Building the Dream

• Seenons and Beyond

  Jorn Eiting has carved out a unique path in the world of entrepreneurship and business. With a career spanning diverse industries, Jorn eventually co-founded Seenons, a groundbreaking company dedicated to making waste streams more sustainable. After leading the company to success, Jorn decided to take a step back, entrusting Joost to steer the business as he transitioned to a new role. Today, Jorn continues to make an impact as an advisor and investor at ROM InWest, where he supports innovative startups and ventures.In this episode, Jorn shares his journey from a varied career to launching and scaling Seenons, the lessons learned in letting go as a founder, and how he’s channeling his passion for innovation into helping others achieve their dreams. Whether you’re an aspiring entrepreneur or a seasoned founder, Jorn’s story will inspire and offer valuable insights!

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• Engineering Earth's CO2 Future

  I’m thrilled to continue our podcast series with Rob van Straten, CEO of Skytree, a leader in Direct Air Capture (DAC) technology. 🚀Skytree, originally founded by Max Beaumont started as a spinoff from the European Space Agency (ESA) and is leveraging its space-inspired tech to revolutionize carbon capture here on Earth. In this episode, Rob shares his remarkable career journey, from his leadership experiences to his passion for innovative technology. We also dive into the cutting-edge DAC system Skytree is building, designed to capture CO₂ directly from the air at an efficiency level that’s putting them on the fast track to becoming a market leader. 🌍 Apart from that he explains why the business case especially in the Netherlands in so interesting since the greenhouse/horticulture needs added CO2 to grow their products well.Rob offers a behind-the-scenes look at the engineering challenges, the vision that keeps Skytree moving forward, and what it takes to lead a groundbreaking startup - initially for many years without any revenue... Whether you’re fascinated by aerospace innovation or curious about his opinion on the controversy that also exist around DAC technology; this conversation provides a deep dive into the intersection of innovation and leadership. 🎙Thanks Rob for all your insights! I learned a lot. All the best positioning Skytree for long-term success!

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• Turning ESG Data into Business Power

  As we gear up for the Climate Tech Summit on October 22 in Amsterdam, I’m excited to launch a special podcast series featuring five incredible entrepreneurs who are driving real impact through their ventures.In this first episode, I had the privilege of sitting down with Lenny van Klink, the visionary co-founder of Salacia Solutions. 🧜‍♀️Is ESG data or the CSRD just a compliance burden for your organization? 💡 Think again! Lenny explains how rethinking these insights can actually unlock massive business opportunities. 🌱📊We dove deep into his career journey, spanning consultancy and governmental roles, which eventually led to the founding of Salacia, the first ESG tracking & reporting platform capable of handling big data at scale. Their bootstrapped success story is a great inspiration for many other founders.Businesses like Salacia Solutions are transforming the way companies approach sustainability. What’s often viewed as “compliance” can become a powerful competitive advantage for future growth. 🌿💼Thank you, Lenny, for the inspiring conversation and for sharing your invaluable insights. Keep pushing!

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• Vision to Victory

  Michel did everything to nurture his start-up for > 5 years before it could pay him a first salary. Another 7 years later (+- 3 million ARR, + 175 clients and +-3,8 million end users) he did a massive textbook exit.No external startup capitalNo sales & marketingPure focus on building the best productAnd waiting for the momentum…Listen to my latest podcast with Michel Visser, the co-founder of Eesysoft (now Instructure).We talked about his career full of commercial roles that led to the foundation of his first compant Eesysoft together with his partner Jan; how they built that and sold it to a strategic buyer (Instructure) in the middle of the Covid crisis when their business skyrocketed.His time in Purmerend & BarcelonaHow to use your “golden handshake bonus” from your last job to start a businessTaking a job next to your startup to give it time to growWaiting for the momentum to scaleHow to build a great company cultureBeing ghosted during an exit processHow Covid helped Eesysoft to grow and bring exit opportunitiesHow life changed after exitingHis new AI adventures!His biggest failure and best advices (hint; don’t invest in boats)And much more!Eesysoft is a wonderful example of a company that has grown quietly, has made a few small pivots by carefully looking at the needs in the market and has managed to take action at the right time. And all in a very pleasant and controlled way. For me, Michel has always been the epitome of control itself. Much respect for these achievements; and I am very curious to see how Michel's comeback in Edtech will turn out during the current AI revolution.Thanks so much Michel for your time and a highly interesting conversation! 

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• Growing Diamonds

  Ever wondered what those VC’s, business angels or Private Equity guys are looking for and how they operate? Then listen to my latest podcast with Frank Appeldoorn, managing partner at Arches Capital.Arches Capital is a fast growing group of business angels that is bridging the gap between Venture Capitalist (VCs) and Business Angels, by joining the best of both worldsWhat an honor to steal some of his time and learn more about the dynamics of such financing companies!We talked about his career that led to the foundation of Arches Capital, an initially completely bootstrapped company that is building up a pretty successful portfolio of fast growing b2b tech businesses using a deal-by-deal setup. Recently they announced another 20 million fund.His motivation to start this businessWhy he feels more like a psychologist and coach than a financial expertWhat exactly they are looking for in potential founding teamsHow to scout a great new dealHow the selection process worksHow to build a reputation in the marketThe biggest challenges that startups faceHis thoughts on the current economyHis biggest mistakesFinding a balance between family and growing the businessBooks that inspired himAnd much more!Thanks for providing a little more insight into how investors like Arches work. In this series of podcasts, almost every founder that I talked with - at some point in their growth - found reinforcement on the capital market and almost every day I speak to entrepreneurs who are still looking for funding.Focusing on a good product and great traction is one thing; but playing the financial game well remains challenging for many; especially in the first years of a startup! Investors like Arches Capital are truely vital for a healthy tech ecosystem.Thanks so much Frank for your time and a highly interesting conversation! Link to Frank’s book recommendations for startups: Check them here!

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