP 58- The Awesome Founder Inspiration Session #7 with Gerrit McGowan & Dries Faems

December 21, 2022

Episode 58 features the seventh edition of the Inspiration Session with Gerrit McGowan & Dries Faems in which they share what makes them think, learn, and laugh. 

This week they touch on some of these thought-provoking topics: 

– How to measure personality with your digital footprint
– Is fake it till you make it the right strategy to use as an entrepreneur?
– How can the chance of burnout be reduced?
– Should we expect a wave of entrepreneurial burnout next year?
– How Art is evolving in the advanced technological world  
– AI and they’re influence on our world

We hope you enjoy the show! 

EP 57 – Building diverse success stories with Daniel Hanemann

December 14, 2022

Welcome back to episode 57 with serial entrepreneur Daniel Hanemann!
The WHU Alumnus Daniel is a successful entrepreneur, as seen in his current role as founder/CEO of Wundertax. You’ll, however, also find him as an investor, comedian, and polyglot.

Listen and learn more about Daniel’s founder journey, what it’s like to be an international entrepreneur founding in diverse countries, how to leave startups, what WHU Alumni get wrong while founding, and further tips and tricks in founding your own startup.

We hope you enjoy the episode! Feel free to leave your thoughts and future ideas in the comments!

EP 55 – Leveraging TikTok to build a customer-centric platforms with Annika von Mutius

November 23, 2022

Episode 55 presents Annika von Mutius, a driven and motivated entrepreneur with an affinity towards technology. We were delighted to hear about her journey, building the first fully automated headhunter, Empion. Annika and her co-founder Larissa recently raised €2.4 Mil pre-seed funding with WHU alumnus Michael Stephan as a board member and angel investor.

Annika and her co-founder Larissa quickly understood the importance of matching culture, skills and values between applicants and companies, which led them to build Empion. By quantifying the tasks of a headhunter and both automating and personalizing the process for applicants, they connect the right individuals efficiently.

Tune in to find out more about their journey, in what sense their Ph.D. was of value, practicing a customer-centered approach and how they aspire to grow Empion via TikTok.

We hope you enjoy this episode!