Mostly Awesome

Anna Alex is the co-founder and COO of Planetly, a tech startup on a mission to help build a carbon neutral economy. Previously, she co-founded Outfittery, Europe's leading online personal shopping service for men. For her achievements, she was named one of the young elite top 40 under 40. 2:43 Anna's journey into entrepreneurship: In the beginning, Anna talks about how she got interested in the startup scene, what she learned during her time at Rocket Internet, and why she would not recommend going into consulting or VC as a graduate if you want to become a founder. She also tells us why she moved on from Outfittery and what "mistake" she made, that helped her in her next endeavor. 17:46 Anna's second startup Planetly: Anna shares why she founded a startup focused on tackling the climate crisis and how it unites purpose and profit. She also tells us what purpose means for her and how she thinks people can make a positive impact in many fields including the food industry, agriculture, and politics. 29:53 Anna's opinion on female entrepreneurship: Anna talks about her involvement in promoting female entrepreneurship and how being a female founder can be an advantage in this male-dominated space. She also explains why she believes it is important for female founders to be bolder when raising money from investors.

Nino Ulsamer is a serial entrepreneur and currently CTO of StashAway in Singapore, a digital wealth management platform that personalizes financial planning and portfolio management. He has founded seven times on three different continents, out of which two companies have already become a great success. 03:52 Nino's early career and his decision to become a founder: In the beginning, Nino talks about his personal journey of becoming a founder, how CDTM impacted his decision, and why he chose entrepreneurship over consulting. We also learn from Nino what he enjoys most about being an entrepreneur and why he thinks every founder needs grit and curiosity to succeed. 14:43 Nino's international experience: Having spent four years in Russia building the e-commerce platform Westwing for the German investor Rocket Internet, Nino shares what cultural difficulties he encountered while living there and leading a 150-employee company, with most of the business conducted in Russian. 24:19 Nino's current startup StashAway: Nino tells us why he moved on to found StashAway in Singapore and how he met his co-founders abroad. He also touches on how he overcame doubts after his first startups failed. 34:31 Nino's toolbox: In the end, we get insights into Nino's toolbox, including his favorite podcast and morning routine, and he reveals why he believes everyone has an innovator inside of him or her.

Welcome to Season 2 of Mostly Awesome with our new hosts Lisa and Tim! We are again talking to inspiring innovators from the world of entrepreneurship and technology to give you unique insights into their personal journeys, motivation, and opinions. Listen to our teaser to meet our new hosts and get a sneak peek at our awesome lineup of guests. As usual, we will be launching new episodes bi-weekly, starting on Wednesday 24th of March. We are looking forward to your feedback to podcast@cdtm.de. Follow our channel to never miss an episode!

Carsten Maschmeyer ist erfolgreicher Gründer, Investor, Bestsellerautor und Juror in der TV-Show "Die Höhle der Löwen". Als Jäger nach den besten unternehmerischen Ideen auf dem Markt hat Carsten Maschmeyer mit seiner gleichnamigen Maschmeyer Group – einem Kollektiv von mehreren Investmentfonds – bis dato in über 85 Unternehmen investiert. Carsten spricht darüber, was ihn in den Anfängen seiner von Armut geprägten Kindheit angetrieben hat, wie sich seine Wahrnehmung von Reichtum im Laufe der Jahre verändert hat und warum er damals sein Medizinstudium abgebrochen hat. Wir sprechen auch über seine aktuellen Wünsche und Visionen, die Bedeutung seiner Medienpräsenz, seine Investor-Philosophie und was wir in Deutschland von unseren transatlantischen Nachbarn in Puncto Gründen lernen können. Zu guter Letzt erhalten wir Einblicke in seine Toolbox.

Laura Lewandowski is a Top 30 under 30 journalist, columnist (Business Insider), podcast host (Innovator Sessions by Red Bull), and co-founder of the "The Meet Your Mentor” YouTube series, featuring leaders such as Jay Shetty, Nico Rosberg, Toni Garrn or Sophia Amoruso. On top, she consults companies on storytelling such as Facebook, Uber, or Google. In this episode, Laura talks about how she initiates, develops, and starts successful formats, and projects with top companies such as an “African experience dinner” for Google. She tells us about how to combat creative blocks and what makes great stories. Diving into the topic of productivity, we learn about her take on the law of attraction, essentialism, the zero inbox principles, and weekly reflection check-ins. Last but not least, we get insights into her favorite tools: books, podcasts, apps, and newsletters!

Klaus Diepold is a professor for data processing at the department for electrical and computer engineering at TUM, Former TUM’s Senior Vice President for Diversity and Talent Management, focusing on machine learning and moral machines, and a member of the board of directors at CDTM. In this episode, Prof. Diepold talks about how he ended up in academia after several positions as CTO in various tech-companies and what biases and problems he sees in the peer-review process and competition among professors. He tells us about his initiated web series “Technically Single,” aired nationwide on Sixx.de and Maxdome, to rewire the societal perception of STEM fields. Diving into the topic of diversity, Prof. Diepold shares his opinion on the underlying mechanisms of the gender gap and his opinion on a female quota within corporate and academic institutions.

