The situatiuon: In 10 years, Startnext has grown to become the largest crowdfunding community for ideas, projects, and startups in the German-speaking region. The idea behind Startnext is simple: many people (crowd) finance (fund) an idea, project, or company together. The call “The future belongs to the brave” also challenges the Startnext team to question themselves and move forward with bold ideas. That is why it was time to consider the grown organizational structures. Does it need a different type of leadership? How much and what type of self-organization is possible and helpful? How can teams and all employees work effectively together?

Our contribution: We accompany Startnext in an open-ended process with the goal of developing an organizational form tailored to Startnext. Open-ended because self-organization plays a role; however, in what form self-organization establishes itself, it will only become clear during the process. We work from the inside out after an inspiration workshop by Bettina Rollow for the Startnext team, which means we first build up basic skills, then define guidelines, and only in the last step develop new structures and processes that are helpful for the team. We pay attention to a successful balance of experimenting and reflecting. We use creative and playful methods to make the unspeakable speakable and the intangible tangible. You can find an interim summary here (in German).

Why we enjoy working with Startnext: We work closely with the two internal process facilitators Friederike Klasen and Lilli Landmann. The employees are brave and open towards us, so that even unpleasant things can be addressed. In the reflection loops, we speak honestly and respectfully. At the same time, trust is placed in our expertise, as well as tolerance for the fact that we cannot always know everything immediately. This way, we can actually learn and grow together.