Founding CEO for corporate spin-off wanted

Chemstars; Leverkusen; Vor Ort; EUR 180.000 - 280.000; Vollzeit

Benefits dieser Stelle

Founder equity participation

Remote work

Zusammenfassung

Chemstars seeks a CEO to lead a stealth spin-off that converts wastewater sludge into critical raw materials, establishing a new category leader in circular resource recovery. The role requires founder-level equity participation, immediate start, and remote work with frequent travel to Cologne/Leverkusen.

You will structure the spin-off, raise capital, and partner with the founding tech team to scale from pilot to industrial deployment while building a capable team and commercial relationships.

Qualifikationen

• Proven track record in building and scaling deep-tech ventures.
• Experience raising capital from VC/PE and strategic investors.
• Comfortable working with scientists and engineers.
• Ability to translate technical realities into commercial strategy.

Aufgaben

• Structure and lead the spin-off with governance and operating model.
• Raise capital for scale-up through demonstration and deployment.
• Translate chemistry process into reliable industrial operation.
• Build relationships with regulators, operators, municipalities.
• Recruit and lead a startup-speed team.

Kenntnisse

Leadership

Fundraising

Strategic thinking

Chemistry background

German language

English proficiency

Jobbeschreibung

- Currently in stealth mode -

Lead the spin-off of a breakthrough industrial technology that converts sewage sludge into critical raw materials and establish a new category leader in circular resource recovery. Founder-level equity participation and substantial value creation opportunity.

Type

Full-time position with attractive equity stake

Start

Immediately

Location

Remote possible, frequent travels to Cologne/ Leverkusen required

Background

By 2029, Germany will require wastewater treatment plants to recover at least 80% of the phosphorus contained in sewage sludge. Yet today, no economically viable industrial-scale solution exists. A technical team inside a speciality chemicals group has spent years quietly solving this: a proprietary carbochlorination process that pulls phosphorus, silicon and other high-value materials out of sewage sludge, turning a compliance cost into a source of critical raw materials. And the opportunity extends far beyond compliance. The technology addresses a rapidly growing European market driven by phosphorus recovery regulation, resource security concerns and increasing demand for critical raw materials.

Traction

The founding team, technology, IP and industrial ecosystem are already in place. What is missing is an entrepreneurial CEO capable of building a venture-backed scale-up and leading it through demonstration, financing and industrial commercialization.

What the venture needs from its new CEO

• Getting the venture out the door. Structure and lead the spin-off itself and build an independent company with its own governance, capitalization, leadership team and operating model, while preserving the strategic relationships and support that made the venture possible.

• Raising money. Shape the investment story and raise the capital required to scale the business through demonstration, first commercial deployment and industrial rollout, bringing together venture capital, strategic investors and non-dilutive funding sources.

• Turning a process into a company. Partner closely with the founding technical team to manage the transition from proven chemistry to reliable industrial operation, the classic first-of-a-kind scale-up problem.

• Opening doors commercially. Build the relationships with wastewater operators, municipalities and industrial customers across Germany and the wider EU needed to turn regulatory pressure into signed contracts.

• Building the team. Recruit and lead a team that can operate with start-up speed while making the most of the venture's corporate origins.

Who we are looking for

There is no single background that fits this role. Strong candidates understand the chemical industry, bring a technical background and may be founders who have scaled deep-tech, climate-tech, industrial-tech or chemistry ventures, senior executives from deep-tech scale-ups ready to take on a CEO role, or investors from VC, PE or family office backgrounds looking to move from the boardroom into an operating leadership position. Above all, we are looking for someone with strong leadership skills who can turn proven technology into a successful company. Beyond background, what actually matters:

• You can take a technology that works and build a company around it. You don't just manage what exists; you create what is missing, whether that's customers, capital, partnerships or talent.

• You've operated in capital-intensive, first-of-a-kind industrial settings before, and you know how different that is from software or asset-light scaling.

• Investors take you seriously because you've raised money yourself, managed investor relationships from the inside, or been the investor.

• If you don't have a chemistry background, you need to be genuinely curious about the technology, comfortable working alongside scientists and engineers, and able to translate technical realities into a compelling commercial strategy.

• You can read European regulation on resource recovery and circularity and see the business opportunity in it, not just the compliance burden.

• Experience with a corporate carve-out or spin-off is a real plus, given the venture's origins.

• Professional English is required; German is a strong plus. Based in Germany or willing to relocate. This is a full-time commitment from the start.

What is offered

• The opportunity to build and lead a venture with breakthrough technology, established IP and strong industrial roots.

• Meaningful founder-level equity participation with significant long-term upside.

• Access to an experienced technical team and industrial ecosystem from day one.

• The chance to create a category-defining European climate and circular economy company.

chemstars has been engaged to find suitable candidates for this role. This is not a chemstars role - the CEO will be employed by, and hold equity in, the new venture itself, not by chemstars. By applying to this position, you agree that your personal information will be shared with the respective corporate partner.

We are committed to equal opportunity and diversity, and we encourage people from all backgrounds, genders, sexual orientations, religions and beliefs, socioeconomic statuses, educational backgrounds, ages, and abilities to apply.