The Solo Chapter

I’ve spent 16 years helping businesses grow: starting in events and IT, then moving into deep-tech fundraising, and most recently scaling Shutterstock’s EMEA revenue from Munich. Along the way, I’ve focused on sales, strategy, and using data to drive results. I also trained in negotiation at INSEAD, which helped….soften the edges.

But underneath all that structure and scale, I’ve always had the itch to build something of my own. I kept asking myself: What could I create if I stepped outside the safety net?

Leaping into Kernate

At the end of 2024 that question became Kernate. I knew the EMEA market, I was a trained negotiator and consultative seller, and I had years of experience helping businesses make smarter buying decisions. So I thought What if I could help businesses negotiate better terms on the contracts they already had?

A few U.S. startups were working on similar models, but no one had figured out how to make it work in the European market. So I built a website and launched with a simple offer: I either secure you a better deal or you pay nothing. Low risk, high reward.

I could see how this might grow from a one-person consultancy into something more structured. Along the way, I learned that going deep, not wide, is usually easier path when you're working solo. I also stayed open to where the idea might go. That openness pulled me into what some would call proper CustDev, and others might say was being too led by feedback. That probably deserves its own article.

But not long after launch, I started to feel the drag. The level of bureaucracy small businesses face in Germany is hard to describe unless you’ve lived it. I was dealing with endless formal letters: from cookie consent notices and registration requirements to regulatory fine print. None of it had anything to do with the work I was actually doing, but all of it demanded attention.

Ultimately, the market is heavily regulated, compliance isn’t my strength, and I didn’t have the time or budget to manage it all alone. I could spend my energy wrestling with forms, or I could get back to what I do best: turning data into strategy, and strategy into revenue.

Choosing impact over ownership

That realization steered me back toward scale. In the right corporate setting, I can multiply my impact instead of rationing it between accounting codes.

So I’m headed to my next challenge: joining Salesforce’s Professional Services Go-to-Market team. It’s a great match between my skill set and where the market is right now. Businesses are eager to benefit from AI integration, but many struggle to turn it into real ROI. Most providers are stuck at the demo stage, impressive on the surface, but hard to scale. The core issue isn’t the technology itself, it’s secure and reliable access to proprietary data. That’s exactly where Salesforce stands out. The data is already there, along with the workflows that teams rely on every day. Instead of layering on another tool, we have the chance to replace outdated processes with agentic ones right where work is already happening.

I use AI tools daily and genuinely enjoy pushing them to their limits, then guiding them toward something useful. Combined with 16 years of experience in negotiation, data strategy, and go-to-market execution, the fit feels natural. I know how to help customers unlock real value from AI, back it with results, and enjoy the process along the way.

What the solo chapter taught me

• You can’t outrun infrastructure
  Even the brightest idea needs solid pipes: legal, finance, security. If building them slows you down, plug into a system that’s already humming and move faster. Your edge is where you spend energy, not where you lose it.

• Purpose scales
  People respond to transparent, values-aligned solutions—whether they’re buying content or implementing AI.

• Impact has many addresses
  Sometimes it’s just you with a laptop. Sometimes it’s a 70,000-person platform. The real skill is knowing which stage fits the problem you're here to solve.

  The solo chapter was brief but priceless. It reminded me that courage isn’t just about launching. Sometimes it’s about pivoting, choosing scale again, and doubling down on the craft you’ve spent a career sharpening.

  Onward.