"I'm convinced that female founders in Germany are (allowed to) become more courageous": Through the Eyes of A Tiger

In comparison to other European countries such as the UK & Sweden, Germany is behind when it comes to female founders. In a 2022 report by Boston Consulting Group (BCG) and SISTA, the number of female founders in British & Swedish startups lies at 23% and 30% respectively, while German female founders only occupy 21% of the scene. The number remains relatively stagnant from 2022 to 2023, however, still shows an increasing trend overall from 2019 until 2023.

These findings are different in Lower Saxony. Recent reports have unveiled that the number of female founders in 2023 is at 26%, above the country average of 21%. To recognise and promote the entrepreneurship potential of women, the state of Lower Saxony supports special information and qualification offers within the guidelines of RIKA (F?rderung Regionaler Initiativen und Kooperationen für Frauen am Arbeitsmarkt).?

Women face significant hurdles, yet those who pursue careers in these fields often transition into entrepreneurship, driven by their expertise and innovative ideas. In this edition of the BioIntelligence Digest, we had the opportunity to hear the inspiring experiences of one of the female founders in our current batch, Kirsten Hollstein, whose journey from nurse to psychologist, and finally to entrepreneur, embodies the challenges and triumphs of female founders in Germany. She is the co-founder of the startup Lene Health which assesses mental stress in the workplace with a platform tailored to the needs of employees through a scientifically based, interdisciplinary team.?

Hello Kirsten. Thank you for taking the time to share your experiences with our readers and us. Let's start with your background: What inspired you to pursue your degree in psychology, and how did you navigate the transition from student and researcher to entrepreneur?

I am fascinated by the physical and psychological functionality of people. I initially trained as a nurse and later studied psychology with a focus on work and organisational psychology. As I come from a working-class family myself, I had to develop my academic self-concept first, but I never forgot my roots. Today, I find myself in a hybrid intermediate position between academic and practical work, which has the great advantage of being able to adapt and switch between both perspectives. I think that the enrichment of academically privileged professional groups is necessary to be able to effectively translate and apply the findings of science.?

What was the biggest challenge you faced when starting your own business, and how did your academic and research background influence your entrepreneurial journey, either positively or negatively?

My biggest challenge when co-setting up our mental health company ?Lene Health“ was certainly the standards I set myself: I already suspected how big the gap between theory and practice was and how much work this would mean for our company. In addition, I lacked the differentiated business and legal knowledge needed to make reliable business decisions. In an academic degree program, absolute precision, responsibility and integrity are taught, which fell on fertile ground for me as an empathetic perfectionist with a strong sense of justice. In start-up practice in particular, however, this requirement is absolutely impossible with a small budget and minimal personnel capacity. In addition to jumping back and forth between strategic and operational work, this led to a permanently high level of stress, for which no one prepares you during your studies.?

And you did you manoeuvre through these challenges within yourself and your team??

First of all, it makes sense to formulate clear and measurable goals, create appropriate internal structures, adhere to them and implement them in a continuous improvement process. This foundation is supported by effective team communication. This is crucial for the quality of cooperation.?

Founding a start-up comes with its challenges, as you mentioned before. How do you personally balance the demands of running a startup with maintaining your personal life?

During the start-up phase, three decisive factors come together, especially for young founders, which can quickly lead to over-stressing: 1. enthusiasm 2. idealism 3. inexperience. It is therefore highly recommended to look for experienced mentors who can gently introduce the founding team to the reality of the business and at the same time maintain enthusiasm for the idea.

Everyday start-up life is long and intensive. For this reason, the founders themselves should urgently create their own guard rails to protect their private lives: where exactly are the boundaries that are needed to reconcile professional and private life? This should be carefully discussed (and monitored) with the private environment.?

Now let’s go to the main focus of this interview. Female founders are often looked at differently in comparison to the male founders. From a gender perspective, what unique challenges or biases do you think women face in the entrepreneurial world, and how do you see the landscape changing for female entrepreneurs in Germany?

Even though I know that there are still differences in the market, I have hardly noticed any notable differences between male and female founders on our start-up journey. This is certainly due to the fact, that I am firmly in the saddle myself and do not focus on this aspect. The differences that I do notice mainly relate to non-gender-specific aspects such as individual strengths or values. Nevertheless, it is absolutely necessary to continue to strengthen the self-confidence of young female founders and to create structures for equal rights.

