Maximilian is the Managing Director of the Entrepreneurship Center at WHU, Germany's most successful business school when it comes to entrepreneurship. Before that he worked at the Entrepreneurship Center at RWTH Aachen, Germany’s largest technical university and founded a startup himself. 

Having done his bachelor degree at WHU and now leading their Entrepreneurship Center, I thought Maximilian would be the perfect guest to talk about how universities can successfully foster entrepreneurship and how students eager to found can make use of their time at university to prepare for a career as founders.

In this episode of the Entrepreneurship & Leadership podcast, we talk about

• WHU's contribution to the German startup ecosystem
• the differences in entrepreneurship support between private and public universities
• and how to make the most of your time at university when you want to found a startup

His message for entrepreneurial students: "Get exposure. Join likeminded people and learn how the startup world really works beyond the romanticization of shark tank."

I hope you enjoy the episode!

Michael

Learn more about Entrepreneurship at WHU at ⁠https://whu.edu/en/faculty/entrepreneurship-and-innovation-group/entrepreneurship-center/

Connect with Maximilian on ⁠⁠https://linkedin.com/in/maximilianeckel/

Connect with me on ⁠⁠https://linkedin.com/in/m-froehlich/⁠⁠

Sophia has worked in product roles in startups such as Navvis and Babbel before co-founding Saiga where she took on the role of Chief Product Officer (CPO). Most recently, she has joined the German SME ⁠Reicat⁠ and taken on the strategic business development of their fast-growing hydrogen product line.

I was eager to get Sophia on the podcast to learn more about the role a CPO has in a startup – in particular, in the very early stages when there might not yet be a product in the first place. And I was curious to hear what she had learned from her recent switch from the startup world to the German Mittelstand.

In this episode of the Entrepreneurship & Leadership podcast, we talk about

• what product management looks like pre product-market fit
• when it makes sense to have a founding designer as part of the co-founder team
• what startups can learn from the working culture in SMEs

Her message for founders: "Don't just copy Silicon Valley Culture. Look around and see what you can learn from the Germany Mittelstand."

I hope you enjoy the episode!

Michael

Learn more about reicat at https://reicat.de/en/

Connect with Sophia on ⁠https://linkedin.com/in/sophiahoefling/

Connect with me on ⁠https://linkedin.com/in/m-froehlich/⁠

If you want to learn more about product management check out Sophia's blog: https://sophiahoefling.medium.com/

Daniel Schulte-Hillen is an active business angel and the founder of bldrs. bldrs connects the brightest and hungriest talents with exclusive roles in Berlin’s best startups. By bringing together hungry talent and world-class startups, he helps both sides.

To succeed, startups need to build world-class teams. Rather sooner than later, any founder is faced with the challenge to attract and hire their first employees. With Daniel's experience, I was curious to better understand when founders should hire, how to convince employees to join them on their journey, how to think about ESOP, and what pitfalls founders should avoid when making their first hires.

In this episode of the Entrepreneurship & Leadership podcast, we talk about

• when it is the right time for startups to hire their first employees
• what startups have to offer to early employees
• and what motivation talented people have to join a startups

His final message to everyone looking for their next job: "Joining an early-stage startup can be an amazing decision from a career perspective. And it is also much less risky than people think."

I hope you enjoy the episode!

Michael

Learn more about bldrs at https://joinbldrs.com/

Connect with Daniel: https://linkedin.com/in/danielschuhi

Connect with me on https://linkedin.com/in/m-froehlich/

BONUS

• Daniel recommends Talent: How to Identify Energizers, Creatives, and Winners Around the World by Tyler Cowen and Daniel Gross for those who want to learn more about hiring.
• For founders and anyone interested in understanding compensation with Employee Stock Option Plans (ESOP) Index Ventures' ⁠Rewarding Talent Handbook⁠ provides excellent guidelines.