Robin Haak

Three biggest learnings from a fundraising journey. Shared by Rainer Märkle, General Partner at HV Capital at EUVC 1/ Have a time box with a deadline attached. Have a defined horizon & create a clear plan. Have some urgency to get things done at some point. Execute very transparently and reliably. 2/ Stick to your narrative. But don't do it blindly. Tweak it when necessary. Adapt it. Don't let yourself be surprised by major changes. Keep focusing on delivering according to your strategy & plan. 3/ Fundraising is a marathon with many sprints. There are moments when you'll ask yourself - Why do I do this? Is it gonna work out? But don't get too negative during the down phases. Adapting and pivoting is part of our job. As it is for the founder of a company. How about you? What fundraising lessons have you learned? Join the conversation. 🔽 #venturecapital #angelinvesting #startupfunding #europe

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Getting ready for an upcoming workshop on angel investing led me to the Angel Next Door Podcast episode on 2024 trends (sharing the link in the first comment 👇). Here are a few key takeaways: 🔍 With AI technology evolving rapidly, it's essential to stick to the basics when conducting due diligence. Asking fundamental questions about the business model, target market, sales cycle, expenses, use of funds, deal terms, valuation, risk assessment, and exit strategy is crucial. Quality data will be a game-changer in evaluating AI companies effectively. 💡 The future is looking brighter for tech industry, and it’s a great time to be an angel investors. Angel investment was the most resilient asset class in 2022, as well as very consistent — capital invested was down but not dramatically different than VC, capital invested per deal and capital invested annually per angel group was similar to previous years. We stay the course in 2024. 🌍 Angel world is changing — Gen Z investors will seek a more tech-savvy approach to investing compared to traditional angel investors. Gone are the days of in-person dinner meetings; instead, transactions will be conducted swiftly and electronically through apps on mobile devices. If you want to be a part of this transformation, join us in ICLUB: https://lnkd.in/dWdsCxp9 #AngelInvesting

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Do your certification & assessment programs also lack #scale? 😣 I am beyond #excited to be invited to speak alongside my good friend and co-founder Bernhard Waglechner at the upcoming #webinar hosted by Constructor's wonderful Maria Mashkeeva on the topic of how to leverage AI to bring scale to #assessment & #certification programs. 🎉 Bring out your #notepads, and join us on June 10th, 3pm CEST for a great #conversation. 🗒 Sign up #link in the #comments. 💬 Like many others, the assessment and certification industry is facing massive #change, introduced by a changing landscape of customer #expectations and #technological #abilities. It is a huge challenge, and we are right at the beginning of this #transformation. 🤖 Together with many others, the team at Constructor and bizExaminer have been #working hard to provide #answers to the big #questions, and translate them into tangible #solutions for customers. 🙌 Why? Because every moment of change is a #chance to generate #value for our customers, the industry, and the #ecosystem at large. 💡 And we are planning to seize that #opportunity. Together. 🙏 So #join us for the webinar, where we will #share our #experience, provide #insights into the changing market trends, and also walk through a #concrete #example of a customer leading through this change with incredible flexibility. 👊 #assessment #AI #flexibility #education #learning #certification #webinar #experience #solution #transformation

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Thinking about building a vertical software company? This is your playbook. Timeless vertical markets present endless opportunities to build incredible companies, but not enough people are talking about it. At Aleph we draw inspiration from successful companies like Procore Technologies in the construction space, Veeva Systems in life sciences and Shopify in e-commerce. We have already backed some of the leading vSW companies in Israel, including HoneyBook, Agora RE, Fullpath , Workiz and Freightos and we are looking forward to backing the next generation of emerging companies in this space. On June 18th, Aleph will host a meetup focused on the vertical software playbook with some of the best operators in this space - Amos Haggiag, Vered Raviv Schwarz and Bar Mor. We have a few spots left for founders and executives of vSW companies, more details in the first comment.

