Innovationsstarter

Svenja Lassen leads Startup City Hamburg and its Startup Services department at IFB Innovationsstarter GmbH, which since January 2026 combines the central platform of Hamburg's startup ecosystem with the former Startup-Unit Hamburg to offer funding, advice, networking, and digital services to founders. She is the founder of the Female Investors Network (FIN), which focuses on visibility, financial education, and support for women in the startup and investment sectors. She also works as a trainer and speaker on topics including diversity and impact investing.

Dörte Bunge is Head of Investments at IFB Innovationsstarter GmbH. She has more than 20 years of experience in the venture capital industry, working with innovative startups.

Jens Breimaier is a Projektmanager for Startup City Hamburg at IFB Innovationsstarter GmbH, where he works to link startups and founders with Hamburg's startup ecosystem. His background includes experience in media, sales, and work as a first responder.

Pauline Gauthier is Programm-Managerin for InnoFounder at IFB Innovationsstarter GmbH. She holds a joint French-German master's degree in International Business and has several years of international experience, including in Singapore and Hamburg, working with startups and small and medium-sized enterprises on growth in domestic and foreign markets.

Ricarda Rattay serves as interim co-lead of Startup City Hamburg at IFB Innovationsstarter GmbH, where she works as project manager for the initiative. Her role focuses on supporting networking within the Hamburg startup ecosystem and on topics including startup development and financing opportunities.

Veronika Reichboth leads the advisory team at IFB Innovationsstarter GmbH in Hamburg. She previously served as Director of the Startup Unit at Hamburg Invest, where she established a platform connecting founders, investors, universities, and corporates. Her work focuses on innovation program design, venture clienting strategies, and public-private partnerships within startup ecosystems.

Katerina Bychkov manages brand strategy and communications at Hamburg Investors Network. Her background includes media operations experience at the 2016 Karate World Championships and 2018 FIFA World Cup, along with research and business development roles supported by a DAAD scholarship at the Higher School of Economics in Moscow and a position at the German-Russian Chamber of Commerce. She has also engaged with startup ecosystem initiatives through WEstartupSH, which supports female entrepreneurs in Schleswig-Holstein.

Sachin Halesh is an automation and integration engineer based in Hamburg pursuing a Master's degree at TUHH while working as an IT automation specialist at IFB Innovationsstaller GmbH. His experience includes SAP S/4HANA integrations at Infosys, ETL pipeline development, and dashboard design using Python, n8n, Power Automate, and Power BI. He is open to full-time positions in IT automation, data engineering, and systems integration across Germany and Europe.

Sören Stelljes works in startup scouting and investor relations at Hamburg Investors Network. His professional interests include early-stage startups, emerging trends, and technology development.

Elizabeth Sigety is a partner at Fox Rothschild LLP, where she chairs the National Emerging Companies & Venture Finance Group and founded and previously led the firm's Franchising, Licensing & Distribution Group; her practice focuses on corporate, business, and financial transactions, and she serves as general counsel to emerging and middle-market companies in the franchise, life science, hospitality, and technology sectors. She is also Managing Director and Co-Founder of the Delaware Crossing Investor Group, an angel investor network based near Philadelphia, and participates in organizations including the Angel Capital Association, the Pennsylvania Angel Network, and the International Franchise Association. Her recognitions include being named a "Recognized Practitioner" for Startups & Emerging Companies by Chambers USA (2017–2019) and a "Legal Eagle" by the Franchise Times (2014–2022).

Katie McGovern is President of Endeavor Health Medical Group Operations, where she oversees strategy, operational alignment, and financial management for Endeavor Health Medical Group. She previously served as EHMG System Vice President for Primary Care, Immediate Care, Occupational Health, and related medical group operations, and has more than 25 years of healthcare experience. She holds a bachelor's degree in accountancy from Northern Illinois University.

Lori Butler is Director of Environment, Health & Safety (EHS) at Clayton Dubilier & Rice. Her work focuses on integrating EHS capabilities and sustainability considerations into business strategy, along with leading change initiatives across multiple geographies and business units.