Sebastian Borek Departs Founders Foundation Management – Dominik Gross Is Now The Sole Manager

Bielefeld, 27 July 2021 – The Founders Foundation announces that co-founder and CEO Sebastian Borek is departing the company by to pursue new entrepreneurial challenges. Co-founder and CFO Dominik Gross will take on the sole management role of the Founders Foundation and all related tasks starting October 1st.

Looking back at his role as co-founder and CEO of the Founders Foundation, Sebastian says: “In the last five years, with the Founders Foundation we have created an impactful and competitive ecoystem in what used to be a startup desert. Dominik, me, and our amazing team, together we have brought to life a place where talents are forged and that is well-known all over Germany. The teams that have completed our programs are now conquering the market with growth financing and convincing products. Building this unique network from the ground up, fostering numerous successful startups, are some of the most fulfilling experiences I have made as a founder. I am grateful to the Bertelsmann Stiftung, Dominik, and our team for their trust and the opportunity. From all of my heart – Thank You! I am convinced that the Founders Foundation still has great things to accomplish.

Concerning his departure, Sebastian explains:  “After five years, the time has come for me to create my own entpreneurial ventures again. I want to dedicate myself to a series of new entrepreneurial activities which will help strengthen the startup ecosystem. I am convinced that growth in an ecoystem requires cell division. For that reason, I will maintain friendly relations with the Founders Foundation and the Hinterland conference 2022. I am planning to find new ways to leverage opportunities for the expansion of our ecoystem.”

Dominik Gross, co-founder and CFO Founders Foundation comments: “Sebastian’s determination and entrepreneurial spirit in building the Founders Foundation was extraordinary. The whole team and I are exceptionally grateful to him. Together, we have created an infrastructure that has brought thousands of people into contact with entrepreneurship. More than 350 talented entrepreneurs were trained on the basis of our Founders Foundation Educational Model on their way to launch their own companies; more than 50 startups completed our programs. The most successful of these have raised more than 27 million euros of venture capital. With the Hinterland of Things conference, we created a lighthouse project in three years that has drawn more than 3.000 visitors and put our region on the map. We have created a platform that connects startups and established companies, that fosters exchange between these two worlds. And that is just a fraction of all the milestones we have accomplished with our strong commitment!”

Looking at the future, Dominiks Gross says: “We are proud of how things have developed and look determinedly into the future: the Founders Foundation stays its growth course by expanding the existing startup formats, further developing the inspiring Hinterland of Things conference as well as other projects. After the conference has paused due to the pandemic, Hinterland will once again take off in February 2022! We are glad that Sebastian remains committed to our shared case and will join us at the Hinterland of Things conference 2022. We firmly believe that his entrepreneurial drive and the projects he will launch will enrich our ecosystem.”

In the name of the Mohn family, Dr. Brigitte Mohn, board member of the Bertelsmann Stiftung, and Christoph Mohn, member of the board of trustees of the Bertelsmann Stiftung, express their thanks to Sebastian Borek: “Thank you, Sebastian Borek, for your vision, your entrepreneurial courage, and the great personal commitment you have exhibited while building and developing the Founders Foundation. Together with Dominik Gross and the Founder’s strong team, the Founders Foundation already has done extraordinary innovation work in the OWL region and set a new bar for the training of founders, even beyond the region. We regret that Sebastian is leaving the Founders Foundation but we are pleased that remains committed to the region’s ecosystem and to the founders.”

Jörg Dräger, board of directors of the Bertelsmann Stiftung: “When we founded the Founders Foundation five years ago, we had the ambitious vision to inspire more young people to become entrepreneurs and provide them with the tools to do so. Now, five years later, we can say that Sebastian, Dominik, and their team have surpassed themselves and all expectations. For this pioneering work, Sebastian Borek has our deepest gratefulness. We wish him the very best for his future.”