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Today I visited the GREENTECH FESTIVAL in Berlin with my dear friend Andreas. 💚 To make it short: Good vibes, busy floors and a big startup space. But tbh I wondered if it's really worth it for startups. I remember from my active time as an exhibitor that we weren't honest about the hard costs per lead. We argued a lot: being there is everything, you have to be seen, brand building is important, it's where the industry meets, serendipity happens, if we just get one big order it will pay off... not to forget the parties! That's all true, but the opportunity cost of attending a trade show is very high, especially for startups. And while this isn't meant to be a trade show bashing at all, here are a few suggestions from my experience, on how to make the most of it... - Train your team to proactively approach people. - Initiate a challenge to see who can get the most leads. - Prepare in advance and market your attendance by actively inviting customers. - Consider a small side event, such as a VIP dinner. - Try to book a package with a speaking engagement at the conference, that has always paid off for us. - Use the exhibitor directory for your own prospecting. - Calculate cost vs. lead conversion after the show with real data and decide whether to repeat. - Push your presence on social in real time. Good luck to all exhibitors and happy selling 🚀 ____________________________ Sharing my experience as an entrepreneur and angel investor. Investing in early stage B2B SaaS startups. Happy to connect 👋

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The idea or the team? There has long been a debate about what is more important: the idea or the team? For me, it's undoubtedly the team! A strong team can overcome any challenges and find the right product and model that will work. We in Mento vc have a checklist where we score each point (from 0 to 5). There is no rule on how many points need to be scored. It’s more for us to ensure we don't forget to look at certain aspects. 1. Founders' experience. Have they built a business before, and to what scale. 2. Industry experience. Do they have experience specifically in the field where they are developing the project. 3. Intelligibility. This is our subjective criterion and can't be quantified 🙂 4. Personality (Match). How well do we fit together? We invest with a horizon of 3-4 years (minimum), which means a long-term partnership. If things don’t click now, it will be difficult moving forward. 5. Team. Who is already on board and what is their background? 6. Location. Where are the team and the founders based. Are the founders located in the primary market for their project. Have you ever analyzed your own or someone else's project from the perspective of the team? Share your thoughts in the comments 👇

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Sharing a few thoughts from my annual migration for #SuperReturn #SuperVenture in Berlin. 1) This continues to be the best VC/LP/PE event annually. Many are at the conferences, and almost everyone has a representative in town. Any managers or LPs not in attendance should consider it next year. 2) The European emerging manager scene is on fire. I met with almost a dozen, some old friends, some new, all as sophisticated as their US counterparts with thoughtful strategies and impressive growing portfolios. 3) Europe lacks the concentration that SF provides the US. Many startup hubs, some larger, but everyone in Europe is spending way more time on planes than their US counterparts. 4) Nobody knows where the market is going, and fundraising has been tougher in the last 18 months than before, but most agree a lot of money is still being put into the venture ecosystem. That's resulting in a return to deal pace & valuation acceleration -- is FOMO back? TBD 5) In an ironic twist, there seems to be strong interest from US LPs in European managers, and from European LPs in US managers. What did you see? What interested you this year? Welcome thoughts. P.S. the conference logistics were tough this year. To all those that shared the burden, thank you. Let's hope next year is better. cc: Dale Chang Stephan Eberle Patrick Murphy Carmen Alfonso Rico 🍫Jaime Novoa Sebastian Blum Paul Pruijmboom Jasper Masemann Marie Schildt David York Lior Litwak Karey Barker Maximilian Claussen Ameer Awadiyeh Jonathan Heiliger Oana O. Philipp Moehring

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In the most recent episode of the Mobile Dev Memo podcast, I speak with Mikołaj Barczentewicz about the EDPB's recent opinion on the Pay or Okay model. We discuss the implications of the EDBP's opinion and the future of the Pay or Okay model for "large online platforms" in the EU. Find this episode wherever you consume podcast content by searching for Mobile Dev Memo.

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We are excited that Finom one of the leading fintech hyperscalers in Europe, decided to tackle bookkeeping and taxes by testing Norman’s embeddable solution. I’ve been wondering why the term hyperscalers is attributed only to large cloud service providers like Azure or AWS. Clearly, there is a cohort of fintech hyperscalers that design IT and business in a way that allows them to scale and grow across geographies, products, and sales channels. In core segments of banking and fintech, it is particularly hard because of regulation and other factors. Operational excellence and a particular mindset are a must-have for this category. The payout is huge, as leading fintech hyperscalers have already turned profitable while maintaining high growth levels or are heading in that direction, driving contribution margin and LTV to new highs. We are learning from the best, so Norman ‘s architecture envisions the build-out of multiple accounting and tax products for different cohorts and types of clients across geographies. If you share our vision and want to discuss our embeddable solutions and plans, please reach out to Peter. We are very excited to explore partnership opportunities as a key element of our GTM strategy. norman.finance https://lnkd.in/d2cF7eTa

