Talent foundry Founders Foundation from Bielefeld provides access to basic knowledge on company formation for aspiring entrepreneurs on their edtech platform.
- Compared to 2021, the years 2022 has had 18% fewer new company launches which points to a dire need to catch up in terms of training for founders.
- The Founders Foundation launches a freely accessible edtech platform for aspiring founders …
- … with support from prominent figures from the German startup scene like Verena Pausder, Christian Rebernik, Jeannette zu Fürstenberg, Rouven Dresselhaus and Stephen Weich.
Bielefeld, 9 March 2023 – In 2022, the number of new startups has rapidly declined. According to the report [German] of the German Startup Association, there have been 18% fewer launches. There is a lack of founders who dare to venture forward even in the face of economic adversity. In the medium and long term, this development endangers the competitive ability of the German economy. There is more bad news. The existing founders exhibit little diversity in their CVs – it always are the same training centers and employers whose names show up. Those who managed to complete the first steps of founding a company in Germany, still run out of breath when it comes to follow-up financing. Because in Germany, less and less money flows into new and good ideas.
To combat this trend and give everyone that is interested in launching the knowhow to do exactly that, the non-profit organization Founders Foundation has developed its own edtech platform jointly with some of the leading figures from the German startup scene. That platform provides aspiring founders with the most important tools to successfully launch a company in 8 steps, from developing a business idea to raising funds.
Many big names from the world of startups have stepped in front of the camera to record their expertise and personal experience for educational video courses for aspiring founders: Verena Pausder (Pausder Ventures), Christian Rebernik (Tomorrows Education), Jeannette zu Fürstenberg (LaFamiglia), Anna Lukasson-Herzig (nyris), Rouven Dresselhaus (Cavalry) und Stephen Weich (formerly of Flaschenpost). The course “The Truth About How to Found a Startup”, for example, provides viewers with the necessary basic knowledge even without a budget and is going to remain an integral part of the Founders Foundation’s startup programs in the future. The Foundation does not take any shares/options from the founders.
Dominik Gross (CEO Founders Foundation): “With our Edtech platform, we not only catapult our non-profit startup training programs to a new level. No, we provide access to expertise on how to launch startups for EVERYONE. The topic entrepreneurship is still frequently treated as a niche interest. Despite the fact that we in Germany need more clever people willing to change things more than ever. Launching a startup must not stay a priviliged side project but must become a realistic possibility for everyone! We are doing our part and want to inspire as many as possible to join that huge undertaking.”
Verena Pausder (Unternehmerin, Podcast Fast & Curious): “An entrepreneurial mind and skill set are already the most sought-after characteristics that companies are looking out for. None of that works without solution-focus, future-mindedness, and technical affinity – the relevance is ever rising. That’s where the Founders Foundation’s edtech platform makes a difference, by making that knowledge and expertise availabe to everyone. I just knew I had to join and support this project.”
Rouven Dresselhaus (Co-Founder + MP Cavalry Ventures): “It’s a fact: We need more founders in Germany. The number, however, show that we currently seem to be moving backwards instead of forwards. Programs like the Founders Foundation’s easily accessible edtech platform are important to change that trend. Because we need well-trained entrepreneurs to make substantial and future-minded investments!”
*EY Startup-Barometer January 2023 – Female Founders Monitor 2022 – Migrant Founders Monitor 2022
Get a free look at the Founders Foundation’s edtech platform here.
Press Contact: Anna-Luisa Korte, Director Brand & Content, anna@foundersfoundation.de
About the Foundation
The Founders Foundation trains the next generation of successful founders, right in the heart of the German “Mittelstand” – the family businesses, the salt-of-the-earth type companies that form the foundation of the economy. We are pioneering the training of founders using our own holistic Founders Foundation Education Model. The region of Ostwestfalen-Lippe is our shining example; here, we prepare the soil for entrepreneurial activities by bringing New and Old Business together. In this context, we launched the tech conference “Hinterland of Things”. As a non-profit organization, the core of all our efforts is a success- and impactful cultivation of tomorrow’s founders.
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