Katharina Mayer is the Founder and CEO of the social start-up Kuchentratsch. Translated the company name means „Cake Tittle-Tattle“ and this gives a hint what the mission behind the social start-up is all about: preventing the feeling of social isolation and poverty of the elderly by providing grandmas and grandpas with a place in Munich to get together, pursue their passion for baking, and top up their pension. In 2018 Katharina made a successful deal in the German version of shark tank called “Die Höhle der Löwen” where she convinced two lions aka investors of her social startup. In this episode, Katharina talks about how she initially came up with the idea for Kuchentratsch and why she discontinued her career in developmental work. We learn about her efficient leadership style managing three generations of employees under one roof (spanning from young students to grandmas and grandpas in their 80’s). She tells us about how she dealt with the crisis of the COVID-19 pandemic and how she went from product idea to ready-to-buy baking mixes within only a few months! Also, Katharina shares what life lessons her elderly bakers taught her. As every guest, Katharina reveals her toolbox, namely her favorite books, podcasts, inspiring thought leaders, and must-read newsletters.

Sven Schmidt ist Geschäftsführer und CMO bei der Machineseeker Group und Serial Entrepreneur. Er war Mitgründer des Wagniskapital-finanzierten Unternehmens Verwandt .de, das an das Accel-Portfoliounternehmen MyHeritage verkauft wurde. Sven war auch Mitbegründer von Getgo, einem VC-finanziert E-Commerce-Ticketing-Unternehmen, das an CTS Eventim verkauft wurde, wo er den Bereich Neue Medien leitete. Darüber hinaus war er insgesamt 6,5 Jahre lang Venture Partner bei Accel und Earlybird. Bekannt ist er vor allem als regelmäßiger Podcast-Gast beim OMR-Podcast und als Co-Host des ds-insider-Podcast. In dieser Folge spricht Sven über seine frühere Rolle als Venture Partner und was damals der Auslöser für seine Investitionsentscheidung in Fiverr, Vinted (ehemals Kleiderkreisel), Prezi und Mitfahrgelegenheit.de (jetzt BlaBlaCar) war. Er erzählt uns auch, warum er weder als Business Angel aktiv ist noch eine politische Karriere in Betracht zieht. Beim Themenwechsel zu seinem Tagesgeschäft erfahren wir auch mehr über seine Vision für die Machineseeker Group und warum er sich gegen Home Office entschieden hat, obwohl durch Covid-19 alles von offline auf online umgestellt wird. Im Gespräch mit Sven erfahren wir mehr über die Macht der Bildung, des Netzwerkens und des Signalings sowie über seine Lieblingstools und wem er am liebsten auf Twitter & Co.

Sven Schmidt is Managing Director and CMO at Machineseeker Group and a serial entrepreneur. He co-founded venture-backed Verwandt, which was sold to Accel portfolio company MyHeritage. Sven also was the co-founder of Getgo, a venture-backed e-commerce ticketing company that was sold to CTS Eventim, where he was head of the New Media division. On top, he was Venture Partner at Accel and Earlybird in total for 6.5 years. He is most prominently known for being a regular podcast guest at OMR podcast and co-host of the ds-insider-Podcast. In this episode, Sven talks about his previous role as a venture partner and what triggered his investment decision in Fiverr, Vinted (formerly Kleiderkreisel), Prezi, and Mitfahrgelegenheit.de (now BlaBlaCar) back then. He also tells us why he chose to not be active as a business angel nor would consider a political career. Shifting topics to his day-to-day business, we also learn more about his vision for the Machineseeker Group and why he decided against Home Office, although everything is transitioning from offline to online due to Covid-19. Talking to Sven, we learn about the power of education, networking, and signaling as well as his favorite tools, and thought-leaders on Twitter, Newsletters, and Blogs to follow.

Judith Dada is a partner and managing director of La Famiglia, a women-led Berlin-based VC firm that invests in seed-stage B2B tech startups. In this episode, Judith talks about how she ended up in VC and what biases she encounters as a female VC partner. She tells us about the process of launching a second fund and how the COVID-19 pandemic affected La Famiglia. From a macro perspective, Judith shares her opinion on the regulation of tech companies as an ex-Facebook manager and why we urgently need to update our educational system and mindset in Europe to make sure the next tech or industry giant is "made in Germany." Talking to Judith, we also learned why networks are a double-edged sword and not the solution but the root of the problem for a diverse founder scene. Lastly, we get insights into how Judith, a passionate writer, stimulates her mind with her favorite books, podcasts, apps, and newsletters and what kind of fantasy novel we can expect from her very soon!