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After attending last week's masterclass with Philipp Gutheim, I've distilled some key insights from the masterclass "Founder's Mentality" on the essentials of launching and leading a startup: 𝐄𝐦𝐛𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐅𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫’𝐬 𝐌𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐬𝐞𝐭: Thriving in the startup environment requires a mindset distinct from what traditional education or corporate roles teach. This journey involves navigating a landscape where 85% of startups fail, 14% are acquired, and only 1% achieve an IPO, all over a commitment of more than a decade. 𝐄𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐲 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐈𝐦𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬: Founders must prioritize validating their business models through revenue or customer acquisition early on, ensuring their venture's survival during its most vulnerable times. 𝐒𝐡𝐞𝐝𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐂𝐨𝐫𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐍𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐬: In contrast to established corporations, startups need to operate with unmatched flexibility and responsiveness. Adhering to rigid corporate methods can obstruct the adaptability essential for startup success. 𝐍𝐚𝐯𝐢𝐠𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐮𝐩 𝐋𝐢𝐟𝐞𝐜𝐲𝐜𝐥𝐞: From securing initial seed funding to moving through growth and scaling phases, understanding each stage's unique demands is key to building a stable and profitable business. 𝐀𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐒𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐭-𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐭 𝐅𝐢𝐭: It’s crucial first to secure product-market fit, followed by implementing a strategic growth model like "T2D3", designed to triple and then double revenue annually, targeting $100M in ARR. 𝐑𝐞𝐝𝐞𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐅𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫’𝐬 𝐑𝐨𝐥𝐞: Successful founders immerse themselves as generalists across all operational areas, from product development to customer engagement, rather than delegating these critical functions. 𝐈𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐃𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐩𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭: Continuous improvement based on customer feedback is vital. Embracing a Lean Startup approach—launching quickly, learning rapidly, and iterating—is essential for adaptation. 𝐒𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜 𝐄𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬: The road to startup success is often winding and filled with complex challenges that demand persistence, skill, and sometimes, a stroke of luck. The insights from Philipp's masterclass are not just theoretical but pivotal for anyone committed to the demanding yet rewarding startup path. Here's to embracing these lessons in our entrepreneurial journeys! 🌟 #StartupLife #Entrepreneurship #BusinessStrategy #Innovation #FounderMindset #Antler #EntreprenuerInResidence

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It is only the first edition, but HLTH Europe has already established itself as the leading #HealthTech conference in Europe. Besides my 4 highlights, I also had the chance to moderate a panel on the topic "Last mile: Localising access for underserved areas" with 3 fantastic panelists: · Prathibha (President, Mayo Clinic Health System) · Minal (National Director of Primary Care and Community Transformation, NHS England) · Harmony (SVP, Chief Medical Officer & Head of Global Medical at ViiV Healthcare) PS: Amira (SVP Innovation at Siemens Healthineers): we missed you! Here are the key insights of the panel: Bringing healthcare #access to all, especially to underserved areas, has been a challenge since the inception of healthcare. With all the technology of our modern world, is #Healthcare access on the verge of being solved? The short answer is no. But there is hope. In the UK: ➝ There is a 15-year life expectancy gap between deprived areas, and wealthier neighbourhoods nearby. ➝ Funding struggles to keep up: In the next 15 years, a 37% increase in "ill-health costs" is expected, while the working population will increase by 4% over the same period. ➝ Increasing productivity is essential to solve the problem: A 1% decrease in productivity costs 1.5 billion pounds. In the US: ➝ The zip code is (still) a better determinant of health than the genetic code. ➝ Enabling access to underserved areas can also be seen as an opportunity rather than a problem. Tech adoption will be faster due to higher unmet needs, accelerating innovation that can later benefit well-served areas. Debunking one myth: ➝ For HiV, there is now a better access and coverage in Africa than in certain parts of developed countries (US and Europe). Pockets of innovation: ➝ To unlock HCP capacity, the NHS has a national program to move towards a modern General Practice, moving away from "first come first serve" to a new model based on population health and segmentation: the right care for the right person in the right way. First results show that 30% of GP appointments could be done via "messaging only" (instead of F2F visits), bringing massive efficiency gains. ➝ Mayo Clinic already has 75 specialties that are technology enabled, bringing the “Mayo medical care" in the rural areas via virtual and hybrid models, and also embedding the 50+ AI algorithms already active at Mayo. ➝ But increasing access is not only about Tech. Sometimes, it is about boldness: Viiv Healthcare, a pharma company specialised in HiV, gave the patent of its drugs away in 90+ underserved markets, enabling cheap and at-scale production. What does the future hold? Will someone living in an underserved area be able to visit the "Mayo Clinic in the metaverse with his / her digital twin?" Special thanks to Katy, Lina and Henry for this fantastic conference!

