Three Steps Ahead - Carica GmbH

Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in business development but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Ernesto Schmutter, Founder of Carica GmbH, located in Ergolding, Bayern, Germany.

What's your business, and who are your customers?

I am running a consulting company. We help our customers match their strategy with their corporate culture and execution. Our Customers range from mid-market to large enterprise sizes from all industries. Our passion is to develop an authentic leadership culture that inspires people to contribute to the company's soul actively and let strategy and execution go hand in hand.

Tell us about yourself

I was making my way in a large corporation from a key account manager to the Leader of one of its most significant countries. After many years, I didn't feel that I could develop further within the given corporate context. So I started my own business and focused on start-ups and mid-market companies.

I immediately detected a considerable demand for my services and people with my background. To my customers, I must have operational experience as they have had unsatisfying experiences with large Consulting Companies, where Managers and employees predominantly come directly from Universities and have never worked outside of the consulting space.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

This isn't easy to answer because there are so many. They all have in common that the Members of the Executive Staff, their 2nd and 3rd leadership layers, become real teams, having the same understanding of the company's strategy, following the same targets, and living the same company culture. I also developed individuals 2 or 3 levels up on their career paths in very successful cases.

What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?

Every phase has its challenges. In the beginning, it was the trust-building part. I needed to make my potential customers confident that I walked the talk as a one-person show. Once I had a solid customer base, finding employees with a similar background and sharing my founding spirit was the most challenging.

What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?

Be confident about the basics: Your products satisfy existing demands. Love what you are doing. You have defined a corporate Strategy/culture, and you live it. Make sure to don't compromise on this when selecting your staff.
Build an identification scheme with your potential customer groups.
Don´t wait for the perfect moment to start.

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://www.ernesto-schmutter.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/caricaconsulting
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ernesto_schmutter_3stepsahead/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/ernestoschmutte
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/carica/

If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.

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