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The Venture Deals Team supports startups, investors and multipliers alike, right from the very beginning - we are your partner when it comes to networking among startups, scale-ups, corporates and investors. We stand by your side as a sparring partner and trusted advisor on the way to your investment. And because we know that this requires a lot of trust, we are happy to introduce ourselves and convince in a personal conversation.
Tim Dieckmann
Entrepreneurial DNA fascinates Tim Dieckmann about the founder scene - perhaps also because he knows how much fun it is to establish a company. As a partner in the Deal Advisory and Venture M&A division at PwC, Tim is also entrepreneurial and has been advising growth companies, financial investors and established companies with an industry focus on technology, media & entertainment for over 15 years.
Together with Enrico Reiche he founded the Venture Deals Advisory division. They support the structuring and execution of financing rounds, M&A transactions and exits of young, fast growing companies with founders, venture capital funds, family offices as well as private and listed companies. As an intrapreneur, Tim established our online valuation platform PwC eValuation in 2016 and knows about the hurdles that need to be overcome when corporate structures and startup initiatives meet. For this innovation, Tim and his team won the Advanced Prototype Award 2017 presented by PwC Global. As a regular speaker on corporate finance, Tim is also keen to pass on this expertise.
I always recommend three elementary things to startup teams:
Focus on finding a compatible investor, especially in the seed round. Receiving the highest possible valuation is secondary. The right investor will help the startup strategically and operationally to make it past the next rounds.
Secondly, never overblow a valuation in early phases. The pressure to get to a comparable level for the next round can break up a well-functioning team.
Finally, carefully consider how much capital actually needs to be raised to reach the next milestone. External investors give money to startups in the confidence that the investment will be sensibly brought to fruition in a short time. Too much money can quickly lead to a misallocation and result in the end of the startup.
Enrico Reiche
It is the innovative power and dynamism in startups that inspires Enrico. With over 12 years of transaction experience, as co-head of the Venture Deals team at PwC, he brings his expertise in venture deals execution and corporate venture capital as well as his network, to create added value for startups, investors and established companies. It is precisely this triad, when it works properly, that he sees as the basis for a continuously growing and successful venture capital ecosystem. As head of Raise, the PwC fundraising program, he supports and accompanies B2B SaaS startups in their first institutional financing round.
For me and most startup investors, the innovative power of startups is a constant source of inspiration. This inspiration must be put into practice together with the right partner. In addition to selecting the right partner, it is crucial for me to accompany the growth story over the long term and lead it to success after the investment has been made.
Dr. Anne-Kathrin HinzeHelping enthusiasts and visionaries turn their ideas into reality and lead them to success - that's what Anne enjoys most about her work. In the Venture Deals team, she supports startups in financing rounds with her expertise to guide them successfully through the entire investment process. Anne also focuses her work in the valuation of young growth companies in M&A transactions, exits or other valuation events. Therefore, she also manages our online valuation platform, PwC eValuation, internationally and is the first point of contact for the startup valuation methods used. In addition to her work at PwC, Anne is involved in the startup ecosystem and connects startups, corporates and investors through her work in various organizations - such as the Hamburg Junior Chamber. In addition, Anne has been convinced, not only since completing her doctorate in the field of corporate sustainability, that startups not only have the potential to scale successful business models with their innovations, but also to contribute to a more sustainable future and a better tomorrow.
A successful investment is characterized by the fact that both sides benefit from each other. If it's the right match, startups have found a partner who helps them to master the next development steps in the best possible way, and investors benefit - be it strategically or financially - again from exactly this success!
Venture capital is and remains venture capital, but careful investor selection can take a little "risk" out of the equation for both sides.
Christoph Haß
New visions, ideas and challenges are Christoph’s passion. The founder and startup lobbyist has been with PwC for a 3 years and since then has been involved with nothing but the startup ecosystem. Before PwC, Christoph built up a company himself and served on the advisory boards of several startups. His goal is to connect startups with corporates and investors and to minimize the founders' burdens so that they can concentrate on scaling up the business model. At PwC, Christoph mainly accompanies financing rounds and is responsible for PwC's scale programs throughout Germany. In addition to his work, he is socially engaged in the topic of entrepreneurship and considers himself as a startup lobbyist.
I am convinced that investments are a signpost for young companies. It defines on how quickly and successfully an idea can grow. Therefore, it is my incentive to first consider, together with the startups, which investor is the right fit before we then start to address them directly.
Florian NöllIf you started your first own startup as a student, were called a "founding routinier" by the Handelsblatt at the age of 22 and helped to build up your own venture capital fund, you can pass on a lot of knowledge. Florian drives it to create connections between the next generation of entrepreneurs on the one hand, who put their own ideas into practice with maximum passion and a lot of courage, and experienced entrepreneurs and managers on the other hand, who also support these movers and shakers with passion as well as knowledge, capital and their good name. And, of course, profit from this themselves: After all, in addition to providing access to new technologies and business areas, a startup can facilitate the company's own research and development activities. Florian Nöll knows that win-win situations are not only possible in theory, but that there are many practical examples of this from his deep knowledge of the German startup ecosystem, which he acquired as the long-standing chairman of the startup association he founded. Today, he still advises the German government on digital and startup policy issues.I'm confident that by working together, today's market leaders and startups can bring about the most successful innovations.
Saul Nowotny
Understanding both sides of the table when advising on venture topics is crucially important to create sustainable win-win situations for all parties involved.
Being authentic and having gained real world experiences is therefore the most crucial quality an external consultant can offer to founders, investors and corporates alike, especially when combined with a true passion for technology.
Before Saul joined PwC he founded two startups himself and subsequently helped build up the corporate venture activities for a major DAX 30 company. When distributed ledger technologies gained traction Saul joined a blockchain consulting firm to lead their investment efforts before moving into an international bank where he served as Vice President for the tech industry.
Saul holds a Master in Finance degree from WHU – Otto Beisheim School of Management.
Besides a fantastic team and an innovate product that has the potential to change the world financing is one of the biggest determinants of startup success and therefore needs to be on top of mind when founders plan to scale their operation and become an international success.
Having an experienced partner on board that is willing to align his incentives with those of the company can take a huge burden off of the founding team so they can focus on what matters most – building and scaling a great company that creates a ton of value for its customers.
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