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💌 Latest saas.wtf newsletter: The Rule of 40 and its applicability to small, profitable SaaS Just read an article by Sammy from Blossom Street Ventures about how most public SaaS companies are far from complying with the Rule of 40 - and that it may therefore lose its significance as a good rule of thumb / efficiency metric. My research, however, shows that those who demonstrate a good balance between growth and profitability currently trade at higher multiples than their less capital-efficient peers (based on data from Meritech Capital). Something similar can be observed in the private SaaS market - especially in the "micro cap" M&A space - as acquirers seem to favour companies with 20-30% growth + 10-20% profit margin over "growth at all costs". So you don't necessarily have to grow faster to get a better multiple at exit. More details and data in the article, link below. #saas #startups #founders #kpi #growth #efficiency

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Diversity of Thought at Centre Stage. For “everyone who’s anyone in private capital” SuperReturn and SuperVenture in Berlin are annually the most important conferences of the year. We at the Evangelistas co-hosted our magnificent Diversity Drinks with Auxxo Female Catalyst Fund, identity.vc I Backing LGBTQ+ Entrepreneurs and Out Investors. Together we gathered +350 of the most diverse Limited Partners and General Partners along with their allies at the beautiful Fotografiska venue to foster unique connections, engage conversations, and celebrate DEI within the investors' landscape. A big THANK YOU to all of our wonderful guests for joining and to our sponsors STUDIO LEGAL Rechtsanwälte, EY, Cinven, bunch and torq.partners for contributing to the most diverse event of last week.   With the huge smiles on all the faces displaying the supreme connections being made, we all feel fully recharged to continue doing the (hard) work to build European tech with so much more diversity of thought, substance, soul and beauty - especially after Europe's night of election drama. The threat to our cohesion needs even more clarity in defending our democracy against populism, intolerance and racism!    Let’s carry the magic of last Tuesday into the world. I really believe that this sensational movement of superb individuals is something very special and I feel truly privileged to be part of it. How do you think we can contribute to even more diversity of thought at centre stage in European tech? #VC #PE #captablediverstiy

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❗❓ 18 days❗❓ It's been 18 days since we launched our new ecosystem membership and were officially named the Deep Tech Hub of Berlin. As the initial excitement settles, we're now deeply engaged in the myriad tasks that come with launching a new focus and product. People often ask, "What exactly is #DeepTech?" or "What does it mean to be part of an #ecosystem?" While a detailed explanation can be found in the article linked in the comments, here's a more personal take: Deep Tech can mean many things, but for us, it's about creating significant economic impacts, societal benefits, and competitive advantages through advanced hardware technologies. For example: ➡ Advanced Materials: MotorSkins is leading the way. ➡ Nanotechnology: NanoMatter is making strides in semiconductor manufacturing. ➡ Robotics and Automation: Driven by startups like Bearcover and Skycharge. ➡ Energy Technologies: Innovations like green energy storage from LIQUIDLOOP and direct air capture from Ucaneo ➡ Advanced sensor technology within spacetech such as that solution of AIRMO These are just a few of the incredible resident startups in our ecosystem. And speaking of ecosystems, to us, it means a collaborative network of corporates, startups, investors, research institutions, agencies, manufacturers, and more—all working together to drive technological advancements. How do enable and support this ecosystem? 👉 we reduce the time and cost to market with easy access to emerging tech, promising network opportunities - also on a global level as well as facilitating key knowledge transfer. And what excites me the most is that we've recently welcomed some exciting new members (stay tuned to find out who), and they're all contributing to pushing these technologies forward. #openinnovation #netzero #berlin #startups MotionLab.Berlin