I am convinced, that female founders in Germany are (allowed to) become more courageous and that the patriarchy is slowly growing out. Especially when the realisation matures that empathetic managers are needed for the long-term success of a company, I see women in particular being in a more advantageous position in the future.?

Reflecting on your experiences, what advice would you give to aspiring entrepreneurs, especially young women? Are there any key lessons or tips you wish you had received earlier in your journey?

Probably the most important step for an independent female founder who is to be taken seriously is to get rid of your own behavioural dependency. If I, as a businesswoman, am ridiculed by a business partner, the problem is not with me, but with the other party. At this point, it is important to remain objective, maintain a self-confident attitude and (if possible) find alternative business partners.?

Looking ahead, what are your goals for the future, and where do you see the direction of your start-up heading? What changes do you believe are necessary for effectively implementing health protection in companies?

I believe that the (mental) health sector urgently needs a new methodological approach and a state-supported and effectively regulated system for implementing health protection in companies. The market is flooded with offers and buzzwords that, at best, lead to annoyed eye-rolling among managers. Despite already existing legal requirements: Small and medium-sized companies simply cannot afford health, especially against the backdrop of global challenges. The economic thumbscrews are therefore so tight, that (poorly quantifiable) health usually ranks at the bottom of the list of priorities in German commercial enterprises.?

What has been the most rewarding part? Have you noticed any changes in yourself since becoming a founder, and how has this experience shaped you both personally and professionally?

The best thing was the individual (creative) freedom. Even if you are never really free as a commercial service provider, there is a lot of freedom to act and make decisions in a team that you want to be part of. The experience in Business Development is incredibly valuable, as you can't learn it from a textbook.

On our trip, I was able to overcome some personal doubts when I realised for myself that there are a sufficient number of players on the market who, despite having less background knowledge, act much more confidently than I gave myself credit for.?

Previously as we talked about your challenges, you spoke about experienced mentors to guide you & find less problematic business partners. How do you surround yourself with the right community?

There was a whole range of important supporters who accompanied us on our start-up journey: Institutions such as the High-Tech-Incubator BioIntelligence from the University of Hanover, the University of Kassel, the start-up community “Hafven”, the “Osnabru?ck Healthcare Accelerator”, but also reliable service providers and individual mentors who were always on hand to offer us advice and support. It is important to find a trusted circle in which the truth can be put on the table relentlessly and constructive developments for the company can be steered in this way. In the end, we need feedback from outside, as we are always biased in our own perception. Integration into an effective network is therefore essential for the company's development and contributes significantly to the success of a start-up.?

As we conclude, is there anything else you'd like to share with our readers? Any final thoughts or words of motivation for aspiring entrepreneurs?

The journey of starting your own business is exciting and gruelling at the same time, it requires perseverance, sacrifice and resilience. It is precisely in situations of sustained pressure that it becomes clear how important the business idea itself is to you and how well the team really stands together. So invest enough time in the specific start-up topic, team composition and continuous team maintenance - they are the foundation of your success.?

Sources:

Boston Consulting Group. (2023). 4th SISTA x BCG barometer on gender parity for startup creation & funding, covering 5 European countries: France, UK, Germany, Spain, Sweden. Retrieved June 20, 2024, from https://web-assets.bcg.com/e6/b9/ffe9b3724b34860659179a9fd301/sista-x-bcg-barometer-2023-vdef.pdf

KfW Research, & Metzger, G. (2024). KfW-Gründungsmonitor 2024. In KfW-Gründungsmonitor 2024 (p. 1). KfW Bankengruppe. Retrieved June 20, 2024, from https://www.kfw.de/PDF/Download-Center/Konzernthemen/Research/PDF-Dokumente-Gr%C3%BCndungsmonitor/KfW-Gr%C3%BCndungsmonitor-2024.pdf

Kollmann, T., Hirschfeld, A., Gilde, J., Walk, V., Pr?pper, A., Bundesverband Deutsche Startups e.V., & PwC Deutschland. (2023). Deutscher Startup Monitor 2023. Bundesverband Deutsche Startups e.V. Retrieved July 2, 2024, from https://startupverband.de/fileadmin/startupverband/mediaarchiv/research/dsm/dsm_2023.pdf

Niedersachsen.next Startup & NBank (2024). Niedersachsen Startup Monitor 2024. startupdetector. Retrieved July 2, 2024, from https://startup.nds.de/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Niedersachsen-Startup-Monitor-2024.pdf

We hope you enjoyed the second edition of BioIntelligence Digest. We are always happy to receive suggestions and feedback at [email protected] or via our LinkedIn channel.