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Crafting the perfect pitch: Why deciding between a vision-driven narrative or data-driven results could define your fundraising success 👇 Actionable insights from: ➡ Christina Cacioppo, CEO and Co-founder at Vanta and Mario Gabriele, Founder at The Generalist ✏ “The Founders Guide to Optimizing Your Fundraise” ⭐ Base your fundraising pitch on either a compelling narrative or strong metrics, depending on the state of your business, but avoid trying to do both simultaneously. 💬  "You can raise on numbers or you can raise on story, but you shouldn't raise on both. You should always be clear with yourself about which one you're raising on, and your pitch should make it clear, too. It's hard to do both well: the vision obscures the numbers, and the numbers detract from the vision. The same company can raise on either vision or numbers at different times. At Vanta, we raised on our numbers in the early days because people didn't buy into the market or its potential. As we matured, so did our ability to bring investors along on that vision." – Christina Cacioppo ───── 👉 Follow me, Alexander Small, for tactics and strategies for building startups from industry-leading Founders, Operators and Investors

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🥄🥄 Exciting News from Our Portfolio in Berlin 🥄🥄 Today, I am delighted to spotlight Spoons 🥄, our newest addition to the Berlin-based portfolio, transforming the B2B sales landscape. Spoons is co-founded by sales-guru Cait Kennedy 🏳️‍🌈 🥄 and tech-wizard Tomasz Solak. Did you know that a striking 77% of B2B buyers believe that sales representatives fail to understand their needs, contributing to a substantial 67% deal failure rate. This prevalent misalignment poses a significant barrier to sales efficiency and overall success. It's time to address this challenge and Cait and Tomasz have built all the tools to do so. Spoons automates B2B account research and is the first to identify customer problems in seconds. This not only doubles the revenue potential per rep but also reduces headcount needs by 15%. Something that Cait has consistently achieved in her leadership roles, yet never found the right tools to scale it further - planting the seed to build spoons. Cait Kennedy 🏳️‍🌈 🥄 - A B2B sales expert with 15 years of experience, Cait has consistently doubled revenue per rep and boasts top win rates. She is also a proud Harvard University alumn and an EMBA from Quantic. Tomasz Solak - A seasoned tech leader with past leadership roles at Shopify, Tomasz has spearheaded products from inception to market launch, aligning tech and business objectives. Check out Spoons or hit up the team directly if you share the pain or want to learn more! 🥄🥄

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Welcome ecoLocked to the Climentum Capital portfolio! We are proud to have led the €4M funding round together with Matterwave Ventures, and delighted to have existing investors Counteract, Startup Family Office, Sabancı Building Solutions, and VOYAGERS.io joining the round. The investment will support ecoLocked’s mission to revolutionize the construction industry with carbon-negative building materials. Concrete production accounts for 8% of global CO2 emissions, making innovations in this field crucial for achieving net-zero goals. ecoLocked is leading the change by converting carbon captured from biomass into functional, carbon-negative building materials. This funding will accelerate ecolocked's efforts to turn buildings into carbon sinks, scaling their innovative biochar-based solutions and enabling 1Gt carbon removal by 2040. Doerte Hirschberg Morten Halborg Stefan Maard

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INSRD: Reinventing Business Insurance! Meet INSRD, the Berlin-based insurtech that's changing the game for business insurance and risk management. Raised €500k pre-seed to bring you a smarter solution! Here's how they do it: 1. Adaptive Coverage: Insurance that grows with your business. 2. Expert Advisory: Tailored advice to handle new risks. 3. Tech Power: AI-driven platform to keep you covered. INSRD's Protect & Connect platform keeps your insurance up-to-date, ensuring you stay protected no matter how fast you grow. Why it matters: Accurate coverage means peace of mind and security for next-gen industries like AI, Creator Economy, and Robotics. Have you reviewed your business insurance lately? John Ismailoglu, Evgeny Bezlyudnyy, Stefan Balg, Valeriy Bykanov 🇺🇦 Randolf 🐸 Schürmann, Kevin Halpape, https://lnkd.in/dEhb82Wb #Insurtech #BusinessGrowth #RiskManagement #MondayFunding

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